Increasing Productivity

Letting Go of What is Keeping You Stuck

October 17 in Business and Marketing Coach, Business Strategies, Increasing Productivity by Bria | No Comments

There is enormous freedom in letting go.  It is liberating to rid ourselves of beliefs, habits or people that distract us from the right direction in our lives and in our businesses.  To figure out what you need to let go of- ask yourself these questions: What is holding you back from the success you want? What is holding you back from the happiness you deserve?

Don’t just settle for the quick answers.  Spend some time to go deeper.  Often, the answer lies in uncovering your own beliefs that are keeping you stuck.  For example, are you afraid that you don’t have what it takes to become really successful in this economy?  Do you believe that you don’t need to hire more help, even though you are exhausting yourself, because “I can do it quicker myself”. Do you feel like you are too busy to really enjoy your life?   Are you reluctant to invest in a coach to hold you accountable to goals because you “don’t have the time?”

If you answer yes to any of these self-limiting beliefs, you are keeping yourself stuck.  Until you let go of these beliefs, you will continue to cultivate habits and surround yourself with people who also perpetuate these beliefs.  In short, you will continue to stay where you are, rather than grow.

On the other hand, if you fully commit to letting go of what is keeping you stuck and you are willing to trust that you can become truly successful as an entrepreneur or business owner, that you can invest in more help (be it an assistant or a coach or both), that you can be highly successful AND balanced AND happy in your daily life- only when you allow yourself to believe these truths, will you be able to  transcend your self-limiting beliefs and reach your full potential.

Once you let go of your limiting beliefs, you liberate yourself to create new habits and bring in new people who will affirm and support your growth.

Whether you are 25 or 70, or somewhere in between, and regardless of where you are in your business, there is always room for growth.  That is what life is about.

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3 Tips to Streamline Your Initial Client Care System

September 27 in Business Strategies, Increasing Productivity by Bria | No Comments

When a person decides to work with you as a new client, it’s something to celebrate.

But it also involves some follow-up work – such drawing up a contract, sending initial paperwork, gathering signatures, and letting the client know what to expect from working with you.

Here are three tips to ensure this entire process run more efficiently for both you and your new client:

1)    Always use a contract for any business dealings. Have a pre-made contract ready to go for each of your service packages. Have your lawyer review all versions of the contract to ensure the language will protect your business interests in the event of a dispute.

2)    Mark the places on the contract that will be customized for each client. This might include the client’s name, business information, the financial arrangement, and the nature of the work. Be sure to provide the client with specific information about what they can expect when they work with you.  Save a copy of this document.

3)    Streamline the process of obtaining signatures. With services like EchoSign, you no longer need to fuss with fax machines, print out lots of paper, or use a scanner to make copies of signed documents. Both parties can sign quickly and easily sign contracts online.  Implement a “follow-up system” with an assistant so all the necessary paperwork is signed, returned and saved.

Follow these steps and your initial client care systems will run much smoother.

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Finally – A System for Taming Your Inbox

September 2 in Increasing Productivity by Bria | 3 Comments

In last week’s blog we talked about how email is a killer of productivity, for the very reason that it invites your mind to travel in dozens of different directions all day long (if you let it).

As business owners, our greatest contribution to our companies is to focus on one, two, or three of the most important things – and to devote ourselves fully to those tasks.

Email invites us to do the opposite – focus on a multitude of less important tasks. This slows our productivity, drains our energy and inhibits our progress.

Here are 5 tips for taming your inbox:

  1. Do not check email until you’ve accomplished at least one important task for the day. This one’s hard to do. Many of us are conditioned to look at our messages right when we wake up. But please, try to avoid doing this. You let the energy and chaos of the outside world tarnish your focus. It just isn’t worth it.
  2. Understand what makes an email message important. Does the email content affect your revenue? Is it a big opportunity that’s time-sensitive? Does it speak about a problem that needs to be solved immediately? Or can it wait until next week? Next month? (Next century?)
  3. For everything that does NOT require fast action on your part, use this 4-step approach – Delete it, File it, Delegate it, or Handle it.
      4. a.   Skim the subject line of the email and make an instant decision on whether not this email needs to be read. If not, delete it. (Delete spam, irrelevant messages, etc)
      b. If you open the email and decide you want to read it later, file it. (This includes anything you need to read in-depth, or anything you want to study.)
      c. If the task requires action, but it’s not something you can or want to handle, delegate it. Send it to someone on your team whose job it is to handle those tasks.
      d. If the task requires action, and you’re the only one who truly should handle it, handle it.
  4. Use folders to organize your messages. Determine how to group your emails and save folders in those names – such as Clients, Potential Clients, Coach, Newsletters to Read, Team, and Personal Stuff. You can also file items you will handle later in a system such as “To do later today” or “To do Friday” (end of week). And then read the emails at a set time each day or a set time you’ve blocked out on Fridays.
  5. Schedule 2-3 times (or less) during the day when you’ll check your email. This will free up time and energy for you to focus on “the big stuff” in your business.

Follow these tips, hone your focus, and you’ll watch your energy, sanity, and productivity soar.

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Creating a Structure for Your Day

August 18 in Increasing Productivity by Bria | No Comments

Ever start your day by reading an energy-draining email, and then the rest of the day is ruined? What happened? You basically let the energy and chaos of the outside world tarnish the quality of your focus. You let something outside of you impact your ability to work.

A great way to avoid this problem is to structure your day so that you do one important task first before doing anything else. Shower, excercise, eat breakfast, take care of yourself – but make the first work item you focus on something important.

If you are a busy business owner – don’t check email, try not to read disasters in the newspaper, try not to consume any information - until you’ve accomplished at least one important business task for the day. I know it’s hard! Many of us are conditioned to look at our messages right when we wake up. But if you formed a habit, you can always un-form it with some conscious effort.

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