As I write this, I have more than 345 emails in my inbox. That sounds like a failure, doesn’t it? I don’t even see when new emails come in because I don’t have any little dings, windows, boxes or alarms that alert me to the next thing that needs my attention. Blasphemy, right?! Not so much. At least, not for me. I’m not a stock broker and I’m not a PR crisis manager. Because 98% of emails don’t need my attention right then and there, they can wait a day, or even a few days. You know what does need my attention? The big priorities. The big rocks. The big goals. The things that move my business or personal life ahead in a meaningful way.
While I worked on the rough draft of this post, I spent the day finalizing my slides for 2×4, working on a new corporate legal structure, and reviewing Creative Live for our live all-day taping next month. My pre and post work hours were family time and studying for my Nutritional Therapy Degree (a 9 month program through South Puget Sound University in Tacoma, Washington). While I did that, I put everything aside (including those pesky emails) to focus on the only thing that mattered: the project in front of me.
It is so easy to fall prey to the tyranny of the urgent and to let every interruption take over your day. That’s how and why we find ourselves on Facebook for ‘just one more minute’ or Instagram for ‘just a few more photos.’ It’s how we allow a short conversation to linger and meander until suddenly 15 minutes has gone by. And it’s how we find that it’s 4 p.m. and we’re wondering where the day went. Yes, we were busy…but were we busy on the right things?
I use Google Calendar as well as a paper planner to keep my day and priorities organized.
To master the art of focus, first, know what the “right” things are. Do you have your priorities for the week done before the week starts out? There are a variety of ways to do this. My current system is that I plan my week on Sunday. During this time, I review the week ahead, coordinate schedules with my husband and plan my work priorities for each day. I keep dual systems – one online (Google Calendar, shared with the team in my office) and one paper planner. I’ve used a bajillion planners in the past 20 years (I was a proud Franklin Covey system girl in high school) and right now, I’m loving the Tools4Wisdom and PassionPlanner planners. Sidenote: I dream of doing a planner for soapers that fits the way I like to work and plan my week (swoon).
Second, make sure you have your bases covered. It’s important to focus, but what if a big purchase order comes in? What if that one email you don’t answer costs you money when the wrong product ships? I always scan email every few hours for high priority subject lines or people and take care of those in a timely manner. If something fell through the cracks and someone really needs to get ahold of me, there’s this crazy thing called a ‘phone’ that I infrequently use but do answer. I also triage using SaneBox. All newsletters go in one folder, all non-normal senders go in another folder and all spam gets deep-sixed to never see again. Click here to sign up for SaneBox and you’ll receive a $10 credit towards a Sanebox subscription.
Lest you picture your email in my inbox stagnating for years, I have a standing goal to get to “Inbox Zero” one time per month. I report on that goal to my team so I’m accountable to it. All of my emails are processed at least once per month. On that day (or series of days), email is my number one priority. And, it’s planned around all the other priorities for the week.
I tracked my time for an entire year. It really helped me identify what tasks were productive, and which were not. Click here to read more.
Finally, and this is the big one, you have to believe that focus is the key to success. You have to be completely bought into the truth that working on one thing for an uninterrupted block of time gets you further and farther than working on three things in the same time period. I tracked my time for an entire year (!) and found email was basically my big pit of not-productive time. If you think you’re one of the 2% of people that are consummate multitaskers and this doesn’t apply to you, stop now and go take this multitasking quiz. Ultimately, multitasking or switch tasking makes each task take longer and makes you more prone to errors.
Do you want to be more productive at work and at home? Start working on your big priorities for the day or the week in a logical, uninterrupted fashion and kick distractions to the curb or, until a time that you have the luxury of dealing with them. Do this religiously for one month and then look back over your month. You’ll be amazed at what you accomplished through the power of focused time.
What tips or systems do you have for staying focuses, or prioritizing your responsibilities? If you are looking for more time management tips, check out this blog post.
Nice article and informative
Thanks for reading. 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
Hi…What a great post! I am always going in 87 directions at once and feel like I never get anything done. I love the planner page pic you have on this post with the Outcomes and Completion steps. Can you tell me which specific planner that comes from?
Appreciate it and love Brambleberry!!
Diana
It’s a Passion Planner! Anne-Marie really loves it for keeping organized. 🙂
http://www.passionplanner.com/
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
I got myself a Tools 4 Wisdam planner after attending the 2X4 conference and I love it. I’ve also been planning my week on Sunday night and it helps me stay focused.
YAY! Way to go; that is incredible. I love that you took an actionable thing and did something with it. I love the Sunday planning. It really helps to keep me sane. I can’t wait to see how you like it after working with it for a bit.
Hi Anne-Marie,
I am presently reading and enjoying your book “Pure Soapmaking”. it appears that all (or at least most) of your recipes include palm oil. If you decide not to use palm oil, what would be the appropriate oil to substitute and how would it change the soaps (I haven’t made soap before and this would be my 1st attempt). What would I have to do differently by replacing the palm oil with another oil? I looked at the section of the book discussing the oils but I wasn’t sure which one(s) to choose. Thank you.
Cordially,
Pam
Hi Pam!
In the Pure Soapmaking book, 50% of the recipes are palm free! For the other recipes, you can leave out the palm oil. It adds some great firmness to your soap, and there is no direct replacement for it. You can add certain oils and butters to help firm your soap up though! For instance, adding a hard butter, like cocoa butter up to 15%, can harden the bars. You can also add coconut oil or tallow up to 33%. 🙂
Read more about common oils and what properties they add to soap here: http://www.soapqueen.com/bath-and-body-tutorials/tips-and-tricks/free-beginners-guide-to-soapmaking-common-soapmaking-oils/
This post on substituting oils has some great information too: http://www.soapqueen.com/bath-and-body-tutorials/tips-and-tricks/how-to-substitute-oil-in-cold-process-recipes/
Sodium lactate is helpful as well. It helps the bars unmold more quickly. You can add 1 tsp. of sodium lactate per pound of oils to your cooled lye water. Read more in the Sunday Night Spotlight: http://www.soapqueen.com/bramble-berry-news/sunday-night-spotlight-sodium-lactate/
Here are some links to palm-free recipes you may like:
Palm Free Vertical Twist: http://www.soapqueen.com/bath-and-body-tutorials/cold-process-soap/palm-free-vertical-twist-tutorial/
Palm Free In The Pot Swirl: http://www.soapqueen.com/bath-and-body-tutorials/cold-process-soap/a-palm-free-in-the-pot-swirl/
Formulating Cold Process Recipes: http://www.soapqueen.com/bath-and-body-tutorials/tips-and-tricks/formulating-cold-process-recipes/
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
Pure Soapmaking: https://www.brambleberry.com/Pure-Soap-Making-How-to-Create-Nourishing-Natural-Skin-Care-Soaps-P6298.aspx
Very helpful article, thank you Anne-Marie! Also, a planner geared towards makers sounds marvelous. The title “The Crafter’s Companion” just popped into my head. Feel free to use that one. 🙂
Ahhhh, what a fun name! I’ll get to googling that to see if anyone else is using it. =)
So glad that you found the blog post helpful (yay) =)
Hey Anne Marie,
It was my daughters birthday yesterday so I am just reading your email now.
Thank you so much for posting your time tracking charts that we talked about at the 2×4 event. I love this concept and think it will be a very helpful tool for me. Along with all of the other tools and information that I gathered at the event I am really looking forward to a more focused work week!
Thank you for sharing what works for you!
Susie
Susie,
It was such a joy to meet you at 2x4Live and I am so excited to keep up with you and your company as you move forward with all the things we talked about at 2x4Live. By the way, I love the home page photo you have; it is SO cute. And, it makes me want to buy dog biscuits along with my natural pet wash. The mind is a funny thing, isn’t it? =) Thank you for reading the blog post and for taking the time to comment too.
I had an epiphany as I read this. For years, I’ve used the GTD system (Getting Things Done) paired with Omni Focus as an app. It focuses on “getting things done”: write them down, keep track, put a date on it when you need to, break down projects into steps, look at your context (i.e. office, computer, workshop, whatever) and see what needs doing in that context. Unlike the two planners above, there is no attention given to passions, emotions, satisfaction, the less tangible life goals.
I started using GTE/Omnifocus when I was the only woman in my IT department because that’s what a lot of us used. As I read this, I realized that GTD is a really “masculine” system, and the ones mentioned above are really “feminine.” You can even see it in the advertising. So do women “get things done” differently from men? Do we goal set and plan differently? Hmmm….
Wow, that is a big ah-ha, Lesli. It’s interesting; I did the GTD system but wasn’t able to stick with it. I wonder if it didn’t resonate with me because I do need those ‘feelings’ in there and I really want to focus on the end result of how something makes me feel rather than just the goal. I want to know the ‘why’ of what I’m doing and driving and striving for.
I think you hit the nail on the head about the difference in the programs. I’m curious if women plan differently, WHY they plan differently. Is it because the ‘feelings’ are okay for women to feel? Is it because our brains are wired differently? Really interesting insights and questions. Thank you for sharing. It’s got me thinking! =)
I just have to say great article and point out that adorable outfit and your hair in that picture Anne-Marie💛💛💛
Kristie
Thank you Kristie. Funny story, that photo was taken when I was giving a speech in Copenhagen so I had to borrow a European travel curling iron to do my hair. I was totally stressed if it would work. LOL! =) Thanks for noticing the happy outfit. I love me some yellow!
I love your planning and time management posts, Anne Marie! I use the Tools4Wisdom planner, too, after reading a post on you wrote last year. It helps me to be able to focus on what is important – which is ever so necessary when I balance running my business, enjoying my family, and homeschooling two of our children!
I love love love having lots of pretty colors in my planner too. I went crazy with two full sets of Stabilo pens (one for home and one for work) last year. Haha. It sounds like you have a LOT going on – and I’m sure that one of the reasons you can manage it all is because you’re investing in planning. Kudos to you for that. It takes focus and consistent effort to do that.
Great article! I love your perspective on time-blocking and what’s important and how to balance it all the best you can. I’ll definitely look at the planners you suggested, I like how yours has “outcomes” and includes the steps it takes to achieve them. I’ve been trying out a new planner (Savor’s Daily Action planner) and it’s been helping me complete goals quickly. Thanks for the advice, you are always so helpful!
Nice work doing the work planning your week. I have the Savor Daily Action Planner right here actually. I usually buy a few to see which one is going to work for my year =) I like how she breaks it up into 3 sections for the day to make the entire thing more compact – and the focus on small goals to get to big ones. That is really awesome. I switched to the Passion Planner this year but I’m going back to Tools4Wisdom for next year. I really miss those action steps for the weekly goals. Passion Planner does it a slightly different way that works – just not as well for me! =) Thank you for chiming in and reading. =))
What a fantastic post! Thankyou for sharing this info. I need to favourite this page so I can come back to it.
When I worked in big corporates, so many people would try to soak up my day and distract me with emails or wait at my desk or interrupt me with tasks that would usually start with ‘I really need this for my project……. and I would think to myself ‘well ok, but it’s your project, not mine. I don’t mind helping but not at the risk of running late on my stuff.’ After a while I got tired of being told off for running late and then pointing out that I was helping this or that person….isn’t it funny how people forget how much effort you put in to ‘their project’ when the kudos are being handed out!!! Didn’t take long to learn how to fend off the unnecessary activities without fear of being fired! It was a big lesson in life for me in more ways than one.
But now….. I find it difficult at times to focus …….as a working from home mum – well who goes to work and starts the day by cleaning their workplace – floors n all right??? this post is giving me a great little butt-kicking. Thanks!
Oh my goodness, I can so relate to the difficulty keeping focused at home. Honestly, that’s the reason I got a 350 square foot ‘closet’ office space in a shared building back when I became an entrepreneur. I literally could not quit with the dish washing, clothes washing, dusting and just the endless chores that stare at you when you work from home! =)
Yes, working in an office definitely gets you interrupted a lot. It happens to me too but thankfully, my team is so self-directed that they often come to me with what their solution just to run it by me – rather than expecting me to solve something. I’m really lucky to have such a great team around me.
Thank you for reading and commenting.
Focus and structure are the two most important things as an owner of a company. And I think structure is the most important of that two. Because if you are unstructured everything becomes a mess and you will drown in to do’s.
Isn’t that the truth? And you totally understand that since I know you’re running a business with a lot of moving parts too =) Thank you for your longtime support. I appreciate it, Esther.
When you can start putting a dollar value on every minute of your time suddenly checking your Facebook becomes less of a priority. I’m a micromanaging nutcase for that.
Oh my goodness, that is SO right. I forget who had me do this (Brendon Bruchard? Jack Canfield? Assaraf?) but I had to go through all my daily tasks and then put an actual financial value beside them. It was AMAZING what actually was valued higher. The second I did that – literally that day – I put an ad on Craigslist for an assistant. That has allowed me to be much more targeted and focused as the company grows and my focus gets shifted from place to place. Thank you for reading and commenting. It’s nice to find a fellow micromanaging nutcase; haha =)))
I love this post! Time management is actually something I’m good at, but I am working on doing the right things to move myself and my business forward. 🙂 And I would love a soapy planner!!!!
Hi Christa – As soon as I wrote this blog post, I shot of an email to a designer friend of mine and was like, “Hey, let’s kick that into high gear please?” It’s just such a great idea so I need to get it out of my head and into production! =)
If you’re looking for another resource to figure out your ‘right things’ to work on, my favorite book for providing clarity is Stephen Covey’s “7 Habits of Highly Effective People.” It’s amazing.
This post is incredibly timely as I have been wanting to ask you how on earth you are able to have so many irons in the fire and still be able to maintain healthy work/life balance. I’m home (two teens), and a newer soaper, but my mind is going a million miles a minute with the business possibilities of creating my own soap business. I find, though, I get bogged down with distractions (social media, ugh!). I would love to know how you prevent the time suck of Facebook, and other social media outlets, especially as new ones keep cropping up. It seems like there are so many out there, trying to manage them all and run a business is near impossible!
Oh my husband was just raising one eyebrow at me last night when we finally got the kids to bed and he said, “I’m going to bed” and I gestured to my piles and was like “I’ll see you tomorrow; love you!”. He thinks I’m going in too many directions so it’s all a matter of perspective =)
Re: social media, it’s discipline period. I check it in them morning and right before bed always to make sure there are no ‘fires’ to put out but other than that, it is very scheduled time. I used to set a timer (my favorite is Clear Timer on the iPhone from the App Store) but now, I’ve been pretty trained to not let social media take over my life time-wise. I do want to point out that I started with just my newsletter and blog, then added Twitter, then Instagram, then Tumblr and then Pinterest and Snapchat as I got a handle on the other ones. Just pick TWO things that you can do and do them well. Get your names on the other social media outlets (your handle) but don’t worry about being active; just start with TWO platforms and kill it on those platforms. Then, when those are going well, you can add one more. For a small business, Newsletter and Blog and Facebook are my favorites followed by Twitter =) You can do it; it just takes ruthless focus and execution on the important tasks/projects of the day.