Over the past few years I’ve talked to a lot of business owners who are struggling with how much they have to get done, and let’s face it, us business owners have a lot of ‘stuff’ to do. So much stuff and all of it urgent. A bulging inbox controlling our day, forcing us to react, impossible to prioritise.

Just overwhelming!

Of course, everyone has days like this – where you can’t see the wood for the trees, where your to-do list for the day is so long it will take you to the middle of next week just to get through half of it. Those days when you don’t feel like your life is your own; when you’re working to other people’s priorities and everyone wants a piece of you; when you feel completely chaotic and out of control.

As one-offs, these days are manageable – there are simple tools and techniques to get you through them, to deal with them, and still get stuff done. But it’s when these days start to merge, when as a new client said to me, ‘Overwhelm becomes the norm’, when you forget where the hell you’re going, let alone how you’re going to get there.

That’s when overwhelm has become a real issue. That’s when you lose focus on your vision; when what’s really important to you seems a million miles away. So what do you do? You go chasing off down rabbit holes looking for the answers – in time-management programmes and apps.

You start subscribing to lots of ‘successful people’ – you know, those people who seem to have it all – looking for the magic pill that’s going to bring you their success. And of course, that’s exactly what it is – their success. You start to believe that success only comes through long hours and even harder work. You lose sight of what’s really important to you; what success means to you; what your ideal future looks like.

Arghhhhhh.....

So, what can you do about it?

Well, you can start by asking yourself this one killer question:

What am I trying to achieve, and why?

I’m a pretty organised person these days, and this one question (ok, technically two) still has a massive impact on how focused I am, and how much I get done on a day-to-day and month- to-month basis.

It’s a powerful question, whether you’re thinking about the next year, or the next hour.

To find your answer, go back to what I talked about in this blog a few weeks ago, when I asked you to look at your personal vision – what you really want for yourself – the Big Dream.

Are you really clear about what you’re trying to achieve, and why? Because when you are, you’re ready for the simple exercise that will get rid of overwhelm every time it raises its ugly head.

And here it is:

Step 1
Decide on the timeframe that’s overwhelming you. Is it what you have on today, tomorrow, the coming week, the coming month?

Step 2
Next, get yourself a big sheet of paper and a pen.

Step 3
Write down everything – and I mean everything you believe you have to get done in the coming week: personal, business, everything...

Step 4
Once you’ve done that–once you’ve exhausted everything – and you’re sure you have it all on that sheet of paper, grab a big, black marker pen.

Step 5
Go through your list and cross off everything that doesn’t move you towards what you’re trying to achieve; everything that doesn’t move you towards your big vision.
Be ruthless here, look for other people’s priorities on this list and get them crossed off. Look for things that are easy to do, or that feed your inner procrastinator – like setting up a to-do list app, or reading through all those emails you’ve subscribed to – and get those crossed off too.
Cross off anything that doesn’t move you to where you now know that you want to be. Ruthless is the key word.

Step 6
There will be things on your list that do have to be done, but most of them should not be done by you; things like book-keeping, expenses, managing your database.
These things can stay, but they get moved onto a second list, called ‘Delegate’. Add all the things that need to be done, but not by you, to this list

Recognise those things that you may be busying yourself with that are not moving you, or your business, or your life in the right direction.

What you are left with after this exercise are three lists:

• Your Do list – the things you’re going to do because they move you towards your vision
• Your Ditch list – full of other people’s stuff, and things that you’ve just got into the bad habit of adding to your list every day
• Your Delegate list – things that you’re going to get other people to do

In a future blog we’ll talk about who to delegate to, and how to delegate effectively, but for now, just give this a go and see what it does for your overwhelm. I promise you, it works like magic.

You have to be ruthless though, and you have to get over your guilt about ditching other people’s priorities. Just remember that’s exactly what they are – other people’s priorities, not yours! You have plenty of your own to be getting on with.


Do One thing today: Your DO, DITCH OR DELEGATE exercise! 

[This is an excerpt from Marianne’s new book, Simple, Logical, Repeatable, available now on Amazon at: www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1781332266]

For more information on how MPL can help you visit www.mariannepage.co.uk or contact me on hello@mariannepage.co.uk

In the last few weeks we've created your inspiring business vision and we've begun work on your business planning, but even the most inspiring vision, and the smartest of SMART plans will be wasted, if you don't have an effective personal management system.

Your daily routine is the cornerstone of your personal management system, and should be crammed full of habits that will maximise your productivity, and move you closer to your big vision.

Get into the habit of planning your day the evening before (and your week on a Sunday evening). At the end of the day, you’re usually very clear about what still needs to done, what the priorities are, what tomorrow’s frog* will be. Advanced planning like this makes sure that you hit the ground running.

Chunk your work into 90 minute segments. This is a good timeframe for focus, and FOCUS is the key word - don’t multi-task - if you’re going to work on a sales letter, work on it for the full 90 minutes, or until it’s done, if you can do it within the 90.

Work out which part of the day you’re at your peak - for me it’s first thing in the morning - and use that 90 minutes to ‘eat your frog’ - *do the thing that you don't necessarily want to do, but that’s weighing you down mentally, because you know you really need to get it done.

Just get focused and eat the damn frog! It’s a really good success habit to get into.

Set yourself mini deadlines - always good for those of us who like a bit of ‘last minute pressure’ - make them ‘drop-dead’-lines too! Absolute must delivers!

Breaks are always a good deadline. Holidays are also excellent. Ever noticed how much more you get done in the days leading up to a holiday, or the minutes leading up to any deadline.

Both breaks and holidays are essential for your long-term productivity too - refreshing and re-energising your mind and body. The most successful businessmen and women really get this, and have made breaks long and short, a habit they will always keep.

Other daily routines and success habits that are good for your mind and body, include taking at least 30 minutes exercise a day - even if it’s just a walk down the road and back - and drinking plenty of water - two litres is the recommended amount isn’t it? I’m no scientist, but I can testify to the power of a lunchtime walk for clearing your head and setting you up for a productive afternoon.

For successful business owners, there are two other personal management essentials:

1. An assistant or PA
There are only so many things that you can be brilliant at, or that really get your juices flowing; for everything else, you need an assistant - someone who will keep you organised, do the really important, but really boring (to you) stuff that eats away at your time.
A mentor of mine refers to the £10ph, £100ph and £1000ph tasks in your business. Which are you spending all of your precious time on?

And talking of mentors, the second essential is

2. A mentor
What I’ve learned from the mentors I’ve worked with, is that they get you to the next level faster; they get you to raise your game - to see things from a different viewpoint - they share their expertise to help you grow.
Your mentor is a key member of your support team - the sounding board and advisor who speeds up your journey to the results you’re looking for.

Your personal management system takes discipline and time to develop, but when you learn to manage yourself, the business will be a piece of cake!

Do one thing: Spot that frog and eat it…Gulp…

[This is an excerpt from Marianne’s new book, Simple, Logical, Repeatable, available now on Amazon at: www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1781332266] 

For more information on how MPL can help you visit www.mariannepage.co.uk or contact me on hello@mariannepage.co.uk

‘I went to a bookstore and asked the saleswoman, 'Where's the self-help section?' She said if she told me, it would defeat the purpose..’  George Carlin

It's very easy to get stuck in a rut.  Sometimes we don't even recognise that we're in one. 

A rut's boring, same old same old, dull...right?! And that's not our life!

Well what if it is?

Many successful small business owners get stuck in a rut.  It's called The Struggle, and while it's anything but boring, it's definitely a rut. Some find that they can't get out of it. Many more don't want to.  It's comfortable, they know where they're at with it, it's their norm.

They tell themselves that they've already stepped out of their comfort zone to create their business.  They tell themselves that they are successful, and that running a successful business comes at a price - no time and no life beyond it.  They tell themselves they're ok with that, and they're surrounded by other Strugglers who confirm that they're right.

They revel in war stories of their 80 hour weeks, and comfort themselves that they are still working to improve themselves by attending weekend seminars and late evening webinars, while other 'less successful' people are enjoying time with family and friends.  They've created a new comfort zone, and their rut's too deep to see beyond it.

Your personal management system will get you out of your rut, but it needs 3 things to be be successful

1. Discipline - in developing your success habits and daily routines, in ditching the stuff that doesn’t serve you and delegating to your assistant and your team, in listening to your mentor.
   
2. Celebration - celebrating all of your wins, no matter how small they are.
   
3. Integrity - keeping your commitments to others, and to yourself, persevering with your habits and sticking to deadlines.

Learn to manage yourself, and the business will be a piece of cake!

Do one thing: Ask yourself, 'Does my business run me, or do I run my business?'

[This is an excerpt from Marianne's new book, Simple, Logical, Repeatable, available now on Amazon at: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1781332266]

For more information on how MPL can help you visit www.mariannepage.co.uk or contact me on hello@mariannepage.co.uk