Spring is officially underway and that means it time to do a little spring cleaning in your business. We\u2019re not talking about breaking out the mop and bucket \u2013 we\u2019re talking about looking at your business and cleaning out the clutter. Take a few minutes to think about your business. What junk is clogging up the flow of your business? What useless clutter is keeping you from being as effective as you could be?<\/p>\n
But before we can do any cleaning, what is clutter? Are we talking about the coats and snow boots that have made their home in your entryway? Or the piles of papers you have sitting on your desk? At The Growth Coach, we see clutter as the trivial and unimportant tasks we embark on each and every day. It\u2019s all those things that scream for your attention and keep you from thinking strategically. Clutter defines all the low-value jobs that an owner and business leader should be delegating to someone else.<\/p>\n
Look at your day and think about where you\u2019re spending your time. What is YOUR clutter? Here\u2019s some of the common clutter we come across at The Growth Coach: excessively checking emails, playing on your smart phone, doing hourly administrative types of tasks, doing other people\u2019s jobs, solving the problems other created, doing mindless trips or chores, surfing the web, roaming the office and spending the day putting out fires. Are these tasks helping you achieve your goals? Or are they just habits that are cluttering your days and your business?<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s a Spring Cleaning Challenge for you \u2013 Embrace the 80\/20 reality.<\/p>\n
Did you know that 80 percent of your results come from only 20 percent of your talents and activities? That means 80 percent of the things you do every day qualifies as clutter. You\u2019re wasting your time, energy, talents and money. Stop spending your time on the wrong kind of work! If you delegated those unimportant, non-owner tasks, you could focus your time on strategic opportunities like leading, marketing, selling, systematizing, planning and more. And it would certainly give you more time to spend with your family!<\/p>\n
Once a month, spend 15 minutes writing down all the clutter in your professional and personal life. What is wasting your time and talents? What work should you NOT be doing? What diversions are keeping you from being your most productive? Look honestly at that list and accept the truth. If you were to eliminate that clutter, what could you accomplish? How successful could you and your business be?<\/p>\n
When you\u2019ve identified the clutter you can eliminate, create yourself a \u201cnot-to-do list.\u201d There will be tasks on that list that need completed, but you shouldn\u2019t wear every hat in your business. Delete those tasks or delegate them to others. If that\u2019s not possible, at least commit to spending less time on those tasks.<\/p>\n
If you find that you\u2019re having trouble letting go, delegating tasks and figuring out which tasks are VITAL to your business, it\u2019s time to set up a free consultation with your local Growth Coach. Spring cleaning is the perfect way to set you up for a more successful 2014.<\/p>\n