Working Less But Accomplishing More

 by Mary Jo Wehniainen

What if it really was possible to work less and accomplish more? Do you think you’d enjoy your life more?

Well, I have great news for you. It is entirely possible, and not really as hard as you think. It does require changing some old patterns and beliefs and replacing them with intelligent actions and habits, but the process is thrilling – and the changes that will occur in every area of your life are glorious.

As it is with all of the articles I write, I’m speaking from first-hand experience. Let me briefly fill you in on my story. I’m a stay-at-home, work-at-home mom with five children under age 13, and the president and CEO of two successful businesses. Oh yes, I almost forgot to mention, I also teach my children at home. And the best part of the story is that I have lots of time for my kids, and for me ….. and my work involves doing things that I’m good at and that I love. How did I get here?

Well, even though I’ve been successful with my businesses for almost six years now, the time for kids and fun was not always part of the picture. There were too many times when I would tell my children "no, I can’t play" or "no, I have to work" or "I would really like to listen to you but I can’t". And something was very wrong with that picture because my children are definitely my highest priority. But I had so many things on my to do list each day that I felt as if I was working constantly. And I had no idea how to change it ……

Until I was confronted with an interesting thought and principle. The 20/80 rule. I’d heard it before and spoke of it myself many times, but never applied it to my own very busy life. I applied it a little differently and was at first horrified with what I found: Only 20% of the things we do produce 80% of the results we get!

Oh my! If that was true, then hypothetically I should be able to stop doing 80% of what I was doing ….. with almost the same results!

But what could I possibly take off that huge to do list?

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Would that be your question if you were confronted with the same principle?

See, what happened is that we’ve unknowingly been programmed to believe that in order to be more successful we need to be busier and work harder. That’s the model most of us have grown up with. But who says it’s true? Is it possible that we could actually work less, produce more and be much more successful?

Yes!

But first you need to think about a couple of things.

What are the items that need to be done that are absolutely essential for your success? What items do you do, but are not essential? What items are necessary, but you hate to do them? What things are you naturally good at that others find difficult?

If you take advantage of the things you’re naturally good at (your talents and strengths) and delegate the other things to someone else (or just don’t do them if they’re not necessary), you’ll see dramatic changes begin to happen.

Remember, this probably won’t be an easy transition as we’ve been programmed to think otherwise for a very long time!

Being busy is not equal to being successful. Many times the more you push and fight for something, the more difficult it is to attain. Once you loosen up and relax, it sometimes comes more easily than you formerly imagined possible!

Give up trying to be good at everything, and focus on your strengths. If you don’t know what they are, you might want to ask some friends and loved ones. They can often see things you’d never see about yourself!

If it’s hard for you to let go of things you’re doing, think about what it’s costing you.

I’ll give the example of my bookkeeping and taxes.

Even though I’m pretty smart and always had great grades in math, I hate doing my own bookkeeping. And when April 15th rolled around each year, it was always something that hung over me …. And was VERY heavy! It cost me a lot as far as peace of mind, energy, guilt at not having it done already, etc.

So, several years ago when I was focused on getting rid of the things I don’t need to personally handle, that was one of the first to go. Now I have someone keep all of my accounting on QuickBooks, file all of my monthly, quarterly and yearly tax forms, and at the end of the year print off a statement of our "balance of accounts". Done! And I pay her $15 an hour to come to my home and do this twice a month! Very well worth it. The burden it has lifted from me could have been worth a million dollars in the weight hanging over me…..

When you’re always busy, stressed, working too hard, handling everything yourself, it's easy to get "cloudy" and miss out on the things that are really important. It’s easy to lose sight of the important things that will make a great difference in your life and your business. When you say no to the 80% items, you make room for a new "clarity" and will begin to see opportunities you never saw before because you were too busy being harried, stressed, running from one thing to the next, with no time in between.

Notice when you’re doing something you "hate" to do. That’s a pretty clear sign that it’s something you should delegate …. or delete from your list all together. It’s not making the most efficient use of your time. Instead it’s sapping your energy and robbing you of the success, peace and joy that you deserve.

Coaching challenge:

Write down five things you’ve been doing that you really hate doing. Think about how you can change that. Do they really need to be done? Is there another way? If they do need to be handled and there is no other way, who can help you do this?

You may end up paying someone to do work for you such as a bookkeeper, housekeeper, gardener, etc., or you might be creative and find someone to barter with. There are people who are gifted at and love to do the things you hate!!! And you might love to do the things they hate! What a great situation if you could just switch!!!!

And what’s the best of all, is that when you focus on the things you’re naturally good at and that you love to do, it doesn’t even feel like you’re working!

Have a great month! Just think, by this time next month you may not even feel like you’re working ….. and your income could have doubled!