Concentrate and finish

by Susan Murphy—

My new mantra is Concentrate and finish. I often say these three words out loud to remind myself to focus on getting the job done. As Peter Drucker said, “Time is the scarcest resource, and unless it is managed nothing else can be managed.” No matter who you are, every day has 24 hours and 1440 minutes. Every day we have the choice to use it or lose it, because time cannot be spared.

How will you invest your time this year? Now is the perfect time to think about priorities and values. Goethe said, “Things that matter most should never be at the mercy of things that matter least.”

Does it seem like there are more distractions than ever? Do you ever feel like you are helping everyone and not focusing on your own goals? I struggle with striking a balance so that there can be a win-win situation for achieving my goals and helping others achieve theirs.

Distractions come in all shapes and sizes, including emails, phone calls, tweets, texts, pings, computer glitches, pets, and people. How often do you ask yourself, “Where was I now?” One look at an email can rob you of precious time and it can take over 20 minutes to get back on track! For example, while writing this article, whenever I am interrupted, I stop, shift my focus to the interruption, act on the interruption, and then re-examine this article. It is important to train yourself to see the high value of time and the value of every moment. Some people admit that they waste up to 80% of their time on unimportant things. How much time do you waste each day?

So, how can we make this year productive, less stressful and more joyful? A lesson can be found in a story from 1918, when Charles M. Schwab was president of the Bethlehem Steele Corporation. Schwab was known for being competitive and even became the Master Hustler by Thomas Edison. As the story goes, Schwab wanted to increase the efficiency of its Senior Executive Team. So he hired Ivy Lee, a productivity consultant, to work with him to get more productivity from the Senior Team. When Schwab asked about the cost of the job, Ivy Lee said, “Nothing unless it works. After 3 months you can send me a check for what you think it’s worth to you.

Lee advised a simple daily routine. At the end of each workday, write down the six most important things you need to do tomorrow. No more than six. Prioritize these six items in order of importance. At the start of your work day, focus only on the first task. Work until the first task is completed before moving on to the second task. Complete the second task and move on to the third. At the end of the day, move all unfinished items to a new list of six tasks for the next day. Repeat this process every working day. After 3 months, Schwab wrote Ivy Lee a check for $25,000. In 1918, that check would be equivalent to $400,000 today. Warren Buffet uses this system today by making a list of five important tasks every day.

Another way to focus and finish is to realize that tidy is different from organizing. Does this sound familiar? You carry clean, folded laundry for storage and pass the dishwasher full of clean dishes. You think to yourself, “Hmmm. It takes me 5 minutes to put the dishes away. You put down the laundry basket and empty the dishwasher. While doing the dishes, you notice that your cutlery drawer is messed up. Again you think: “It only takes a moment to sort the knives, forks and spoons in the right slots. I got this.” Next, you notice that the dish towel drawer needs to be organized – another 15 minutes gone by. Decide if it’s best to tidy up or organize. These are two different activities.

As you begin to develop the habit of focusing and finishing, it’s critical to act deliberately to deal with distractions. Choose consciously where you spend your time. See if this sounds familiar. Driving home from an appointment, you remember you’re out of eggs, so you make a quick decision to stop by the grocery store for a dozen eggs. Once you get to the store, you’re like, “Gee, when I get here, let me pick up a few more items.” An hour and 3 bags of groceries later you leave the store. When you get home you need another 30 minutes to put away the groceries. Suddenly it’s 3 p.m. and your priority list for today hasn’t been touched. How did you invest your 1440 minutes?

Tips to help you focus and finish

• Participation Concentrate and finish aloud if you feel distracted.
• Practice the Lee Ivy method. Write down your most important tasks in order of priority and focus on completing each task before moving on to the next. “Put first things first” is one of Stephen Covey’s habits of highly effective people.
• Watch out for interruptions that are time wasters. Disable social media notification settings. Practice self-control! When you receive non-urgent calls and messages, wait to respond. Your time is a precious commodity.
• Try the Pomodoro method of time management. Use your priority list of projects and set your alarm for 25 minutes. Take a 5 minute break between segments and then refocus on your priority project. After 4 segments, take a 15-30 minute break. Then concentrate and finish it!
• My favorite time management question is “What is the best use of my time right now?” Try it! Ask yourself this throughout the day.
• Remember that tidying up and organizing are two different tasks. After cleaning up, make an informed decision whether you want to organize as well.
• Be deliberate. Focusing and completing requires discipline. Successful people value their time.

I invite you to embrace tomorrow as a new day where you can live your values, act deliberately, prioritize tasks, and focus and finish!

Dr. Susan Murphy is a best-selling author, business consultant, and speaker specializing in relationships, conflict, leadership, and goal achievement. She is co-author of LifeQ: How to make your life your most important business And In the company of women. She can be reached at Susan@DrSusanMurphy.com.