Building a successful, growing business can be one of the most exciting, liberating accomplishments you can embark on in life, but it is not without stress and risk. Every day is filled with financial pressures and a never-ending to-do list that can be overwhelming, making you lose direction and motivation.
With a Growth Mindset in place, the key is to focus your attention daily on the priorities that matter most. This will help keep you on track, but it takes hard work, diligence, and dedication. Creating positive daily habits and focusing your time on growth tasks will have the highest impact on your bottom line to help you achieve your business goals.
Let’s explore habits you can implement daily and ongoing priorities that will lead your company toward faster growth.
If you intentionally integrate growth habits and focus on the most important priorities, it can relieve some of the stress of running and building a business. It starts with developing a growth plan that you work on every day. Without it, how can you be strategic in making your next move?
Once you have a plan in place, you need to commit yourself to it on a daily basis and be specific on what tasks you want to accomplish each day to keep you moving forward toward your goals These five tips will help you and your team focus on the things that matter most.
1. Focus on What’s Important Without Distractions
There will always be a never-ending list of things to do. Check on your goals daily and be clear on what is a priority or needs to be accomplished that day. To focus your attention in the right place, remind yourself of what truly matters and will help you accomplish your goals, then learn to say “No” to the rest.
Identify common distractions and your biggest time wasters and determine how to minimize these distractions so you can use your time more effectively. Consider closing your email, putting your phone on silent, taking steps to cut down on noise, or shutting down instant messaging apps. Create an environment that will help you focus.
2. Schedule Time for What Matters
There will always be people, tasks, and constant interruptions that can draw your attention away from what matters. It can sometimes be too easy to get off track and lose sight of long-term goals. Use your calendar to your advantage and schedule specific time in your day to focus on the most important tasks that need to get done that day to keep you moving forward. Prioritize this time like you would a meeting, block it off on your calendar and to make sure it gets done.
3. Be Specific Rather Than General
It is easier to be productive when you and your team have specific, tangible priorities to focus on versus vague direction. For instance, a general statement about needing to improve the customer experience will do little to motivate action or identify steps to accomplish that goal. However, being specific and saying you want to increase customer satisfaction by 20% in six months is more tangible. It allows you to identify a measurable and to develop a plan with specific tasks to be worked on.
It is also important not to focus on too many priorities at the same time. Doing so makes it difficult to know what is most important and how to prioritize your time. Try limiting your focus to three to five priorities that can keep you focused.
4. Learn to Delegate
You may wear many hats and have many responsibilities but that doesn’t mean that your strengths and abilities are best suited for every situation. Be honest about what you are good, what your weaknesses are and the tasks that challenge your strengths. This can help you identify areas of inefficiency or gaps in progress.
Once you are clear about those areas, you can surround yourself with individuals whose strengths complement your needs. Delegate those tasks, along with any low priority tasks that don’t have a positive impact on your goals or tasks that are limiting and holding you back. In some cases, you may be able to rely on the team around you, but you can also look for help outside your company.
5. Make it a Goal to Reach Out
Optimizing your chance for growth often requires making a point to reach out, whether you are touching base with a customer, prospecting a new client, following up with a new connection, or seeking an outside perspective. It’s not just a matter of answering emails and following up on voicemails but making contacts specifically that add to your efforts in accomplishing goals.
However, it is important to be selective in who want to spend time connecting with and the purpose of that connection. It should also be done daily. Each day determine which goal-oriented task is most important and set aside time to make connects that will have the greatest impact on that priority.
For instance, if your goal is to overcome a specific challenge or obstacle you are facing, then reach out to a colleague or peer advisory to get their perspective. Harness their knowledge and experience to expand your own view. On the other hand, if adding clients is your priority that day, then make a point of calling a prospective client and talking to someone new about your product or service.
What positive habits have you implemented in your daily routine to stay focused and accomplish your goals?
