Productivity Hacks: Cross Things Off Your List Like a Boss

Remember when you first launched your business. It seemed like you had limitless energy to crush your to-do list and reach your business goals. 

Fast forward a few years (and throw in a pandemic) and many business owners feel exhausted by an endless barrage of emails and administrative tasks that always seem to get in the way of “real work”. 

It doesn’t have to be this way! Get back the excitement you once had for your business and cut back on distractions with these productivity hacks. 

1. Time Blocking 

How do you balance the necessary evils of meetings, phone calls, and busy work with time for the things you really need to get done? Try time blocking. 

Time blocking is a time management method where you divide up your day into blocks of time. Each block is assigned a specific task. Start each day with a set list of activities to accomplish and lay out what you will work on and when. This is one of the productivity hacks that has been a total game-changer for me.

The key to implementing time blocking is to prioritize the activities you will work on in advance. Plan your week out in advance or plan your day the evening before. That way you know exactly what to do to hit the ground running and you can ensure important tasks are completed. At the end of the day take a look at any tasks you didn’t finish and new tasks that may have come in and adjust your time blocks for the rest of the week. 

When you get used to using time blocking you won’t have to make choices about what to do next or jump from task to task. If you get off task or distracted simply look at your schedule and easily pick up where you left off. 

There are many different ways you can implement a time blocking schedule into your daily routine. For more information on time blocking check out this article. 

2. Prioritize Your Tasks

Yes, this one might sound obvious but I guarantee this section on prioritizing your tasks will have a few helpful tricks that you haven’t heard of before. 

Everyone likes checking items off their to-do list, but a lot of times that is easier said than done. The best way I’ve found to complete all my tasks that absolutely have to get done is through ruthless prioritization. What I mean is if an item isn’t of utmost importance it doesn’t make it to my daily to-do list in the first place. 

To make this system work for me I keep multiple running lists: a master list,  daily list, weekly list, and monthly list. You can use whatever variation of lists works best for you. This is what works best for me. 

Take all of your activities that need to be done and add them to the master list, so they are all in one place. This could be bills that need to go out, invoices that need to be sent, or an email you get from a client. Do not prioritize the items on the master list. Just focus on getting them all down. 

After all your tasks are written down, go through your list and decide what you want to do with each item. Keep it simple and choose from the following four options. 

• Do: complete the task now
• Defer: complete the task later
• Delegate: assign the task to someone else
• Delete: remove the task from your list

I like to try to do any task that will take less than five minutes as soon as I can. It helps keep the list short and helps you better prioritize your time for harder to complete tasks. 

When I defer a task I add it to my weekly or monthly to-do lists. If it is an important task I will set a calendar reminder to make sure I complete the task on time. I also set reminders if I delegate a task so I can check in on the person that I’ve delegated the task and make sure it will be completed. 

I delete tasks from my list that have been on my list forever. Most of the time I realize my priorities have shifted and these tasks no longer really need to be done. If you’ve been looking at an item or two at the bottom of your to-do for the last year chances are it’s not going to get done. You haven’t made time for it yet, so go ahead and just delete it. Trust me, it will take a weight off your shoulders. 

When assigning tasks to my daily to-do list I try to focus on no more than three major tasks a day. All other tasks I assign to a different day of the week. This allows me to focus on one task at a time and cross things off my to-do list by not overloading myself. At the end of the day, it is nice to see a completed checked-off to-do list, instead of all the things you didn’t have time to finish. 

3. Find Your Rhythm 

Everyone is going to have a little bit of a different rhythm to work. Whether you are an early morning person who likes to wake up and hit the gym or spend some quiet time alone first thing in the morning or you prefer to work a little later in the day and finish up tasks. Find a rhythm that works for you and stick to it. 

Don’t try to implement all of these productivity hacks at once. Take the time to find the right balance that works for you.

Set boundaries with yourself and your clients to help you stay in your rhythm and focused on your work. For me, this means I try to avoid taking meetings before 10 am. I use my mornings to focus on the most important task on my daily to-do list. That way if the rest of my day gets off schedule with meetings and calls I know I completed the most important thing I needed to get done. 

To find your rhythm you have to know your strengths and weaknesses. Becoming more self-aware will help you become more efficient and eventually expedite your work. 

4. Stop Compulsively Checking Your Email

I’ll be the first one to admit compulsive email checking is a hard habit to break, but it is a major distraction that can end up eating hours of your day as you jump from a task to an email. To rectify this I have blocks of time in my time blocked schedule that are used to check email and respond only if a response will take less than five minutes. If it takes longer it gets prioritized and added to my daily to-do list along with my other tasks. 

If you need help to break the habit there are a number of apps that will allow you to freeze your inbox. Some business owners will ask their assistant or virtual assistant to read and reply to emails if there is something urgent that needs to be done right away. Whichever productivity hacks or methods work best for you, find a way to break the habit of compulsive email checking. 

5. Keep Meetings Short

Everyone has experienced a long meeting that sucks the life and energy out of your day. Meetings don’t have to be this way. Here are some tips to help you keep your meetings short. 

First things first have a meeting agenda. A meeting agenda keeps everyone on task and working towards the same goals during the meeting. You can even assign time slots to each part of the meeting so people know exactly how much time they have to present their piece. This helps you prioritize topics for your meeting and stay on time. 

Distribute your agenda ahead of time and set the tone for your meeting. When you send the agenda you can also send certain guidelines that attendees should adhere to such as saving questions for the end or following up via email. You can also let attendees know if there will be time for open dialogue or if you need to get right down to business. 

Next, only invite attendees that need to be there. If someone has nothing to contribute or doesn’t need to be involved leave them out of the meeting. At the end of the day, this will be one less person with questions or distractions that can hold up your meeting. 

Arrive early and get set up before the start time of the meeting. How many times have you attended a meeting where it took 30 minutes or longer just to get the presentation up? These technical issues eat up a scheduled meeting time and cause your meeting to go over. Be prepared and avoid these issues by setting up your meeting beforehand. 

Use These Productivity Hacks to Reclaim Your Time

It might sound like a lot of work to implement some of these ideas. Start slow and implement a few at a time and you will get there. Soon your days will be less distracted and you’ll be crossing this off your to-do list like a pro. 

Is there a productivity hack that you use that should be included on this list? Leave me a comment below and let me know. Don’t hesitate to share productivity hacks that have worked for you.

If you enjoyed this article check out my free resources that can help you save time on your marketing and become more organized.