Less stress and more satisfaction

I can’t tell you how many days (and sometimes entire weeks!) I’ve had where I felt like I worked my ass off, but can’t think of a single thing I got done.

As business owners (and tech-nerds), we’re constantly being pulled in a million different directions — both by new ideas and shiny objects.

My favorite WordCamp speaker (and personal hero), Nathan Ingram, recently joined our TABLE groups to host a private webinar and he spoke on this in the context of goal setting.

What he shared with us was some research by Franklin Covey Co. that helped illustrate the law of diminishing returns.

The research showed that people who set 2-3 goals would (on average) complete 2-3 goals.

But those who set 4-10 goals would only accomplish 1-2.

Even worse, those who set 11-20 goals — they accomplish zero.

It’s an eye-opening fact that really shouldn’t come as a surprise… The more we pile on our plate, the less likely we are to accomplish anything.

We are constantly stretching ourselves way too thin.

A couple of our TABLE members have started a new habit to help combat this, and based on their success with it, I think it’s worth trying.

It’s brilliantly simple, and perfectly adheres to the law of diminishing returns…

Each day, instead of staring at their never-ending to-do list trying to formulate a plan on how to get to everything, they grab a notepad and write down their top 3 priorities for the day. 

Three things from their list that are the most important to accomplish.

And because their list is more focused, they are a lot more likely to succeed (and the statistics Nathan shared are proof).

In fact, in doing this myself, I’m finding that not only are those three things actually getting done but they’re often done before noon — giving me plenty of time to get even further than I had hoped.

I’m getting further ahead with less stress and more satisfaction 🙌 

If you feel like you’re stuck in the hamster wheel, then I’d encourage you to give this a shot. I’m keeping my list in a little Fields Notes book with a page dedicated to each day of the week. Seeing the “wins” (no matter how small) pile up each and every day is remarkably motivating.