If you ever feel overwhelmed, you’re not alone.
There are only so many hours in a day, and if you are not careful, it’s easy to get overwhelmed with work and have no time left for the stuff that matters. I’m speaking from experience. For years I suffered from distraction and poor sleep, which led to stress and a neverending feeling of overwhelm.
Like you, I read a bunch of books and listened to podcasts on productivity. And over time, I realized that not all time management strategies work for me. So I took the best ideas from each resource and distilled them into the ADD Productivity Framework – Automate, Delete, or Delegate.
Automate Your Work
Automation is essential because it allows you to work less and get more done. Automation can take many different forms, but the basic idea is to use technology to automate repetitive tasks.
For example, you can use an email autoresponder for marketing your business or responding automatically to customer inquiries. Or you can use a tool like Missinglettr to schedule your social media posts in advance.
There are many different ways to automate your work, and the best way to find out what will work for you is to experiment. Try various automation tools and see which ones save time and help you get work done more efficiently.
Delete Your Work
If you can’t automate a task, ask yourself if it is necessary. Just because something is on your to-do list doesn’t mean you have to do it. Many tasks on our to-do lists distract us from doing the important stuff.
To figure out if something is necessary, ask yourself why you are doing it. If you can’t think of a good reason, it’s probably not worth your time. The same goes for meetings. If you can convey the same ideas over zoom, video, or email, it’s probably not worth your time to meet in person.
Force yourself to say no to tasks that are not in your area of expertise or will take up too much of your time. This will help you focus on what you can do well and make more FU money.
Delegate Your Work
If you can’t automate or delete a task, the next step is delegating. There are many different ways to delegate your work. You can hire an assistant to help. You can outsource jobs to freelancers. Or you can ask a friend or family member for help.
Fiverr is an excellent resource for finding freelancers who can help with various tasks, from social media to website development. I’ve also used Upwork in the past to find virtual assistants. And I’ve even hired my mom to help out with specific tasks.
Finding someone you trust to help you with your work is essential. Once you delegate a task, let go of the need to control everything and give the person you delegate the freedom to do the job their way.
The ADD Productivity Framework can help you save time. The next time you feel overwhelmed by a task, ask yourself if the job can be automated, delegated, or deleted. Doing this will help you save time and be more productive, making you a better leader.