As the new year gets up and fully running, I'd like you to reflect on a couple of important questions with me...Why do some people get so much more done than others? What makes those certain people so highly productive and the rest of the word just "ho-hum" or worse - unproductive?  

 

While I am sure many of us would have an opinion on the answers, something that I have consistently found is that highly productive individuals and business leaders know the value of their time and they make a concentrated effort to use it properly. They make strategic choices on how they use their time, and they set good boundaries so they are making the most of the time they have.

 

A terrific tool I use to help move clients in this direction is a Daily Breakdown of Activities log. I find that if an individual or a business leader wants to make the most of their time, they must start by knowing what currently fills their time. Only then can they make strategic choices about what they are doing. This awareness can really transform how you structure your day, what you delegate and where you plug in the expertise of others. Until you have this awareness, it is impossible to properly decide what needs to stay in your days and what needs to change.  

 

Years ago when I first did this exercise myself I was amazed at what it showed me. By logging everything I was doing every day for two weeks, I began to see that I was spending an excessive amount of time answering phone calls which resulted in my remaining in a reactive position. With this knowledge, I began to set serious boundaries on my time and would schedule blocks of time from 30 minutes up to 2 hours (depending on the project), in which I was in a "Do not Disturb" mode. During this time no one was permitted to interrupt me and I would take absolutely no calls. This revolutionized my business and productivity.

 

So today I want to share with you my Daily Breakdown of Activities template (click here for your copy) so you can get a handle on how to best spend your time in the new year. Keep in mind, the best thing to do is log EVERYTHING for two weeks (If you can't commit to two weeks, then at least try to commit to one week) in 15 minute intervals before you can properly assess what you need to be doing differently to make the most of your time.