Have you ever realized it’s 4:45 p.m. and you have no idea what you’ve done for the past eight hours?  To prevent this, start your day by planning and setting priorities.  In the book Make Today Count, John C. Maxwell stresses the importance of setting daily priorities under the Pareto Principle.  Pareto states: by focusing on the top 20% of your tasks, you will get 80% return on your effort.

Here are three rules for a productive day:

1)    Organize and prioritize: Review all tasks for your day and prioritize them in order of urgent, mandatory, productive and fulfilling.  Yes, you must finish the hot things first, but also plan activities that you will benefit from, either professionally or personally.

2)    Take action: Having trouble focusing on your priorities?  Turn your phone off for an hour, or mute your computer so email won’t chime in with a distraction.  You have to be proactive to make your priorities stick.

3)    Work your strengths: Focusing priorities in your core abilities allows for an exceptionally productive day.  And if you have something that is a must but is not in your strengths area, delegate whenever possible.

Once you have your list, make a plan and stick to it. Then you can look back at your completed plan and see what a productive day you’ve had!

Maxwell , John C.. Make Today Count. New York: First Center Street Edition, Center Street division of Hachette Book Group USA, Inc., 2008.

 

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