Getting More Done

Posted by Amanda Pryor | Posted in Productivity | Posted on 19-11-2009-05-2008

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Productivity is all about getting things done, but it’s not just how much gets done. It also depends on what gets done.

A lot of people spend all day being very busy and they can actually say that they got a lot done, but can they say they what they should have done got done?

If you spend all day checking your email, you may be very busy. You may be constantly answering customer questions or researching new products. There are a lot of things that will keep you busy and it seems that they are endless.

But you have to prioritize what you are doing to make sure the important things get done.

Stephen Coveys Quadrants

If you categorize all your tasks as important or unimportant, then also categorize them as urgent or not urgent, you can fit all your tasks into one of the quadrants of the chart to the right.

Most people spend their lives in the Important Urgent quadrant. They jump from one urgent important task to the next with occasional interruptions by urgent unimportant tasks like a phone call from a friend.

Ideally, you want to be able to spend a lot of time in the Not Urgent Important quadrant. This is when you can do your strategizing to grow your business. If you are always busy handling urgent important tasks, you will never have a chance to grow.

In order to get more time in the sweet spot of important not urgent work, you need to systematize your day-to-day urgent important tasks so you can get them done quickly.

Then schedule them at a time when you can get the most done without interruption leaving more time free to handle your important not urgent business.

As a bonus, once you have your tasks systematized they can easily be delegated to others. If you don’t have a staff to handle these tasks, you can outsource them. The key to successful outsourcing is to have a good system that you can use to communicate exactly what needs to be done and how it should be done.

I will be posting more about outsourcing in the near future. I am working on a project to help entrepreneurs build systems to grow their businesses by outsourcing. Allen Davis The Productivity Engineer

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Do You Use Checklists?

Posted by Amanda Pryor | Posted in Productivity | Posted on 18-11-2009-05-2008

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Anytime you can offload things you need to remember from your head onto paper (or your computer), the more you set yourself up for taking action.

Your brain hates stress, and having to remember all the details related to preparing your taxes, or everything you need to schedule, reserve, and buy for a vacation just weighs you down.

Checklists help you get rid of a lot of this stress by acting like a ‘mini-blueprint’ you can easily follow anytime you need it, without the worry that you’re forgetting something important.

For any process or sequence of actions you perform on a regular basis, take a little time to create a checklist for it and use it as needed. It may take a little time to create initially, but it will save you gobs of time and energy in the long-run.

If you need a bit of inspiration when creating your checklists, just search Google for some ideas. For example, to create a travel checklist, begin by searching Google for travel checklist. You’ll find plenty of ideas for things to add to your own.

To help you take greater control of your time, so you can begin enjoying more of your life on YOUR terms. Here’s a page that reveals a simple 3-step system that is hands-down one of the best ways for getting things done.

Click here to visit it now (you’ll need a simple notepad and a timer, like an egg timer):

Action Machine Pro

All the best,

Allen Davis
ProductivityEngineer.com

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Time Management and Productivity

Posted by Amanda Pryor | Posted in Productivity, Time Management | Posted on 17-08-2009-05-2008

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Time Management and Productivity are two peas in a pod. It’s very hard not to spill over into the other when you deal with either issue. That is why Productivity is the next area we will be dealing with. The best way to separate the two areas of activity is this way:

Time Management deals with setting up the blocks of time.

Productivity deals with what goes on inside those blocks of time.

As we move forward dealing with Productivity we will touch on issues that are covered in detail in the Power Time System. If you are a visitor to that site, you will already be familiar with what we have covered on that site. If not, visit, The Power Time System and spend some time looking at what we have to offer there.  We will be referencing aspects of the Power Time System and it will be beneficial to your understanding of this topic to be familiar with that System as well.

Let’s take a quick look at some of the areas we will be covering here.

Accomplishing More

Isn’t this the key? It does not matter what it is, we want to get more accomplished, and we want to get more done in less time. Achieving both goals is difficult. We will be dealing with both aspects of wanting to accomplish more.

Maximizing Our Efforts

We want to get the maximum benefit to ourselves from the energy and effort we expend. If I work hard for 3 hours, I want to ensure that my results will reflect the time and effort that I invested. Invested is a word we will be using as we show ways to get the most from the time and energy you spend.

The Maximizing Factor

How do I maximize myself? How do I maximize those that work with me and for me? There are several ways to do this and we will show you how to use these techniques to get the most out of your effort and time. I will tell you one of the more powerful tools and it may surprise you. Two workers doing the same job, one consistently produces more, why? The worker who produces more is usually the worker who has a clearer understanding of what his task entails. He will, all in all likelihood, be more trained and more skilled as well.

Work Smarter, Not Harder

There is always a right way to do a task and there is always a less than right way to do it. You always want to be the person who looks at a task or job and says “I can do that better, or faster, or more efficiently”. There are times when you need to just put your head down and get at it, no question about that. There are more times though when spending time on thinking about ways to improve and do it better will reap substantial returns compared to the wasted effort of not spending a little time in advance of doing the task.

Productivity and Management

These words go hand in hand. Managers have to manage if they want to get the Productivity they expect. Time and time again I look at companies and see the results they are getting and then have to listen to owners and managers complain about the output from their employees. The first area that I look at is the IMPACT that the managers and owners have in the production process. Far too often, staff is left to basically shift for themselves. We will show you the methods and tools that will impact your production process and increase your output substantially.

Organize Your Time To Organize Their Time

This statement has far reaching implications for you and your productivity. Whether you are looking at getting more done yourself, or you are managing any number of employees, organization is a key element in maximizing your efforts and getting the biggest bang for the smallest buck invested. Done right, organizing, especially prior to the activity, will virtually guarantee that you will reap the greatest rewards from the minimum effort and time expended. We will show you how to get those maximum returns.

Maximum Productivity Requires Perseverance and Commitment

Productivity is all about action. Action requires effort, could be mental, could be physical, and is usually both. You have to be committed to the task and then you have to hang in there to get the results you want. We are talking about getting maximum results, we are talking about getting that last 3 or 4% more out of an hours labor. The last 3 or 4 % could be the difference between a profit and a loss.

Bryan Beckstead is the creator and developer of the Power Time System and the Power Productivity Maximizer and has been involved in the Self Improvement and Self Empowerment industries for almost 35 years. His aggressive, in-your-face approach has earned him a reputation as someone who will give you the facts without the usual sugar coating. If you are really serious about improving your quality of life, visit him at http://www.powertimesystem.com

“How we use our time determines our destiny”
Bryan Beckstead

Our Goal at the Power Time System is to work with you to achieve a clearer understanding of the role time and how our use of it plays in reaching your goals in life.

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