Productive Entrepreneur vs Busy Entrepreneur; Get More Done, Doing Less.
New founders usually jump into their venture full of zest and enthusiasm, throwing their energy at anything and everything they think will help them grow (or reach break-even).
After the honeymoon phase of launching a new project, we can often find ourselves “pushing through” long days packed with tasks and To Do’s we tell ourselves must be done in order to get to where we are headed.
The “busy” entrepreneur is a dangerous role to play.
Busy is often a guise for doing*,* to feel we are progressing and can lure us into believeing we’re doing what’s best for our business and ourselves.
In reality, less is more for the successful entrepreneur.
We want to avoid burnout, increase productivity and cultivate that initial energy and enthusiasm for as long as possible and live as a successful founder should live, working on the business not in it.
Here’s how.
Where Busy Entrepreneurs Are Failing
Most of us initially believe; the more we do, the more that gets done. The more we get done, the closer we get to our goals.
Wrong.
When we are in doing mode, goals become the horizon: they keep moving away from us.
Why?
There is always more to do.
There is always another idea to try, a tool to test or prospect to pitch.
As a result, entrepreneurs pack their days with tasks and jam their schedules with back-to-back To Do’s every 30 mintutes.
This makes us feel busy and relevant. It feeds our ego.
From this place, it’s only a matter of time until the pressure of keeping up with this routine gets the better of us:
Something takes longer than usual like an unexpected family commitment or a logistic complication disrupts the day, and then we’re behind and playing catch up.
We start feeling disappointed, then defeated and spiral down.
Burnout beckons.
Become A Productive Entrepreneur
My experience with my own businesses and supporting my clients has shown me that less is more when it comes to building a profitable and automated business.
Being a productive entrepreneur means achieving more in less time. It means doing what actually matters rather than completing a To Do list.
It is totally different from being a busy entrepreneur.
Productive, “Being able to produce a large amount…” - Cambridge Dictionary
I’m going to share my practical solution and then the real solution to ensure this become your identity rather than a quick-fix.
How I stay productive vs busy.
As part of my morning routine, I dedicate 20 mins to planning my work day. I go through these 5 steps to plan effectively:
Review my vision - what is the purpose of the project and how close are we to that vision?
Review Goals / Milestones - Which 3 actions directly impact creating the vision?
Short-term Goals - Which of these 3 is most relevant / impactful right now?
Actions - Repeat step 2 for the 1 goal.
Schedule - Schedule these actions in order of priority in my day.
The key here is scheduling a maximum of 2 to 3 tasks in step 5.
If you are really doing meaninful tasks that take you closer to your vision, you probably won’t be able to do more than 3 in any one day (without destroying yourself).
If you complete your 3 tasks, you should be able to hang your hat at the end of the day and feel accomplished, knowing you are one day closer to your destination.
BONUS : Focus On Being More Than Doing
The word Productivity collocates with the verb “To Be”. Productivity is an act of being, yet we always focus on the doing part.
Once I have completed the above 5 steps, I ask myself this one question, “Who do I need to Be, to do this?”
This reflection on my state of being impacts my behaviour and how I show up.
It helps me bring my best self to work
Action
This process has not only helped me be more productive, it has helped spark a positive-production cycle. It has drastically reduced my stress levels allowing a clearer mind which makes for deeper focus, higher quality work and most importantly, I enjoy the process a lot more.
Making time to go through the steps isn’t easy when you start, like any habit.
Set a 10 minute timer and see what you achieve in this timeframe. See how it feels.
If you get that dopamine rush, it’ll be easier to do and be, 1% more the next day and on it goes.
Be productive.
Wishing you the absolute very best,
Stefano