🌀 What I do when it feels like I’m working hard but going nowhere

This point ties in well with my point about “stop doing the wrong things well” I made in the November 1 issue of Work Smart Wednesday.

If me and my team are working hard, but it feels like I’m going in circles, I ask myself the most important question: “is everybody prioritising the highest value tasks?”.

When you pick the right priority, it often doesn’t really matter if you do it well or not.

Doing the right thing poorly is still worth more than executing the wrong things perfectly. What you do matters more than how much you do.

"If the ladder is not leaning against the right wall, every step we take just gets us to the wrong place faster." - Stephen R. Covey

Q: What is the most common mis-prioritisation I see?

A: People incorrectly valuing tasks based on past experiences.

People often incorrectly value tasks that were once important and valuable as still important and valuable. Things change. You must adapt your valuations of tasks as your circumstances change.

When you first start your business you often have to hustle; the most important tasks in the early stages might be for you to send emails to potential clients or to fulfil your orders.

As you scale, your priorities shift. You may have a team that manages minutiae and more manual tasks. You would now likely be better spending your time properly managing your team. 

Typically low value tasks that leaders commonly get stuck on:

• Arguing over design and typos

  
  

• Reaching inbox zero

  
  

• Constantly watching your competitors (or even your own data, if done too much!)

  
  

Typically high value tasks:

• Recruiting great people

  
  

• Crafting your offers

  
  

• Aligning your team around priorities

Doing the right things wrong is better than doing the wrong things right.

What tasks are you going to revalue?

I shared this in my Work Smart Wednesday newsletter. Want the full set of related insights? You can read them here: https://worksmartwednesday.substack.com/p/work-smart-wednesday-november-15

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