Over the last 3 months or so, several members and clients have been sharing that they don’t seem to be as productive in completing their daily tasks. Of course, this has a trickle-down effect and it can impact your sense of well-being, as well as your income stream.
Let’s keep it real! If you’re not completing the to-do items that support your business goals and daily workflow, it means you’re not GETTING THINGS DONE!
I know, it’s hard to read the above statement, because you genuinely are giving it your best to be productive for your business – right? Many businesswomen have discovered that when you’re the owner and you have many hats to wear, it can become a challenge.
So, how does a businesswoman complete all of her to-do items, meetings, and activities?
In his book, Getting Things Done (GTD), author David Allen shares “Your brain is great at thinking, but terrible at remembering things”. He says it’s essential to ensure you have the right workspace, tools, and filing system in place.
So, it all starts with having a clean desk space, tools like your calendar, business journal or planner, timer, and a filing system like Google Drive, Dropbox, or another cloud storage system of your choice. The point here is that you can’t get more productive when you have not set the environment to be that way.
5 Simple Steps To Get Started With the GTD System
Below are simple and easy steps to follow from the Getting It Done book. They might just be the answer to helping you feel and be more productive!
Step 1: Capture
Oftentimes, there can be a lot of information and ideas swirling around in your head. When it is all cluttered, you will be unable to fully make sense of it all and act on it. That is why it is so important for you to do a ‘brain dump’.
Write down all the information and ideas that are in your head and continue to do so when new ideas arise. Personally, I use google calendar, a monthly planner (large blocks), and my daily business journal. This helps me to unpack all of the ideas in my head, create a safe space to store them, and also prepare me for the next steps.
Step 2: Clarify
After unpacking all of that information, it is now time to make sense and gain clarity of it all. What needs your immediate attention, what can be more of a long-term task, and what can be removed?
The best way to achieve this is by getting tasks that are less time-consuming done right away, assigning due dates to tasks that need a little more time, as well as delegating tasks. Removing tasks that are no longer needed also plays a huge role in your ability to move forward.
Ensure that you create concise, specific, and actionable tasks. This way you won’t forget the specifics of your task. For example, I highlight all tasks that deserve attention in yellow and then create an idea sheet in google docs for ideas that will not be addressed right away.
Step 3: Organize
I know there are people who believe they work well in the clutter but are they actually getting things done? When all your information is organized, you will have a clear understanding of what needs to be done and when. In organizing, you can put your tasks into categories such as fixed tasks, projects, and tasks that should be delegated.
Always remember to add context to your tasks. This is outlining the specifics of what you will need to do to get the job done. It can be very tempting to simply write down a task, however, more than one task can be similar in nature. Therefore, to remove the potential for confusion, outline your tasks clearly.
Step 4: Review
This step is essential in keeping your GTD system going. Review your lists once or twice daily to ensure that everything is in place. Reassess frequently to remove any task that has been completed or that is no longer needed. Reflecting on your list allows you to not only measure what you are getting done, but also that they are getting done in the right way.
Step 5: Engage
This is where you get to take action towards your success. Through all the steps that you took before getting to this point, you should now be able to complete actionable tasks without having to make a lot of decisions. Be sure to mark tasks as done once you have completed them and add new ones. The process of engaging will keep you in a mode of taking action on your tasks, which in turn allows you to continuously get things done in your business!
The GTD system is being utilized by many successful businesswomen today. If you really do find that your business seems to be stuck and that you don’t seem to be moving forward as you should; start this system NOW.
I look forward to you sharing the great news of all this system has done for you!
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