Episode 111: The three things that will help you get stuff done. (Are you doing them?)

00:51 Welcome to Unfrazzle, a podcast for solo business owners with a big vision who are ready for a kinder more sustainable approach to productivity. I'm Louise Miller and each week i share bite-sized insights to help you step away from the hustle stop faffing and stay focused so you can make your brilliant ideas happen and make a bigger impact in the world Before we dive into today's episode, if you enjoy what I'm sharing here on Unfrazzle and you'd like to support the podcast. You can buy me a cuppa by going to BuyMeACoffee.com slash Louise Miller and making a one-off donation. I'll pop a link to that in the show notes. Okay grab yourself a cuppa and let's get started!

01:31 When people come to me because they're struggling to get things done, the reason for their productivity woes is never that they're using the wrong project management system or they haven't found the right planner. They've usually tried all of the things they'd been told will help them be more productive whether that's time blocking getting an accountability buddy joining The 5am Club using the Pomodoro technique but still they're frustrated because they're not getting everything done and what I've learnt from my years of working with business owners who are struggling with this stuff And I'll talk a little bit more about each of those in a moment, but i just want to tell you that I've created a free assessment that takes under 2 minutes to complete and will identify the real reason your not getting things done. So I've designed the assessment to give you a score on each of those areas I just mentioned

02:24 So you can identify the small changes that will make a big difference to the progress you're making in your business. And of course, I don't just give you the results of your assessment and leave you hanging! You'll get personalised insights based on your answers with resources and nuggets of wisdom to help you be more productive. So head to louisemiller.uk slash quiz to take the assessment There are 15 questions, it takes less than two minutes to complete and I'll pop a link to that in the show notes so go and take that quiz after you've listened to today's episode. But i just want to talk a little bit more about those three areas first So setting yourself up for success focusing on the right things and working on your business. So I'm just going to explain what I mean by each and why you need them working for you if you want to find your productivity groove

03:04 So setting yourself up for success. This is all about making sure you're creating plans and expectations for yourself that are achievable, and that fit in with the rest of your life I see so many people setting themselves up to fail by planning as if they have 15 working hours a day forgetting about school holidays and expecting themselves to have an unlimited supply of oomph! And i've spoken before about how quite often people think they're unproductive Then we've got focusing on the right things. So we all know that there's a difference between being productive and being busy. But unfortunately lots of people get so caught up being busy, juggling all the day-to-day stuff reacting to what's going on around them that they're not dedicating time to the activities that matter most and recently one of my LinkedIn pals reminded me of the analogy of putting the big stones in the jar first

04:12 So the smaller ones will fit in around them. But if you fill your jar with sand and gravel first, it'll be impossible to fit those bigger stones in so what are the big stones that will really move the needle in your business? And are you prioritizing them? Thank You Catherine for reminding me of that analogy! How do you feel you're doing with focusing on the right things? Then we've got working on your business So again, I know this feels obvious. We know we shouldn't always be working in our business and should give ourselves CEO time when we're being strategic and thinking about what we're going to do to make the boat go faster but that is often easier said than done isn't it?

04:52 And when you've got a lot on your plate, you've got to-do list as long as your arm. You're feeling a bit overwhelmed it can feel impossible to take that step back but it is only by doing that that you can get a sense of perspective that's going to help you decide where to focus your time and energy getting out of the swirl of overwhelm and back into focus and flow so how are you doing with that? Are you giving yourself regular time to work on your business So small improvements in each of those three areas can make a really big difference to how much you're able to get done. And when those three areas are all working well for you, You'll have a clear direction and know what you need to do. You'll feel excited by what you're working on and will be taking consistent action to make the important things happen! If you're curious to see how well your doing please go take that free quiz at louisemiller.uk again the link is in the show notes

05:41 And I'll be sharing tailored insights and practical ideas that will help you make some small shifts that can make a big difference without a planner, an app or a fancy spreadsheet in sight. As always i hope this helps and look forward to seeing you again soon! Thank you for listening to Unfrazzle. If you enjoyed this episode, please share it with a friend who needs a dose of calm productivity in their life and I'd love it if you could leave me a rating and review as that will help more people discover this podcast. If you would like to hear more from me to help stop faffing and take back control of your time, you'll find the link to join my mailing list in the show notes and I would really love for you to join us! So thanks so much for your support and I look forward to seeing you next time