Running a successful, growing business is one of the most exciting, liberating, and stressful things anyone can do. The few of us who have taken the plunge into the entrepreneurship world know that this life is anything but boring.
As you run your business, there are many decisions you need to make every day and there are many priorities to juggle to stay ahead of the competition.
It’s not uncommon to feel like you have so much to do and not enough time to get things done. If this sounds familiar, then chances are that you’re not focused on the priorities that matter most.
Not surprisingly, the most important priorities are the things that make a huge difference for your business. These are the things that make the highest impact on your bottom line and what you want to achieve.
If you focus on priorities that matter most, you won’t feel overworked. You’ll feel confident about setting non-priority things aside.
FREE Checklist: How To Achieve A Mindset For Success
6 Ways To Focus on the Priorities that Matter Most
1. List Your Top Priorities
To focus your attention in the right place, remind yourself daily what truly matters. Establish what’s essential in your business and what can help you achieve your goals.
Ask yourself questions like these:
- What do I need to achieve this month?
- What can I do to boost my sales growth?
- Should I focus more on marketing?
- Should I revise my content marketing strategy?
- What makes me happy? Is it growing my business? Improving my blog or my money situation?
Think about it and rank what is most important to you and get the top 5 most important priorities. Post those priorities everywhere in your office, on your fridge or your bathroom mirror.
2. Be Specific, Rather than General
Make sure your top priorities are specific. For instance, saying you simply need to improve sales will make it challenging to focus on that goal. However, saying you want to boost sales by 10% within the next 3 months will make it more specific.
Also, avoid focusing on too many priorities at the same time. Limit your focus to 3 to 5 things. This will make it easier to remember what’s important.
3. Cut Out the Distractions
Identify what distracts and brings you down. Identify your biggest time wasters and determine how you can use your time effectively.
To focus on what truly matters in your life and business, you need to know the activities that waste your time. Start by identifying the 3 most common distractions – activities, habits, and hobbies – that steal your time and prevent you from staying focused on your top priorities.
Establish how you can prevent those things from distracting you and learn to manage your time effectively.
Here are a few suggestions to cut distractions:
- Close the door to your office.
- Shut down instant messaging apps and email, and put your phone in silent mode while working.
- Stay away from social media and your favorite places online… reduce screen time.
- Use noise-canceling headphones to cut down noise.
4. Stop Multitasking
Multitasking prevents you from focusing. Doing so many things at the same time decreases the quality of what you do. And it distracts you from focusing.
Avoid doing multiple tasks at the same time by scheduling the most important tasks of the day. Do these tasks one after the other and focus solely on each one, without getting distracted by unimportant tasks. Focusing on scheduled tasks will improve the quality of what you do. Plus, you’ll be more productive.
5. Identify Your Strengths and Weaknesses
After identifying your company’s top priorities and the actions that support them, assess your strengths and weaknesses. Consider any obstacles you may have. Where will you experience challenges? Can you overcome those challenges easily?
Look for someone to help you overcome your weaknesses and the challenges your business is facing. In most cases, you’ll probably need help from outside your business.
6. Replace Negative Thoughts with Positive Ones
Negative thoughts are pointless and distracting. They prevent you from focusing on what’s important. Jealousy, resentment, anger, and hostility won’t improve the quality of your life. So, take responsibility. Move on from past losses and replace negative thoughts with positive ones.
If you want to accomplish anything, focus on what’s important.
Free Checklist: How Your Mindset Affects Your Focus
The mindset we adopt affects our focus and judgment. A success mindset means that when you have challenges, you’ll be able to work through them with confidence and clarity. It means that when you are presented with a challenge you’ll be able to set fears aside and see it as an opportunity. A success mindset means that you’re able to clearly focus on the priorities that matter most to you and your business. Download this free checklist, Cultivating a Success Mindset to see if you have the 6 key qualities of a successful entrepreneur.