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Wasting time being "productive?"

by ginandtonic
10 replies
I could kick myself for how I spent my day today. I was "busy" all day. I wasn't checking email or watching youtube. I was "working." Unfortunately, I spent a significant amount of my day trying to automate a tedious task that would take about 30 seconds to do. There's nothing inherently wrong with that, but there were plenty of other things I could have been doing during that time that would have made me a lot more money.

As soon as I realized this, I stopped and asked myself, "What one thing could I be doing right now would make me the most money?" Then I realized I didn't want to do it, and started writing this thread

I'm guessing we've all wasted our time being "productive." What's the most common way you do it? What can you do instead?
#productive #time #wasting
  • Profile picture of the author Floyd Fisher
    Could you have outsourced that to someone else...and concentrated on things that could have made you money?
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  • Profile picture of the author dadamson
    Originally Posted by ginandtonic View Post

    I could kick myself for how I spent my day today. I was "busy" all day. I wasn't checking email or watching youtube. I was "working." Unfortunately, I spent a significant amount of my day trying to automate a tedious task that would take about 30 seconds to do. There's nothing inherently wrong with that, but there were plenty of other things I could have been doing during that time that would have made me a lot more money.

    As soon as I realized this, I stopped and asked myself, "What one thing could I be doing right now would make me the most money?" Then I realized I didn't want to do it, and started writing this thread

    I'm guessing we've all wasted our time being "productive." What's the most common way you do it? What can you do instead?
    Yeah it's a funny thing but I have found myself in this situation many times.

    It's funny that your brain puts things you do not want to do in the back of your mind and you automatically do those things that we feel are most important.

    It's only when we step back and take a look at the overall business plan that we find the areas we are avoiding!

    Best way to stop this is to write down all the things you want to COMPLETE today when you first wake up. Another list for things you would like to complete this WEEK, and another list for the things you would like to complete each MONTH.

    This will solve your problem
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  • Profile picture of the author Peggy Baron
    Yes! And the kicker is you don't realize how much time you've wasted trying to do this one little task until you take a step back.

    I try to plan out my day with tasks and instead of starting with the easiest, I try to start with the one that will most impact my bottom line.

    I also have a sticky note on my computer that says "What's My Outcome?" ~ Rich Schefren.

    Peggy
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  • Profile picture of the author Ruth P
    Great idea with the sticky note, Peggy.

    I guess we all have this problem sometimes. I think the best way to overcome it, especially if we're spending more time on certain tasks than we should, is to outsource to someone who knows better. Unfortunately, that can sometimes be expensive depending on what you need to do! But I'm pretty sure the most successful people on here are the ones who do absolutely what they need to, and outsource the tasks that take them too long to other people.
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  • Profile picture of the author nicelife
    I find it best to just stop thinking in many situations and work work work, otherwise it's easy that the automation and "system building" part of the brain is switched on.
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  • Profile picture of the author Molad
    Yuu can outsource the task if you will get a good ROI. Its either your time or money in exchange for value.

    If I understand correctly, you spent time building a system... that will save you time in the long run eh!. Think long term...
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  • Profile picture of the author aheil
    Yes this happened to me yesterday. I had to resetup my menu because wordpress deleted it. Then I completely deleted it in all because it wouldn't load anymore. Ehh it took about 2 hours but to me it was unnecessary.
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    @RealAlexHeil
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    • Profile picture of the author Mojster57
      Roughly 20% of the work you do will produce 80% of your results. You have to find out what the task that give you most results are and focus on those.
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      • Profile picture of the author Tashi Mortier
        The same thing happened for me, too, already.

        I spend so much time getting organized and trying different web services that I would have been faster by just using a simple Notepad, so that is what I'm going to do from now on.
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        Want to read my personal blog? Tashi Mortier

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  • Profile picture of the author ginandtonic
    Hey guys. Thanks for the replies. Outsourcing is not an option for me right now, but I think it's a great idea for those who can afford it. I really like the post it idea as it is a constant reminder and affirms that you're doing what you need to do. I suppose one "trick" I use is to find the very first step of the process I need to get done and do it (open my browser and go to wherever.com). Then find the next step and keep doing that until I get into the flow of things.
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