If you’ve ever gotten to the end of the day and looked back wondering what you achieved then this post is for you. Many of us make the mistake of believing that being busy means you are making moves. But there’s a difference between being busy and making progress, just like there’s a difference between treading water and actually swimming somewhere. If you find yourself constantly working but struggling at really getting stuff done in your business then listen up!
There are a few tricks that I’ve picked up particularly over the past few months (if you missed the memo, this will be my 80-something blog post in 80-something days). So what have I learned along the way?
Here’s a few tips for actually getting stuff done in your new online business.
1. Leave your phone in another room.
We all know that one of the biggest distractions to achieving anything these days is the dreaded curse of the smartphone. It’s both a wonderful tool and a total liability to making progress if you don’t set boundaries for its use.
I can honestly say that on the days I choose to do work with my smartphone on the desk next to me, things take 2-3 times longer than when I leave the phone far away from me.
2. Set yourself a timer.
I use this awesome app called Focus Keeper but even your oven timer or alarm clock will do the trick. I like Focus Keeper in particularly because it has this extra annoying (but super effective) ticking sound that serves as a constant reminder to stay on task.
Not only does setting a timer help you to focus but it also challenges you to get the work done in a faster time period.
3. Challenge yourself.
As I was saying, challenging yourself to reach certain goals in a particular time frame is a powerful way to start getting stuff done in a shorter time.
If you’re anything like me then you thrive on a little challenge and you relish the reward of seeing a goal accomplished. If you’re thinking to yourself, “No, I don’t like a challenge” then do yourself a favor and just try it out! You might be surprised by how satisfying it really feels.
4. Focus on one thing.
I really believe that having a dirty long laundry list of goals to achieve each day is one of the biggest barriers to our success.
If you’re looking at your daily to-do list and there’s more than 3 main items then you’re likely doing yourself a disservice.
The most powerful decision I made in the past 3 months was to focus on completing one task per day before allowing anything else to come into my focus.
5. Enlist some help.
Sometimes the work gets hard, and sometimes there’s more of it than you can even handle. Sometimes you just need a helping hand to lift you up out of the overwhelm.
It might be time to hire a coach to help you get clear on your business message or offerings, or to find someone to help you hands on in your business like a virtual assistant, web designer or copywriter.
Don’t be hesitant about seeking out the support you need to keep moving forward in your business. You can thank me for this suggestion later!
