If you want to be one of the relatively small number of people who avoid these everyday traps and make a real success of their business then read on…
Stephen Covey developed a simple but brilliant matrix looking at how we can classify tasks in terms of their urgency and importance and this is shown below.
My experience from working with hundreds of businesses is that in the frenetic pace of life too many people get addicted to urgency and, like most addictions, there is a huge price to pay.
Having worked with hundreds of business owners I recognise only too well the long hours many of them work. Often, they spend a huge proportion of their time firefighting, dealing with important issues that have become urgent, in other words crises. It’s no fun, not very rewarding, stressful and inevitably leads to burn-out. Once these crises are out of the way the majority then catch up with other less important but equally urgent issues. Who deems them to be urgent or on what basis does not seem to matter? Someone wants an answer and they want it now. There are so many channels of communication to make those demands of you if you allow it to happen. That’ll keep you busy until early evening when you can go home, exhausted and with that feeling of,
“I never did a single thing that I planned to do today but never mind there’s always tomorrow”
What’s that other expression?
“Tomorrow never comes”
If you want to carry on pretty much as you are then convincing yourself that it’s impossible to change because there’s always too much to do, then carry on as you are. If you want to break this ‘victim’ mentality, make those step changes in income and quality of life that focussing on Quadrant 2 activities of Planning and Relationship Building can bring.
Make that commitment to yourself now and break the exhausting, stressful cycle you may be gravitating towards where one week looks very much like the next and not much of it feels that great.
But for most people who have been dragged into this dark cycle finding a way out can seem impossible. An external perspective often provides the illuminating insights required.
If you want some help in switching on the light then give me a call or drop me a line at Gary@flourishcoaching.co.uk, let’s have a coffee. I’m always happy to help people who want to make that meaningful step change in their business and quality of life.