As I’ve been ramping up projects in the new year, I’ve been looking for ways to improve my productivity. And I have a few secrets that I’ve kept tucked away in my back pocket for just this kind of moment!

Many years ago, I listened to an interview with Brian Tracy, who, I think we can all agree, is a mega-successful human being. This past week, I  looked back over my notes from that interview and the concepts are just as relevant today as they were back then.

I’ve turned the thoughts Brian shared back in that old interview into five questions to ask yourself- and once you answer these questions, you’ll be able to dramatically improve your productivity (and simplify your life, too!)

Question #1: Are You Ready to Make A Decision?
Let’s face it- if you make a decision, whatever it is- that you’re going to be successful, bring in more clients, learn a new skill- then the first step to making it happen is to make the decision.

The word “decide” comes from Latin for “to cut off,” and that’s what you have to do when you make a decision: you cut off all other possibilities. If you decide to be successful, you have to decide to cut off the possibility of not being successful- more than that, you have to cut off the possibility of being anything but successful.

So, the first question is, “Are you ready to make a decision?” The decision can be about anything you want, however small. But the secret is to make a decision. It all starts there.

Once you’ve made your decision, you’ll want to take a pause for a little strategy:
Make a list of everything you do in the course of a week or a month. If you look at that list carefully, you’ll find that there are three things on that list that are responsible for 90% of the income you create. If you could do only three activities from that list, which three would contribute the most value?

Sometimes the three things on your list that generate the most value won’t be things you enjoy doing. But you really can simplify your life greatly by doing more and more of the three things that bring you the most income- and over time you’ll get better and better at these things and you won’t dislike them so much. Also, remember that often the things we like doing the least are things that bring anxiety, fear or stress. Do more of those, and the anxiety will decrease (tune in next week when I’ll talk about courage in business). So now that you know the strategy to find out what things bring you the most value, let’s get back to the five questions.

Question #2: What should I do more of?
What things count the most? This is where the three most valuable things from your list come into play. What are the three things you should spend more time on? Once you know the answer to that, it’s not hard to start culling your schedule and your “to do” list down to the most essential and profitable elements.

Question #3: What should I do less of?
What things aren’t productive? When you look at the list you made, this is the time to ask yourself which things on your list are things that you don’t have to do- what can you delegate or outsource or just minimize?

Question #4: What should I do that I’m not doing now? 
Now is the time to ask yourself what you’re not doing that you should be doing. Should I go to this conference? Read this book? Should I listen to this audio program? There are so many things you can do to improve and increase your business and we forget a lot of them. This includes things like continuing education, expanding your range of knowledge, and connecting and networking with other business owners. What else could you do that you’re not doing?

Question #5: What should I stop doing altogether?
This was the biggest one for me, because I am the queen of distraction. And working from home, I can be distracted by music, television, a phone call from a friend inviting me to lunch when I should be working, errands, laundry, you name it. However, it’s good to remind yourself that every minute you spend during the day not working on your business is a minute you’ve lost money. I encounter entrepreneurs every day who forget that equation. But keeping that concept firmly in mind makes a huge difference, and when you start to shift your thinking in this direction, you’ll see how much more productive you really are.

All strategic planning starts with abandonment. If you’re anything like me, right now your dance card is full. You can’t do something new without stopping something old. You can really only get your time under control by stopping something that doesn’t count toward your goals in order to start something that really makes the difference. And remember that when you weed out something old and ineffective, you create a vacuum to let a new opportunity come into your life.

Last week I talked about Step #1 of successfully delegating: deciding what to delegate. The next two steps are to find qualified, reliable professionals and to delegate the work to them. But…how?

Step #2: Choose Qualified, Reliable Professionals

When you delegate to professionals, you have to choose the right ones- people who you can trust to do high quality work on time at a reasonable price. You’ll want to look for people who you can work with personally, who you like and find pleasant to work with. You’ll want people who meet your needs professionally. It’s important that they are able to meet your standards, time constraints, and price requirements.

I have a database of pros I’ve been working with for the last fifteen years, people I know I can trust to do great work on time and within set budgetary requirements. I’ve been sharing these folks with my clients exclusively for years, but what if you’re not one my clients yet? In 2012, I’ll be providing you with an option to access my database of amazing pros, but for now let me say that there are few guarantees when you work with someone for the first time, so protect yourself by getting excellent referrals and references, preferably from sources you know and trust.

Step #3: Delegate to Your Team

Now let’s talk about Step #3, the how of delegating. When you delegate a task to someone, you must remember that you know how to do it- they don’t. Of course there will be some things you’ll offload that are tasks your assistant or web developer handle regularly, but much of the time, your tasks will be unique to you and your business, at least in some way.

As you move forward with delegating, focus on the following:
a) Breaking down your tasks into easy-to-follow steps.
Every task can be broken down into steps. And even if you aren’t quite ready to delegate something, it’s never too soon to start creating a “manual” for each task- you never know when you might need or want to have someone step in and manage something for you.

In the book, The E-Myth, Michael Gerber talks about creating a manual for each part of your business. For every job that you do, create a manual that would allow someone to take over that job at any time. And when someone takes on the job, it becomes their responsibility to keep the manual updated with any changes or new procedures. This makes it easy to promote people or replace people, when necessary.

b) Writing clear and concise instructions for each step.
When you write instructions for someone, start by assuming the person reading your instructions has no idea what the job is or how to do it. Write down every single step, even if it’s something that seems obvious to you. Remember, what seems obvious to you may not be so apparent to someone else.

c) Answering questions before you get them.
Sometimes, including an FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) section in your instructions can be useful. That way you can head off spending a lot of time answering things you might already have answered previously. Check through your sent e-mails for answers to questions you’ve had in the past and re-use the answers in the FAQ. And again, this is a great place where the person you’ve delegated to can take over- let them manage and update the FAQ section as needed.

d) Being available as any questions you haven’t anticipated come up.
As you delegate to others, you’ll find that you want to be sure you have a little time set aside to reply to e-mails and phone calls as your new assistant has questions about his/her new tasks. there are always questions that need to be answered and fine-tuning that needs to be done, so plan ahead and make sure you have the time to manage the transition.

I’ve been thrilled with delegating various tasks and the time (and headaches) I’ve saved myself. There’s always a transition, but it is relatively painless and the reward is almost always worth the effort. A year ago, I delegated the management of one of my online stores to my assistant. There was a substantial learning curve- it took about two weeks before he felt comfortable managing the stores on his own, and during that time, we were e-mailing back and forth several times a day and talking on the phone at least once every couple of days. But once that transition was complete, I was free to spend my valuable time working on other, more profitable tasks, while he managed the day-to-day updates and operations of my store. I saved both time and money and was able to start a whole new business as a result (which he now also manages for me).

Don’t be afraid to delegate. It may be one of the best decisions you can make for your business!

I know, you think you can’t afford it, right?  Having an assistant is something you find in larger enterprises, something celebrities have.  But guess what?  Having an assistant IS affordable and you can’t beat having someone at your beck and call to help you manage your business.  Let’s take a look at five reasons having an assistant will save you money in your business:

Reason #1: An assistant will free up your time so you can spend it on income-generating activities.
Your assistant will take care of all those silly and unpleasant tasks you just don’t want to do.  For example, I recently needed a list made that required some searching on the internet.  It was easy enough work, but a trained monkey could do it and I have better things to do with my time that actually generate revenue.  So I had my assistant do it and I was able to finish several projects in the meantime, projects that will earn income in the long run, and having my assistant handle these tasks cost me less than $100, a far cry from what I earned on the activities I spent my time on.

Reason #2: An assistant will make you shine.
I once had a client who needed a compelling PowerPoint presentation completed.  Now, I have no trouble admitting is that I am terrible at graphic design.  Once I was done with editorial work and amping up the text in the presentation, I called my assistant and he handled it with grace and finesse and had the presentation on my desk within 48 hours.  It made me look really good and the client was thrilled.

Reason #3: The right assistant can manage your business as it grows.
I used to have a lot more time than I do now.  Handling e-mails and replying to clients was easy because I had the time to put into it.  These days, I really need more help and as my business grows, it’s only going to keep getting more complicated.  Currently, my assistant helps with the easy e-mail responses and order processing.  He can answer questions, provide technical support, and handle almost anything that doesn’t require my personal expertise.  I’m free to do what I do best and he’s taking care of things that he’s become an expert on.

Reason #4: An assistant can make your personal life more manageable.
I know, I know.  How, right?  This is one of my favorite stories about my assistant. Last year, I visited Montevideo, Uruguay and was there for my fiance’s aunt’s birthday.  Before I left, I decided that I wanted to give my fiance’s aunt a watch for her birthday- nothing expensive or extravagant, just a nice little watch that would make her smile (she is the sweetest little lady you could ever meet and I completely adore her).  I had some very clear ideas about what I wanted but when I searched online, I couldn’t find anything that met my needs.  So I sent the specs to my assistant, and 24 hours later, had a Word document with 12 options, complete with pictures, pricing and the web address where I could get each option.  And don’t even get me started about how my assistant called 37 shoe stores looking for a pair of shoes I was obsessed with!   Do you think I would’ve had the time to do that?  Nope- and instead, while he was hunting down a pair in my size, I was earning the money to pay for those shoes!

Reason #5: Your assistant can earn money for your business.
While you’re out doing what you do best, who’s marketing your business?  Who’s out there finding out where you should market, who your competition is, and what other services or products you might want to offer to better serve your clientele? Your assistant can make a huge difference to your business by either engaging in awareness-building activities or doing market research to help you figure out where your efforts will be best spent. This alone will save you money AND make you money at the same time!.

So after all this, how can you get an assistant of your own?

It’s called virtual assisting and it’s incredibly affordable. Virtual assisting is where you have an assistant who doesn’t live in your area and doesn’t come to your office.  90% of my work with my virtual assistant takes place via e-mail.  I e-mail a request and the request gets handled and sent back to me. I have spoken on the phone to my assistant a couple of times, but more often than not, it’s just as simple to shoot him an e-mail and know he’ll be back with me in 48 hours.

Granted, you won’t have someone at your beck and call in person, and they won’t walk your dog or pick up your dry cleaning.  But they’ll free up your time in ways you never expected and you’ll be free to do what you love and what you do best.

Choosing a virtual assistant isn’t always easy- you don’t have the same kinds of interviews as you’d have in person.  You’re better off with a team than an individual- if your assistant gets sick, there’s always someone to take over and make sure your tasks are still completed.

READY TO WORK WITH A VIRTUAL ASSISTANT OF YOUR OWN?

I’m so excited to tell you that my virtual assisting company, Kaya, has put together something really special for me to introduce them to you.

We’re offering you a 10 hour FREE TRIAL on all of their Virtual Assisting monthly service plans.  There are monthly plans starting at 20 hours/month going all the way up to 160 hours/month, but you can also work with them on a pay-as-you-go plan or on a single project.   The trial is available to you within the first week after you inquire about their services. If you decide to continue the service after the trial period you will be charged for the 10 hours; if not, then there is no charge.  Depending on how many hours you use your assistant, your rate could be anywhere from $7-12/hour.

If you’d like to get started today, visit the partner page Kaya, my virtual assisting company set up for this offer at BlueJeansVA.com and fill out the form. You’ll work directly with my friend Bokhari. He’ll take great care of you and find the best assistant for your needs.

I love my virtual assistant team and I give this company my absolute highest recommendation.  They’re always prompt and have wonderful attention to detail.  They’ve come in on weekends to finish up a last-minute project and have always come through for me on anything I’ve needed. I can’t say it strongly enough: the team at Kaya seriously rocks!