Who’s On First?

In the 1930s, Abbott and Costello began performing their famous routine on radio.  In the sketch, popular for more than eight decades now, the two comedians descend into wildly hilarious confusion.  Sometimes, with everything going on in a business person’s day, we resemble Abbott and Costello in more ways than one.

Except, it’s not funny!

Staying organized and on track in the midst of endlessly multiplying things to do for an ever-growing number of people and constantly appearing deadlines is serious business.  The consequences of falling behind aren’t really funny at all!  How can we do it?

There are lots of systems out there to help.  Most in my experience though just make everything more complicated!  That I don’t need.  Here’s a system, taught to me by Dan Sullivan, founder of The Strategic Coach program (an excellent coaching program for entrepreneurs), which is simple and works.

Make a plan.  I’ve talked about this before but knowing where you want to go is very helpful.  Try setting some goals for 3 years and 1 year.  Not too many!  A good maximum to start might be 8-12.  Then, once a quarter, squirrel yourself away for a few hours and ask, “What do I have to accomplish in these three months to make this year happen?”

You can elaborate, if you want, with who else needs to be involved.  Now, ask yourself, what do I need to do each month to make the quarter come out right?  What are my deadlines for these activities? 

From the quarter list just do a simple to-do list.  Once that’s done prioritize the list.  Delegate what you need to.  All these items can easily fit on one page of paper.  So, it’s easy to keep in front of you for review.  You should do this frequently, at least several times a week. 

Get to work!

At the end of the quarter and before the next starts you simply update.  Take time to see what you’ve accomplished.  It will give you great energy and confidence!  Everything may not have gotten done but much has.  You are on your way to doing more than you ever thought possible!