It's a New Season. Do You Know What You're Measuring?
Success is what you make it. IF you make it.
I have been ruminating with a friend lately on what we consider successful. We all measure ourselves by a different yardstick. I like to count accomplishments. She likes to take a wider, more philosophical view of success. But, we both know what we’re measuring.
Productivity for productivity’s sake is…empty. That is, unless you know what you’re measuring.
There are millions of ridiculously successful people in the world. They wake up at 5am, they toil all day long and lob emails to the other side of the virtual net, they check everything off of their to do lists, and then they go to sleep wishing they could be . . . more productive.
Guess what? These people don’t need to be more productive. They are obviously getting a lot done. The reason they don’t feel like they’re productive is that they’re not spending their time doing the right things. They’re filling their lives with the equivalent of busy work.
So, what are the right things to do? The things that will make you feel like you finally are productive? The things that aren’t busy work? Well, once you determine that, you’ll be able to actually start to be productive.
Knowing what you want to do
The fact of the matter is that if you don’t know the number one thing that you want to be doing with your life, you should stop everything right now and figure it out. What are you trying to accomplish? In your work? On our planet? How are you going to leave your mark on the world? How will you make it a better place?
No, you don’t need to create a charity that gives away billions of dollars every year. Maybe the one thing that is important to you is spending time with your family. Or your main goal at this point might be that you want to write more stories. Or reach out to more people. It doesn’t matter what your number one thing is.
It does matter that you know what it is.
“WHAT IS YOUR PRIMARY FIELD OF OUTPUT?” This is one of my favorite sentences from author Brendon Burchard. If you know what you want to accomplish in your day, if you know the number one thing you want to get done, you can measure it. And if you don’t measure your productivity, I guarantee you that you won’t be productive. Not in a meaningful sense, anyway.
The point is that you should always know what you’re working for. If you don’t, you will be working for everyone else. Just because you check off everything on your to do list, doesn’t mean that you’re productive. You’re busy. There’s a difference. In fact, there’s a HUGE difference. But, when you know your one primary field of output, you can increase it. And you can say no to the things that don’t align with your plans.
Key Performance Indicators
Companies measure their output with something called KPI. KPI stands for Key Performance Indicator. This is the key number, or metric, by which the health and success of the company can be measured. A company’s KPI could be revenue, profitability, or zero defects in a product. Most importantly, a company’s KPI shows what is important to the company.
So . . . what is important to you? What is the key performance indicator in your life? Is your KPI income? Or is it number of contacts added to your circle of influence? Is it number of real estate properties? Or is it number of quality hours with your family? When you find your personal KPI, you’ll know how productive you actually are.
Let’s say, for instance, that you decide that your one key performance indicator is writing. Great. Once you’ve identified it, you need to start measuring it. How many words do you write per day? How can you increase that number? Or, how can you measure the quality of your work? How can you raise that? Again, you can’t improve something you don’t measure.
If you aren’t spending a significant part of your days attempting to increase your productivity in your primary field, you’re not moving as quickly as you can toward your goal. Sure, life happens. Your kids are now doing school at home, you have a deadline for your dead end job, you have to call the guy to replace your gutters. That’s fine. We all do things we don’t necessarily want to do.
Final Thoughts
Yes, life can happen and we all need to do things that aren’t working toward our main goal (the dishes won’t do themselves). However, when you consciously make the decision to increase your productivity in the one thing you have decided to pursue, you might decide that those dishes can wait a bit. Your life should happen AROUND your one key performance indicator.
We are all different. My friend and I are actually almost polar opposites. But we know how we each want to change the world in our own way. And if you don’t know where you are going, you will never get there. Decide what is most important to you and then do it. A lot. And if you want to be productive, then get specific.
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Love,
Michelle
You always have the most useful advice. Thank you!