According to a study done by the Gartner Group and reported in the Wall Street Journal, the average American spends 400 hours a year searching through piles for things that they have “somewhere”. Four hundred hours…that translates into TEN forty hour work weeks or over an hour every single day of the year.
What would your business look like if you had an extra four hundred hours a year? What would be the impact on your clients? How many more people could you reach? What about your income and cash flow? What would your life look like?
On any given day we’re all given exactly the same amount of time. The difference is how we choose to use it. The decisions we make, or don’t make, on a day to day basis ultimately lay the groundwork for the choices and opportunities we have.
One of the biggest difficulties I see with my entrepreneurial clients is the ability to make these foundational decisions quickly and then to stand by those decisions.
These decisions apply to every aspect of life. It certainly involves the piles of paper on your desk but it’s also about the “virtual piles”. These virtual piles are usually ideas and could be about new marketing strategies, new product or programs or really any other “to-do”.
The bottom line is that it’s about making a decision. Do you do it or not? Do you keep it or not? Do you tolerate it or not?
One strategy my clients and I use to decide whether or not to keep something (an idea, a project, a piece of paper or even a client) is to first assume that we let it go and then ask the following three questions. Give it a try.
- Now that I no longer have this to do what can I do with my time and space instead?
- If I needed it and couldn’t replace it what is the worst thing that could happen?
- If I had never seen this in the first place would I even want to do it or have it?
Bonus question: If I suddenly found myself needing it could I recreate it in 400 hours or less?
Remember, it’s easier to let go of things when you know why you’re doing it. I encourage you to continue to imagine yourself with an extra 400 hours a year…what are you doing?
Working with clients?
Creating programs or products?
Marketing?
Networking?
Pursuing your own personal interests?
Making more money?
Feeling more relaxed?
Feeling happier?
What are you ready to let go of and why? Let me know by sharing your responses below.
Leave a Reply