Michael Hyatt's Blog, page 66

What Happens When You Confuse Friends, Critics, and Trolls

3 Key Differences and What They Mean to Your Business

If you’re a leader, you’re going to attract critics. I say this from experience as an author, public speaker, entrepreneur, and CEO. It goes with the territory. But let’s be honest: criticism stings.

Theoretically, I know if you put an idea or product out in the world, it’s just the price you pay. But emotionally, it knocks me off-kilter almost every single time.

You might think I would be past that. But I’m not. I’ve been known to worry over disapproval and spend way more time thinking about it than I ought to. (Just ask my wife!)

Of course, criticism isn’t all bad. It can help us improve our ideas, our products, and even ourselves.

But that’s only true if we can properly evaluate the complaint and determine if the source is a friend, a critic, or just a troll. Distinguishing between the three is critical because we need to interact with them differently.

Here are the key differences and what they mean for how you handle them.

True Friends

Some people are in our lives to save us from ourselves. These people want what is best for us and our organizations, and we ought to encourage them to be critical for our betterment. As the proverb reminds us, “Faithful are the wounds of a friend.”

The trick is to create an environment safe for dissent so they know it’s okay to speak up. Beyond that, we need to honor their willingness by listening to their criticism.

If it’s warranted, it’s only right to fix the situation and thank them for looking out for us.

Honest Critics

Some people decide that they disagree with us and go public. They aren’t malicious. They aren’t out to destroy us. They simply disagree with our ideas or find problems with our products.

Nothing wrong with that. Not everyone sees things the same way. Besides, we might learn something from the criticism. It can help us refine and improve what we’re offering.

It’s important to engage these people and refrain from making it personal. How we deal with honest critics tells others a lot about us and our organizations.

Unhealthy Trolls

These people have an agenda. They don’t level their criticisms to help you or point out flaws in your product.

Instead, they are out to hurt you and your organization—or at least use you for their own ends. They want to lure you into a fight for their own amusement.

You may address their criticisms, but do not get drawn into long exchanges. It’s usually best to ignore them, especially if they taunt and mock. If you engage them, they will only distract you and deplete your resources.

As someone once said, “resistance only makes them stronger.” You will never satisfy them. Just keep doing what you know you’re called to do.

Handling Complaints

As leaders, we must learn to distinguish between these three. If we confuse them, we’ll divert our valuable time and resources from the customers who benefit most from what we offer.

Of course, integrity demands that we take warranted criticism seriously no matter the source. If it points out legitimate flaws or problems, we should be quick to address the issue.

“

Integrity demands that we take warranted criticism seriously no matter the source.

—MICHAEL HYATT

I personally assume that everyone is a friend or an honest critic until they prove other otherwise. Used rightly, criticism can help us get the clarity we need to refine our ideas and take our products to the next level.

Question: Do you have critics? How do you respond to them? You can leave a comment by clicking here.

The Secret to Hiring Great People

5 Steps to Give Your Organization a Personnel Push

Leaders frequently tell me they have a hard time recruiting great people to join their organizations. When I ask about their hiring process, I often find one missing element: sales.

Recruiting great people is similar to any kind of sales process. Your company is the product. Prospective employees are your customers. The recruiting process is not just about filtering candidates—it’s also your sales pitch.

Over the years, my team and I have found it’s much easier to attract the right people if we approach hiring as a sales campaign. Our team is now over twenty-strong, and we used this strategy all along the way.

In fact, we just brought aboard two highly talented players this month with this model. If you’re looking to attract great people, you can follow the same process in just five basic steps.

Step 1: Create the Product

It is much easier to close a deal if you have a great product to sell. If your business is the product, then how are you doing in building a company that other people would kill to join?

Identify why people should want to work for your organization. (This inventory is also critical for retaining talent.) Ask yourself some questions: How does your compensation stack up against the competition? That’s not just in terms of salaries, but also bonuses, health insurance coverage, and non-monetary benefits as well.

Do you offer generous time off? Do you encourage people to take that time off? How much flexibility do your people have in executing their work? Can they work remotely and work hours that fit the rest of their lives?

Do you assign tasks that fit with your people’s passions and proficiencies (what I call “Desire Zone” tasks)? That’s where people are their most valuable and most productive to your organization.

All of these elements are part of the product you’re offering and thus part of the sales pitch.

Step 2: Build a Landing Page

Just like you would approach any online product, it is a good idea to have a dedicated careers page on your website. You can see ours here.

This page should include your organization’s purpose, it’s story and core values, your current openings, and a call to action in two parts. People are invited to reply, and they get notified right away that their resume has been received, with follow-ups to come.

Step 3: Solicit Testimonials

If your product is your company, then your customers are your employees. Rather than toot your own horn, how about asking your current team members to talk about their experience working for the company?

You can bake this into your careers page. But we normally do this when we interview job candidates. We bring our people into those interviews to share their experience of working with the team (more on this in the next step).

It’s helpful if you determine in advance what themes you want to cover. For example:

The company’s mission
The work environment
Their teammates
Compensation and benefits

Step 4: Define the Hiring Process

Much as you would carefully design an advertising campaign, you want to have the hiring steps ironed out. It is best for your organization to get to know the applicant well before a job offer, but it’s not good for it to drag on too long.

Once you have good candidates interviewing for jobs, put them through their paces.

Test for the right personality fit by using tests such as Kolbe, StrengthFinders, or Enneagram.

Have multiple members of your team evaluate candidates by conducting several rounds of interviews. Often with an initial screener, a hiring manager, would-be peers, or a senior team member. Get a sense of what several good teammates think of this prospect.

Get get to know the quality of an applicant’s work firsthand. The proof is in the pudding. Assign a real-world test project, and don’t be afraid to pay them for it depending on the scope of the request. It lets them know you’re serious and puts you ahead of most of the competition vying for great people.

Check references and do a background check. I have been surprised to see how often employers skip this. Don’t. It is crucial. The best predictor of future performance is past performance. We usually have job candidates help schedule these meetings with former employers.

Submit your offer in a formal letter. That way you and the candidate know exactly what you are offering. Include an expiration date so that they know the clock is ticking.

Step 5: Launch the Campaign

It’s important to push recruiting hard because one of the most effective ways to hire better people is to increase the size of the candidate pool. The more qualified people that apply, the better chance you have of finding just the right one for the job.

So go big. Of course you should send emails out to your network of friends, family, and coworkers to get referrals. You should also use whatever platform you have. Post an announcement on your blog and on your social media. Send an email to a dedicated list of people who have expressed interest in working for your company.

And get creative. If skywriting could guarantee good applicants in the door, it would almost be worth it. Let the world know that you are hiring, and why your organization is a great place to work.

If you’re offering a wow product, you’ll be surprised at the caliber of people who turn out.

“

It’s much easier to attract the right people if we approach hiring as a sales campaign.

—MICHAEL HYATT

Question: What key ingredients are you looking for in your hiring process? You can leave a comment by clicking here.

How Leaders Make It Right When They Blow It

5 Necessary Steps to a Mended Relationship

If you’re in a position of leadership, chances are better than good you’re going to blow it with your people sooner or later. It’s like messing things up in your marriage. Don’t ask me how I know this, but it’s inevitable from time to time.

There are pluses and minuses to that comparison, but one benefit is that making things right with our spouses can teach us how to make things right with just about anyone.

How? I’m not a counselor, but after decades of professional and personal experience, I’ve found mending relationships involves the same basic five steps.

Let me say up front that I’ve never walked these steps perfectly, but they’ve made a huge difference in my life and leadership even when I stumble through them. And I bet they can help you make it right with your people when you blow it.

Step 1: Take Responsibility

This first step is the most important. If we blow it but we’re unwilling to take responsibility, we’re basically telling our people that making it right isn’t worth it. And that’s just another way of saying they aren’t worth it.

But that’s not true. The health of our teams is critically important to our success as leaders. Because of that, we need to put our egos on hold and be willing to take responsibility for whatever harm or hurt we’ve caused.

What about harm we haven’t actually caused? You know the expression, “You can be right or you can be happy?” Keep it in mind as we look at the next few steps.

Step 2: Don’t Be Defensive

This is one of the most important lessons I’ve ever learned. By taking the defensive posture, we’re only preserving our egos, not our relationships. In fact, we’re actually causing serious damage.

Why? By defending ourselves, we’re essentially abandoning those we’ve hurt. We’re saying, “You’re on your own—I didn’t have anything to do with this,” and leaving them to manage the pain and disappointment alone.

Step 3: Avoid Ifs, Ands, or Buts

Now, there may be mitigating circumstances, reasons beyond our control for what happened. We all know this. But the middle of a crisis is usually not the best time to bring it up.

Why? Because there’s a fine line between explanation and excuse, and people in pain are likely to miss it.

And let’s be honest, we can miss it too. We might think we’re explaining the circumstances when really we’re just covering our rears. In the heat of the moment the distinction can get blurred.

If you’ll notice, steps two and three go back to the same fundamental problem. They deepen the division, not heal the breach.

Step 4: Express Empathy

We can’t leave our people dangling emotionally. This fourth step is when we lean back into the relationship by sharing the hurt. And this is what starts to close the breach.

Our teams won’t feel alone in the hurt if we identify with what they’re feeling and share it. Instead they’ll see (and hopefully feel) that we truly get the pain we’ve caused and am present with them in it, rather than turning away to protect and console ourselves.

Taking responsibility enables this step to occur. When we’re defensive or parsing the guilt, we’re driving a wedge between us and our people.

Step 5: Ask Forgiveness

Once the breach has been closed, it has to be sealed with forgiveness. But of course it takes more than asking. It takes an answer, and only our teams—the people we’ve hurt—can do this part. We can take responsibility and lean in, but they have to honor that and reciprocate.

This doesn’t mean we’re off the hook if they’re unable to extend forgiveness. It only means more restorative work is needed.

The good news is that if we value our people enough to work for that restoration instead of fighting to protect ourselves, they probably won’t withhold it. It’s in everyone’s best interest to heal and get onto better things.

I believe most relationships are easily fixed if we have the courage to stop defending our own egos. Anybody can damage a relationship. But it takes courage to fix one—the courage to reach out beyond ourselves to the people we’ve hurt.

“

Anybody can damage a relationship. But it takes courage to fix one.

—MICHAEL HYATT

The good news is that we have what it takes. If you’re leading a small organization or a large one, you’ve already got all the courage you need. The only question is whether you’ll use it to make things right when you need to.

Question: In your experience, what prevents leaders from making things right with their teams? You can leave a comment by clicking here.

Are You Confusing Leadership and Control?

4 Ways You Can Become a Person of Influence

I often hear leaders, particularly younger ones, complaining about their lack of control in various situations. “If only the sales department reported to me, I could consistently hit my budget,” they lament. Or, “If the production department reported to me, I would not have run out of inventory!”

What they are really saying is, “If I could control these people, I could guarantee the results.”

Leadership is about influence, not control. I am not the first person to make this observation, but it is worth repeating. The truth is that control is an illusion. You can’t control anyone, even the people that report to you.

However, while you can’t control anyone (except perhaps yourself), you can influence nearly everyone. This is the essence of true leadership.

By this definition, Jesus, Gandhi, and Martin Luther King Jr. were great leaders. They had control of virtually no one, yet their influence changed the course of history.

Aspiring leaders would do well to stop focusing on control and figure out how to expand their influence. Here are four ways you can become a person of influence, no matter your position in your organization:

Focus on yourself. “If we could change ourselves,” Gandhi said, “the tendencies in the world would also change. As a man changes his own nature, so does the attitude of the world change towards him.” Or as Saint Seraphim of Sarov said, “Save yourself, and you will save a thousand around you.”

Modeling is the most powerful form of teaching known to man. If you aren’t “walking your talk,” you dramatically lessen your influence. People have a hard time following leaders who say one thing and do another.
Take the initiative. Whiners are passive. They sit back and complain. They focus on what others should have done rather than what they themselves could have done.

Real leaders don’t have time to play the blame-game. Instead, they look for opportunities to take initiative and take action. There is always something you could be doing to influence the outcome.
Cast the vision. Oftentimes people don’t do what we want, because we have not invested the time to paint the vision.

In my experience, people want a challenge. They want to do something significant. They are eager to help. But no one has given them a compelling vision of a new reality. If you consider yourself a leader, this is your job.
Appreciate the effort. At the end of the day, everyone is a volunteer. Yes, even the people who report to you. They have more options than you think. If you don’t appreciate them, someone else will.

People want to give their best effort to those who notice. Time and time again, I have witnessed the power of a simple “thank you.” If this is true for those who report to you, it is even more true of those who don’t.





“

You can’t control anyone, but you can influence nearly everyone.

—MICHAEL HYATT

Sure, it would be easier if the whole world stood ready to do our bidding. But that’s not an option, nor is it really even desirable. If we’re going to make a difference, we are going to have to sharpen our leadership skills and get better at wielding our influence.

Thankfully, everyday is an opportunity to improve this important skill.

Question: Have you ever worked with someone who focused more on control than influence (or have you been that person)? How did it work out for them/you? You can leave a comment by clicking here.

“You are today where your thoughts have brought you; you will be tomorrow where your thoughts take you.” – James Allen [Photo]

Click here for my complete collection of quote card images.

Why Greater Productivity Leads to More Income

(And What That Means for Your Impact in the World)

Productivity doesn’t just increase your efficiency. If you do it right, it can also increase your income. The problem is that traditional systems get productivity all wrong.

They define productivity as the ability to do more and do it faster. But that approach just accelerates the hamster wheel we’re already on. Instead of getting ahead, our productivity gains sometimes leave us feeling frazzled, fried, frustrated.

True productivity isn’t about getting more things done. It’s about getting the right things done.

The Plague of Fake Work

The trick is identifying and investing your time in what I call your Income Producing Activities or IPAs. Unfortunately, a lot of what happens is business has little to do with producing income. In fact, according to workplace consultants Brent D. Peterson, Gaylan W. Nielson,

Much of the work that people do doesn’t achieve results. . . . [A]cross all the organizations we have studied, about half the work that people do fails to advance the organizations’ strategies.

Half! Think about the all the tasks, routine meetings, or busywork that fail to drive revenue or results for your business. Peterson and Nielson label these activities “fake work.”

The problem with traditional productivity advice is that it doesn’t filter fake work. But being productive doesn’t mean doing unproductive work faster. It means focusing your efforts on those IPAs that contribute the most to your business.

3 Ways Productivity Boosts Income

Whether you work for yourself or a larger organization, there are three ways this kind of improved productivity leads to more income and a greater impact.

Adding value. If low-value fake work is so prevalent, there’s a wide-open opportunity for you to add real value. While many of your coworkers are happy with non-challenging tasks, focused high-achievers can help their businesses reach their goals.

Driving revenue. Whether it’s launching new products, making more sales, or boosting billable hours, by focusing on your IPAs you help drive revenue to your business. Those gains stand a good chance of generating higher receivables, performance increases, larger commissions, and/or bonus income.

Redeeming time. Fake work might fill time, but productive work redeems it. By trimming busywork and other low-yield activity, you can invest your hours in high-yield tasks and ideation, while preserving margin for rest and rejuvenation.

Income Equals Impact

All three of these reasons add up to greater impact—not only for your family, but the world around you. Increasing your income creates an opportunity to share and invest in the lives of others. As my friend Stu McLaren says, “Money provides leverage.”

More income for you means more charity for others, new jobs for others, and new products and services for others. Fake work on the other hand—no matter much we do or how fast we do it—deprives others by decreasing our impact.

I’d go so far as to say I have a moral obligation to make as much money as I reasonably can, within the scope of my calling and ethical standards. Why? Because there are people in need, and I have the opportunity to help them.

When we maximize our income, everyone stands to win.

“

When we maximize our income, everyone stands to win.

—MICHAEL HYATT

That’s why I created my Free to Focus productivity course. It’s designed to help you focus on the work that drives tangible results for your business, while cutting out the interruptions and tiny tasks that prevent you from getting ahead.

Today’s the last day public enrollment is open. If you’re interested in learning more, click here before midnight tonight when public enrollment closes.

Question: What would be possible in your business if you were finally free to focus on the work that matters most? You can leave a comment by clicking here.

4 Big Reasons to Attend My In-Person Productivity Workshop

Become Free to Focus on What Matters in Just 2 Days

Is it just me, or is our modern work culture bleeding us dry? It’s not just our cell phones and computer screens that draw our eyes at all hours. As much as we might want to blame technology, the root of our struggle to have satisfactory days goes much deeper.

Far too often, we think, “If I just work harder, I’ll be successful.” But the hustle economy is bankrupt. In a fast-paced working environment, we suffer from a lack of clarity about what’s important to us—not to mention permission to pursue those priorities on our own terms.

Friends, I want to share a special opportunity with you. On May 9-10, 2017, I’m hosting my two-day Free to Focus Intensive Workshop here in my home city of Nashville, Tennessee, and I’d like for you to be there.

First, I want to tell you how it came about.

Inside the Hustle Economy

I’m passionate about all things productivity, and I always have been. But back when I originally started the journey to become truly productive, it was about surviving, not thriving. As a high achiever, like so many of you, I jumped at new projects and responsibilities.

But as I became the father of five beautiful daughters and scaled the corporate ranks—eventually becoming the CEO of Thomas Nelson Publishers—I quickly discovered that something was wrong with the way I worked.

I was succeeding—but at great cost.

My wife and kids deserved more of my time, but I was always on the run. And with so many things on my mind, even when I was with them, I was somewhere else. The overwhelm was ruining my ability to be present with the people I cared about the most.

During a particularly busy season, I went to the hospital three separate times thinking I was having a heart attack. I wasn’t. But my symptoms were stress-induced, and my doctor finally leveled a warning: If I didn’t make some serious changes, I would end up in the emergency room for real.

That’s when I realized I needed a bigger vision than just checking off more boxes.

A Better Endgame

Over several decades of research and experimentation, I’ve discovered what productivity is really about. I’ve been able to pave a path to an intentional and purposeful life with priorities I set for myself—not ones that were set for me. And last year I created a productivity master course called Free to Focus™, which is designed to help others do the same.

It’s a dream come true, honestly. And the addition of an intensive workshop to this course makes it that much more special.

I used to travel and speak a lot, but I don’t any longer. I’m very selective about my commitments, especially since I’ve arranged my life around my biggest priorities. This workshop is a dedicated place where I can invest, interact, and go deep into high-value content with a select group of participants.

Now I want you to experience the same sort of transformation—and it starts at this unique event.

One Breakthrough After Another

We ran our first Free to Focus Intensive Workshop in February this year, and it was outstanding in so many ways. We delved into the course content and proprietary tools, solved problems, had “ah-ha” moments, made new friends, ate great food, and had a ton of fun. My team and I had a blast, and we got lots of rave reviews from our engaged participants.

We had all sorts of people in attendance, from middle managers to solopreneurs, CEOs, and medical professionals. We had both young and experienced leaders, with men and women evenly represented. But best of all, we had a group 110 percent invested in learning how to become Free to Focus—not just to empower their careers, but to secure their future well-being.

My favorite part was seeing the look in someone’s eyes when he or she “got it.”

It usually came in a moment of silence after a discussion ended or a question was posed. I could see the answer appearing in that person’s mind—and becoming obvious to the whole room. Attendees experienced one breakthrough after another.

The Free-to-Focus Difference

You see, so much of what’s taught about productivity is wrong. We learn time and task management, but we almost never get a chance to answer the bigger questions about why we’re trying to get all these things done in the first place. The truth is, running faster on a hamster wheel still gets you nowhere.

At the Free to Focus Intensive Workshop, I explain how productivity is about achieving three different freedoms:

The freedom to focus, where all the important work is done (hence the name of my course).
The freedom to be spontaneous, to have room on your calendar for the fun and interesting opportunities that crop up.
The freedom to be present, instead of thinking about work or other things when you’re with your family.

What we learn about productivity our whole lives is not about freedom at all. In fact, to most people, productivity means that you (1) work a lot of hours, and (2) work as fast as you can. But the results of this methodology can be devastating.

Hours of our lives are wasted on things that count for much less than we thought. And our ability to maximize time with the people we love—and to make our greatest contributions to the world—gets fractured and broken in the process.

So I want to invite you to join me at the Intensive Workshop for four big reasons:

You deserve better. I want to show you how to live and work in a way that is restorative and satisfying. Learn productivity excellence with a better endgame in mind, brought on by a vision that you design. Don’t settle for what others—your boss, your investors, or the hustle economy—say is important. Define your own priorities, and become much more successful in the process.

You get to fast-track the Free to Focus course. You’re already busy (actually, really busy). What doesn’t get scheduled doesn’t get done—and this workshop is the perfect excuse to make an appointment with yourself to learn this material. Digest elite-level productivity strategies, get personal coaching from me and my team, and connect with others who have the same goal. Take two days and put yourself in a position to have a transformative year. The attendees of the February workshop were making monumental decisions before they even left the premises. I think it’ll be that way for you, too!

You get to hear from me personally—and learn how I employ these methods daily. Learn from me directly in a way that goes far beyond the video lessons from the course. I’ll answer your questions, provide practical examples from my own life, and help you customize the course tools for use in your particular situation. I’ll walk you through tools like The Freedom Compass™, The Ideal Week Template™, and Your Blueprint for a Highly Productive Day™—plus so much more. And my team will be onhand to provide further context and coaching. (By the way, you’ll love my team—they’re amazing!)

You get the accountability and support you need to start making real changes. It’s one thing to work through the course on your own, which has incredible value in and of itself—and another thing altogether to do it in a room full of people dedicated to the same purpose you are. Brainstorming, discussing, and fleshing out the concepts of Free to Focus is electric in this workshop. You’ll make new connections and feel empowered to act on the vision that you create. And I want to be there with you when the transformation happens!

A Limited Offer

The Free to Focus Intensive Workshop is a powerful, unique event. And I want to keep it as personalized as possible—which is why it’s limited to 100 people.

That means if you’re interested, it’s important to decide quickly. Registration is going up by $500 after Friday, March 17, at 11:59 p.m. Pacific. If you’re ready to join, you can register here.

I’m dedicated to helping each participant realize their potential and begin to act on it through this event. In fact, I want you to hear from some of our previous participants in this video.

If you can’t see this video in your RSS reader or email, then click here.

As you’ll notice, this is what they were thinking (and feeling) before Free to Focus:

“I was overwhelmed and a classic workaholic.”

“What do I do next? What’s the most important?”

“I was feeling overwhelmed by my own system . . . and looking for answers.”

“I was lost. . . . What do I focus on? . . . How am I going to figure out what I’m doing in life?”

If that’s how you feel, this workshop is right for you. It’s a singular opportunity and an exclusive chance not only to interact with me and my team, but to formulate a strong, sustainable vision for your life and work.

The personal interaction our participants were able to have at the February event stood out as catalyst for their forward progress. That’s why I do this—and that’s why I want you to be there.

If you would like to join me at the Free to Focus Intensive Workshop on May 9-10, 2017, here in Nashville, TN, I encourage you to sign up now before we run out of seats. The workshop is part of our Free to Focus “Ultimate Edition,” which means that you get full, immediate access to all the course lessons and the $2000+ value bonus vault in addition to your VIP workshop ticket.

I couldn’t be more excited to host it again, and I hope that you’ll join me in May!

Click Here to Sign up!

5 Steps to a Clutter-Free Workspace

(And Why You Need to Put Them into Action Now)

A lot of productive people operate in disorganized workspaces. The problem is that they’re not as productive as they could be. The hidden culprit stealing their focus is clutter.

When I moved into my new office a while back, I was in the middle of a massive video shoot. Time was tight, and I just wanted to move my stuff in as quickly as possible.

I didn’t organize with intention or strategy. I just threw stuff in drawers and cabinets, with little rhyme or reason. What I didn’t consider at the time was that the disorganization and clutter would be a hindrance—even subconsciously—to my daily productivity.

Clutter is proven to work against even the most productive professionals. “When your environment is cluttered, the chaos restricts your ability to focus,” says Erin Doland, summarizing the findings of researchers at the Princeton University Neuroscience Institute, adding:

The clutter also limits your brain’s ability to process information. Clutter makes you distracted and unable to process information as well as you do in an uncluttered, organized, and serene environment.

The distraction that clutter introduces often goes unnoticed—yet its restrictive influence on our brains is powerful.

With this in mind, I strategically cleaned out my office, all with the goal of decluttering for maximum focus. The two hours that I spent organizing were well worth it—a serene work environment free from the subtle distraction that chaos introduced.

Clutter is something we must eliminate if we want to experience the freedom that comes from productivity. Here are five steps to kill the clutter and organize your workspace for maximum efficiency.

Set aside time to declutter. What gets scheduled gets done, so get it on your calendar. I suggest that you plan for two to three hours of clean-up.
Put all your items in the center of the room. I know what you’re thinking. And, yes, it is going to be a big, ugly pile. I learned this technique from The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up , and it really is the best place to begin. Pull everything out of the cabinets and drawers. Don’t try to sort it or organize it. Just get it all out there where you can see it.
Make a list of all the natural groupings. Survey the pile and write down the possible categories present. This list might include topics like audio, computer, photography, office supplies, miscellaneous, and so on.
Decide what is going to go where. I suggest that you use a five-zone organizing system. The stuff you use most frequently should be closest to you. The stuff you use least frequently should be farthest from you.

Zone 1. The items you use daily. These will be the things you use all the time, and they should be closest to you. For me, most Zone 1 items are on the desk. You want to have as little as possible in this zone. My examples include: pens, computer, keyboard, and Kleenex.
Zone 2. The items that you use frequently. These should be within reach or just a step away, but not actually on your desk. Perhaps they’re in drawers or cabinets very close by. My examples include: stapler, screen wipes, scissors, and paper clips.
Zone 3. The items that you use occasionally. These should be the next closest, usually within a few steps of your desk. Perhaps they’re in a cupboard, file cabinet, or some other local storage. My examples include: audio equipment, video equipment, and computer cords.
Zone 4. The items that you use rarely—or the items that don’t fit inside your workspace. These could be items that you put inside a storage closet of some kind. My examples include: extra copies of my books, extra office supplies, lighting rigs, and big camera gear.
Zone 5. The items that you never use. Are you holding onto items that you simply do not use? I encourage you to let go of possessions you haven’t needed in twelve months or more. Get rid of them! You have three options: trash them, donate them, or sell them.


Place each item where it goes. I always use containers to be sure items don’t get jumbled up in the drawer or cabinet.

The goal is to be able to walk into your workspace every single day with laser focus. A serene, organized environment guarantees that your brain is not distracted by things; instead, it sees only the high-leverage tasks at hand.

Question: What steps will you take this week to fight for focus by decluttering your workspace? You can leave a comment by clicking here.

Why Busyness Isn’t Good Business [Appearance]

In this article from Forbes, Tim Maurer shares my tips for combatting busyness.









Event:
Why Busyness Isn’t Good Business

12 Podcasts That Will Make You Into Better Leaders [Appearance]

In this Inc. article, Lolly Daskal includes me in the top 12 podcasts for leaders.









Event:
12 Podcasts That Will Make You Into Better Leaders