Wondering if you’re the only decision maker suffering from conditions causing you to not get work done? Guess what? You’re not alone.
The boundaries and edges of leadership roles are not clearly defined, causing executives to have multiple responsibilities. New tasks and projects are continuously piled on before older issues are resolved. If you do not have a strategy in place, these common threats will eventually impede your productivity and full potential.
Difficulty prioritizing tasks
Challenges with focus
Overwhelmed due to no boundaries
Poor self-management
Lack of consistency
No structure
Easily distracted
Spend too much time on projects that are insignificant or irrelevant to business growth
Indecisive/analysis paralysis
Examine your behaviors and determine how many of these traits inhibit your productivity. Then, develop tools that keep them at bay, so you have more control of the outcome.
Below are some suggestions I encourage my clients to practice.
- Make a list of what needs to be done and practice the “do it, delegate it, or defer it” method.
- If you are the one who must “do it”, hold yourself accountable and write what action you are going to take to get the task done as well as the timeline.
- Remove yourself from distractions. Work in a quiet, comfortable temperature space, and turn your phone on silent/do not disturb. Work in 2-hour increments. Work for 2 hours then give yourself a break. Get up, walk around, and move for 15-30 minutes then get back to work.
- Do not overthink. If you find that you are spending too much time on one project, come back to it, move forward with it, or strike it from the list. This analysis paralysis can be detrimental to your business and often opportunities are missed due to too much time being spent on over-analyzing.
- Be a creature of routine and habit. Get 7-8 hours of sleep, proper nutrition, 96-110 oz of water, and practice diaphragm breathing techniques (in your nose and out your mouth) to calm your nervous system down and decrease stress.
