Don’t wait to work on what is important; begin now

Little by little you get where you’re going. Don’t wait — a delay today puts you further from your goal tomorrow.

One step.

One of the ways that you get overwhelmed is by delaying the small steps each day that move you closer to your goal. That’s why it’s important to make yourself keep moving even when you don’t feel like it, or are uncertain about what the next step might be. Don’t wait. One step today — even if it’s the wrong step — will move you closer to your goal in the long run.

But which step?

This is a good question. Which step will likely yeild the best result at any given moment? For the answer to that question, please take a look at the chart below. It originated with Dwight Eisenhower, and has been made popular in more recent years by Stephen Covey. This matrix shows you the intersection between what is urgent and what is important. Please take a look.

Important, not urgent.

You might have noticed that time spent in these four quadrants have widely varying degrees of effectiveness. For example, when you spend time in Quadrant I, you are mostly dealing with crises and deadline-driven projects. You will notice from the chart that these activites are both important and urgent. This is where you are putting out fires. And sometimes, you do have something that requires immediate action. But where you are most effective is in Quadrant II, where you are working on projects that are important, but not yet urgent. In this quadrant, you are doing things more like planning and relationship building.

Please do this.

Don’t wait — please take a look at your day, and put it up next to the four quadrants. How much time did you spend in Quadrant II? The more time you spend in this quadrant, the less stressed and the more productive you will be.

Read more.

I can help you make better use of your time, and take the small steps today that will make tonight and tomorrow more effective and more enjoyable.

And you have a couple of options for your next step. You could contact me and describe what you’re going through. And I’ll be in touch with suggestions. Or you can book a free session to make a time to get together and talk it over in person. Either way, I’m here to help you focus, overcome resistance, and get moving again.