Productivity

   

Hello Friends!  Have you ever spent your day rushing around, only to lay down in bed at night and wonder if you got anything at all done?  I know I have, and if you are like most of us, you've probably done this more often than you want to admit.  We live in a society that wears busyness like a badge of honor.  But are we really helping ourselves with all this craziness?  Or are we just making ourselves stressed out and tired but no farther ahead?  We continually spend so much time rushing from one thing to the next, and we never stop to ask ourselves if what we are doing is actually productive.  It seems the squeaky wheel gets the grease, and whatever yells the loudest in our lives gets the attention.  But what if we changed our mindset, stopped being continually busy, slowed down, and accomplished more by doing less?  Is this possible? Yes.  But it will take a little bit of work and effort on your part.  Here are three strategies I learned from experts which have helped me take my life to another level of productivity. 

  The first key to getting our lives out of the rat race and into the state of productivity is to determine what it is we are actually trying to accomplish.  Once you know your goals you can center you activities around them.  But how do you know if you're progressing toward your goals? Jack Canfield says in The Success Principles, "Keep score on the five things that would advance your personal and professional objectives the most." So ask yourself, what five activities are the markers of my top objectives?  Then make it your aim to prioritize those each day.  This will allow you to go to bed knowing you have accomplished the most important things and moved yourself one step closer to your goals.  

  Once you know your top priorities, you still need to make them happen within the framework of your day, and this can be difficult to do without a schedule.  You may have great intentions at the beginning of your day, but if you don't have a plan, it's likely you will get pulled away into doing other things and either forget or run out of time for what's important.  There are so many tools and strategies for scheduling your life, and you need to find one that works for you.  However, the one I have found most beneficial for me is something called Time Mapping which I learned from Terri Savelle Foy.  You can get the free download which she uses (and I do too) to schedule your week and prioritize your goals each day in the link provided. Time Map - Terri Savelle Foy Ministries | www.terri.com You know the saying.  "If you fail to plan, you plan to fail." 

    The last way to be more productive and less busy may actually surprise you because it seems like the opposite of getting things done.  But this one tip which I learned from Joyce Meyer can make a world of difference in your day.  Schedule yourself margins.  What does that mean?  Give yourself more time than you think you need, and provide buffers of ten to fifteen minutes between activities.  Too often when we find ourselves rushing around it's because we crammed too many things into the day, and we can't get them all done.  This causes us to be stressed, overwhelmed, and to make careless mistakes in our haste.  Give yourself more time than you need, and you will be able to flow through your day peacefully.  This will also prevent you from being in a hurry and snapping at others who may slow you down.  If you've built extra time in, you won't be thrown into a panic when your coworker asks for help on a project or your child needs last minute art supplies from the store.  Build margins into your schedule and you will thank yourself later. 

  We live in a world that is always pushing us to do more. Don't let your life keep rushing by in a blur. Ask yourself what your most important priorities are, and be willing to let the less important things slide.  Make a plan to keep yourself on track, and be sure to give yourself some wiggle room within your day.  It's time to stop rushing and start accomplishing.  Let go of busy and become productive.  I can't wait to see you succeed!

~K.L.W.