Priorities: the Secret to a Better Business (and Life)

Living the best life you possibly can is all about how you prioritize.

Business owners often complain that they’re always running out of time.

That’s because they’re not clear about their priorities.

So they tend to respond to the next thing that comes up – whatever it happens to be.

If this describes you, it’s time to stop letting other people and circumstances dictate how you spend your time.

Here’s how to set priorities, focus on what matters, and take the right actions every day.

1. Set your priorities every day

No one, not even the smartest, most organized person in the world, can have 150 priorities and expect to attend to all of them, let alone move forward with them.

By focusing on everything, you focus on nothing.

Here are the key questions you should ask yourself – every day – so you can get your priorities clear:

1. What are the most important results I need to get today?
2. What activity gets me there?
3. How much of that activity and how do I match my time?
4. How do I schedule my time so that it matches or answers those three questions?

2. Plan your week

Take some time before the beginning of each week to think about what’s coming up for your week.

What priorities do you have?

What are the most important results you need to see?

Then you map out your plan for the week.

3. End your day by planning for tomorrow

Go through a similar exercise during the last 10 minutes of every work day to prepare for the following day.

Make tomorrow’s list today while it’s still fresh in your mind’s eye.

Getting your thoughts out of your head is going to set up tomorrow for success, and it’s also going to let you sleep easier because your stress levels will go down once all those tasks are out of your head.

You’ll find, too, that while you sleep, your brain subconsciously is working on that list.

And in fact, you’ll often wake up with one or two really great insights or ideas about how you could solve a problem you’ve been wrestling with.

Start each day with energy and focus

When you get to the office every morning, your list is waiting for you – so you’re not spending the first 30 minutes of the day thinking, “what am I doing today?”

You’re immediately energized and focused, because you’ve got a clear plan for how to spend your day.

The most successful people get that way because they’re disciplined and systematic about their priorities and how they use their time.

You can do it too.

If you’d like to see how business coaching could help you refine your focus, I invite you to book 15 minutes on my calendar to chat: book time with John.