Are you busy every day, yet not making progress on the most important things? Do you feel as though you’re in constant motion, but not getting closer to where you want to be?
Then you’ll like this.
It’s is one of my favorite productivity strategies.
It changed my life, and if you are honest with yourself, it will change yours.
It’s super simple and involves no complicated time-management apps or planners or tools or systems.
It sounds obvious but I bet you aren’t doing it.
In fact it takes only the application of a straightforward principle:
Each day, before you get sucked into the email vortex, before the meeting maelstrom begins, before you get drawn into dealing with everyone else’s demands, do something that contributes to a big-picture goal.
Big Picture Tasks
Big-picture tasks are those to-do items that contribute to the projects and goals you truly care about. The things that matter to you – things that give you a sense of meaning, contribution, purpose, passion.
Big-picture tasks could include starting a proposal for a project you want to champion, working on a presentation, making a sales call, writing some pages of your novel, drafting content for your website, taking your kid out for ice cream.
Big-picture tasks move you forward toward big-picture goals, on things that make your life meaningful.
Small Picture Tasks
Small-picture tasks are those to-do items that contribute to someone else’s agenda, or relate to projects that are not your highest priorities. You feel a pressure to do them, but they don’t contribute to the meaningful parts of your life.
Small-picture tasks could be replying to emails, going to low-value meetings, chatting to co-workers, checking in on Facebook, spending too long on simple things or being perfectionistic when it doesn’t matter, busywork.
Why We Don’t Do What Matters
Big-picture tasks play on our minds and niggle at us. We know they matter to a deeper part of us.
But because they don’t light up our inbox or schedule meetings that fill up our days, we can ignore them. Because they take thought and energy, we’re tempted to push them aside.
And most of the time, we do.
Faux Accomplishment
Small-picture tasks, on the other hand, are sneaky little tricksters, because they give us an immediate sense of pseudo-productivity. They let us feel busy, they let us tell people we’re busy.
They distract us from the fact that we’re ignoring things that matter more to us. They pacify us with a sense of faux accomplishment.
Big-Picture Before Small-Picture – Every. Single. Day.
So how do you escape the pseudo-productivity trap and and do more of what matters?
Simple.
Each day, before you get sucked into the email vortex, before the meeting maelstrom begins, before you get drawn into dealing with everyone else’s demands, do something that contributes to a big-picture goal.
Whatever you can manage, manage it.
Even one thing.
Even for one hour, or for 15 minutes.
If you’re inhaling to tell me the million reasons why this can’t work for you – save your breath. Take that energy and do something that matters with it.
If you follow this principle every day, then here’s what won’t happen: you won’t miraculously get everything done. You will never get everything done, and the sooner you accept this truth, the sooner you can get on with doing what is important to you.
But you will get more of what matters done. Over time, a lot more.
This is the shift that will change your life. Will you try it?
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