Eight businesses.
Tons of travel.
More projects than I can count.
Not to mention trying to do my part as a husband and stepdad.
So I, like you have a LOT going on. Here are some tips on how to be an efficient fitness entrepreneur and how I get stuff done.
- Plan your day the evening before. This has been the foundation of my time management system for 15 years.
- Do the most important thing first. Nothing sets the tone for a productive day like knocking out a big task early.
- Don’t leave email sitting in your in box. Once you decide to open an email, act on it. Either delete, reply or read. You don’t want to ‘touch’ the same email 3-4 times.
- Admit multitasking is bad. Focus on something and finish it.
- Know when you work best. For me early mornings, late evenings and Sundays are best for writing.
- Make it easy to get started. Prep the night before, keep what you need handy and eliminate distractions.
- Organize the To-Do List for your fitness business every day. Your To-Do is your productivity road map for the day. Treat it accordingly.
- Dare to be slow. Don’t mistake activity for achievement. Only go as quickly as you can while still delivering quality work.
- Set and respect deadlines. If you don’t have deadlines you don’t get things done. Period.
- Goal set. Why bother doing something if you don’t have a goal for the outcome of that activity?
- Allocate your time. Know how much time something should take and plan accordingly.
- Use your time wisely. We all have the same 24 hours each day, so why is there such a disparity in what high achievers accomplish versus what they average person does? How they use those hours. Use yours wisely.
- Avoid disruptions. If you’re working on something, don’t let other stuff interfere. You’ll lose your momentum and reduce your productivity.
- Time Block. You’d be amazed at what you can get done with one uninterrupted 30-50 minute block of time. Have a couple of those each day to work on your business or projects and watch your productivity and income soar.
- Get a kitchen timer. Use it to time block.
- Delegation. 20% of your stuff needs to get 80% of your attention. Delegate as much of the rest as you can.
- Outsource wisely. This means outsourcing the right things and setting whoever you’re outsourcing to up for success.
- Effective scheduling. Group phone calls or training sessions together. Look for ways to minimize wasted time.
- Prioritize ruthlessly. Focus your time on high ROI activities. This doesn’t happen by accident. Track the return on the things you spend time on and prioritize accordingly.
- Stop doing research. I could’ve said stop reading crap on the internet instead, because that’s what most people do when they say they’re doing research.
- Say NO more often. Refuse low ROI projects or activities. Not everything merits your time or attention.
- Neglect stuff. Some things can sort themselves out without you spending time on them. Hard to believe, but sometimes people can figure things out for themselves.
- Beat Procrastination. Just start. All you have to do is get going and more often than not you’ll get on a roll and accomplish a lot.
- Avoid being a perfectionist. It will never be perfect. Never. Good enough is good enough.
- Keep a notebook/PDA with you and write down your thoughts. I use a small Moleskin I keep in my pocket all day.
- Consider a paper planner. I’ve used a Franklin Covey planner since 1994. Simple & effective for To-Do lists and it goes everywhere with me.
- Google Calendar. Simple. Can be shared with colleagues and VA’s. Free.
- Google Docs. Can be accessed anywhere and shared just like Google Calendar.
- One Email Account. Have all of your emails funneled to one account.
I could’ve gone on for days, but the keys to productivity and being the best fitness entrepreneur you can be are Getting Started and Getting Done.
So this should get you started getting more done!
Dedicated to your success,
Pat Rigsby
PS I’d love to hear what productivity tips you are using to get more done in your fitness business and being an efficient fitness entrepreneur.
Pat Rigsby is a Co-Owner of the International Youth Conditioning Association & the youth fitness franchise Athletic Revolution as well as a fitness industry consultant serving thousands of personal trainers and fitness entrepreneurs. Sign up for his fitness business free newsletter to discover proven marketing, sales and business strategies, along with blog updates, news, and more! While you’re at it, follow him on Twitter.
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I almost didn’t pop over and read this (because I have a lot to produce this week) but I’m glad I did. Great reminders.
I can’t really pick a favorite because they all have gold dust all over them but this one stood out:
Use your time wisely. We all have the same 24 hours each day, so why is there such a disparity in what high achievers accomplish versus what they average person does? How they use those hours. Use yours wisely.
Thanks Pat!
Donovan “DFitnessguy” Owens
The Boot Camp Goodfather
what about don’t sleep to get more done?
just joking, great list Pat
to add on to outsourcing and only focusing on the important stuff…
I am about as lazy as it comes to things outside of what I do for a living- meaning I haven’t checked a bill in over 2 years, I never tune-up my car, I bought a condo so I didn’t have to do any outdoor maintenance, etc.
if it doesn’t make me money, either someone else does it for me or it’s not really that important
crank it!
BJ
Hello Pat, great list! I think I am most guilty of multi tasking!
My top tip would be the organization, I use my outlook and have the calendar in the week view so that I can move things form one day to the next and mark them complete when I have finished them. This also syncs with my Blackberry so no matter where I am I can keep track of what I am focusing onfor that day.
Surge ahead!
Nikki Layton
Volo Innovations
‘The Ultimate Sales Machine’ by Chet Holmes. Super relevant to our industry… quick read and powerful tips on time management.
Love it. Thanks
This post is timely for me.
I am working on streamlineing things.
I am trying to blog off Tuesdays and Thursday for projects and no admin stuff. Will see how it goes.
Thanks for all the great tips Pat.
Rick Kaselj
http://www.ExercisesForInjuries.com
.
Excellent Pat!
LOve it !!
Great post Pat. I agree – don’t waste time on the internet. Deal with your emails – handle only once – I learned that task in the Operating Room – move something only once. I still can get a bit distracted with too many projects so need to work on streamlining. I agre with B.J. Gaddour – I find I am getting bad for that – if it won’t make money for me – not interested. Like Rick, I am also trying to block on chunks of time that I can work uninterrupted.
Pat,
That is such a great list. Im going to print itup and put it on my board. Thanks Again.
Gary
@BJ Gaddour – If only we didn’t have to sleep — we could get twice as much done!
Awesome post Pat!
This is a great list that we can all review every once and awhile to get us back on track, as I find over time we sometimes begin to slide away from being productive and getting things DONE.
Printing this one off and it’s going on my wall so I can keep myself accountable!
Thanks
Sean Barker
Dad Fitness
Pat,
Great list. Thanks,
Brian
Great Stuff Pat, I need this to reinforce my transformation into hyperdrive productivity. I catch myself spending, uh, I mean wasting way too much time on activities that I can outsource. Last week I outsourced a ton of paperwork to a bootcamper of mine and she is taking on the task with full effort. What an amazing feeling!
Great stuff, Pat. Make 24 hours your friend and not your enemy.
Hey Pat
Thanks for your post. Get me moving in the right direction. Being very unproductive at times.
Hey Pat!
Great post that spoke to me about keeping the our business brain working in the right direction!
A great list!