At the end of the day, what do you want to say you did? As incredibly busy entrepreneurs, it is easy to get overwhelmed. Since we are our own bosses, most of us have little to no accountability when it comes to accomplishing goals. If you are like me, you're always looking for new tools and tactics that allow you to be more efficient. Today, I want to share with you a simple strategy that I've been using for years that eases my feelings of being overwhelmed, increases my accountability, and honestly helps me get things done.
I call this strategy "My Big Three".
Allows You to Focus on What is Important
I believe that we are fortunate enough to have choices. We do not have to do anything. Now, there may be consequences for not doing something, such as not paying your mortgage, but there is nothing that you absolutely have to do. My Big Three allows to me focus on what is important at that time.
Every day I write down 3 things that I am going to accomplish that day, no matter what. These tasks are important to me and it is my choice to complete them. You may be wondering why I use a post-it. I have found that this strategy is more effective if I can physically see my Big 3 at all times throughout the day. I even have a color dedicated just to my priorities.
Of course, everyone is different. You could write your Big 3 on a Whiteboard in your office, the refrigerator, calendar, or anywhere else that you will be able to see it throughout the day.
How to Choose your Big Three
I want to clarify that your goals do not have to be "big". They only need to be big for you. For instance, one of your goals for the day could be emailing a prospective client to set up a meeting. It is the tasks that are weighing you down and you want to get off of your shoulders. I follow 3 guidelines when choosing my 3 tasks each day:
My goals do not require collaboration from anyone else. In other words, I can accomplish these tasks without having to depend on anyone else.
My goals are highly tangible. For example, saying that you are going to create and launch a website in a day is not feasible and therefore not a great goal. A better goal is to say that you will spend 30 minutes thinking about a new strategy.
My goals are sacred. The items on my Big 3 is an agreement with myself. it's how I prove to myself and others that I'm serious about my work.
In my experience, utilizing My Big 3 helps to keep my morale up, be productive, and feel as if I am consistently making forward progress in my endeavors. I hope this strategy can do the same for you.