Are You Stealing from Your Profitability and Don’t Even Know It?

There are three thoughts that people often reshare when I post them.

When I state them in a workshop or keynote, I see heads nodding around the room.

“If you always do what you've always done, you will always get what you've always got.”

“You can be busy all day and still have gotten nothing done.”

“Time is money-use yours wisely.”

Why is it that people relate to those statements so much that they share them consistently?

Is it because deep down, way in the recesses of our mind, we believe that we are stealing from ourselves?

I don’t steal from myself! That would be crazy!

Well, of course, you don’t consciously steal from yourself.  You want to focus on your profits and grow your business.

So, then why can we relate to those statements above?

Today we are busy. Really busy!

Not having enough time in our day is common. We rush from one appointment to another and often don’t take time for a vacation or other personal pleasures.

Sometimes, feeling overwhelmed or overcommitted is a misguided attempt to grow our business. We’re just not sure where to put our priorities, so we bounce from guru to guru, partially implementing the latest fad project or bright shiny object.

Other times, we do too much because we feel empty or unfulfilled inside. Maybe we don’t know what we want or we are unhappy with where we are. We feel afraid, fearful, lonely, angry, or even depressed. We become busy to fill that void, whatever the void is.

Being always on the go can help us feel important and needed. Being busy can be a way of feeling productive. Are we being productive, or are we just passing the time by being busy?

Are YOU a Profit Thief?

Answer “True” or “False” to the following questions in this quiz to discover if you are getting caught up in unconsciously stealing from yourself.

[ ] I don't have a clear vision of what I want my business to look like.
[ ] I don't have a clear income goal or a plan for achieving it.
[ ] I work with anyone who will hire me rather than focusing on a clearly defined population to serve.
[ ] I rarely set aside time to think about long-term strategy or direction.
[ ] I don’t have a regular weekly or monthly review process to evaluate what is working and what needs to change.
[ ] I don’t consistently track my progress toward my goals.
[ ] I’ve given up on my dreams because of other obligations in life.
[ ] I don’t plan my day the night before to avoid surprises.
[ ] I’m not confident in my priority-setting process.
[ ] I am confused about my priorities.
[ ] Procrastination is a problem for me.
[ ] I start projects but often delay finishing them.
[ ] I delay making decisions even when I have enough information to move forward.
[ ] I work on trivial activities while a more important task remains undone.
[ ] I often find myself “putting out fires” or focusing on “urgent” things instead of important ones.
[ ] I take on projects without a clear understanding of how much time or energy they will require.
[ ] I set unrealistic time frames.
[ ] I don’t consistently follow up on important tasks, leads, or commitments.
[ ] I don’t have all the information I need to complete my important tasks.
[ ] I frequently complete my most important task before working on less important ones.
[ ] My processes are not written down or easy for others to follow.
[ ] I don’t have many processes in place in my business.
[ ] There are tasks in my operation that only I know how to do.
[ ] I don’t know how to effectively delegate.
[ ] My business would not function well without me. I can’t go on vacation for 2 weeks!
[ ] I don’t use agendas and expected outcomes for the meetings I plan.
[ ] I am inconsistent in my marketing or lead-generation activities.
[ ] I don't have a plan to promote my products and services monthly, quarterly, and annually.
[ ] I do not regularly review my financial numbers or know how my business is performing financially.
[ ] I don’t follow a clear time-management strategy for my work or for myself.
[ ] I don’t use lists effectively.
[ ] I check my email (social media) more than 5 times a day.
[ ] I checked my email or social media first thing in the morning.
[ ] I am interrupted multiple times a day by phone calls, people stopping by, or my email notification alarm.
[ ] My work environment or digital tools often distract me from focused work.
[ ] I’m disorganized and can’t find things I need within seconds, or I frequently misplace items.
[ ] I have difficulty listening or focusing on a single task.
[ ] I am a fantastic multi-tasker.
[ ] I don’t know what my ‘prime time' is — the best time of the day for me to work.
[ ] Even though I’m always busy, I feel like I’m not getting anywhere with my business or life.
[ ] Sometimes I feel like a “hamster in a wheel”, always running, but getting nowhere.
[ ] I do not intentionally manage my energy during the day (breaks, movement, or recovery time).
[ ] I do not have a consistent sleeping pattern.
[ ] I am often tired and never feel like I can get enough done.
[ ] I find that I am go-go-go from the time I wake up in the morning until I go to sleep at night.
[ ] “Me time.” What is that? I rarely take time for myself.
[ ] I can’t relax when I take time off or go on vacation.
[ ] I have a hard time saying ‘no.'
[ ] Even though I am constantly busy and never alone, I feel an overwhelming sense of loneliness inside.
[ ] I am a perfectionist.

If you answered “True” to any of these questions, you are stealing from yourself. If you answered “True” to more of these questions than “False,” you are probably in need of a time/money intervention!

With all the demands on our time, it is easy to feel you have no control; however, how you spend your time is your choice.

Consider moving from “busy” to “productive”-your life and business will thank you for it.

Here are a few thoughts to get you started:

Understand this: You cannot Manage Time

“Don’t be fooled by the calendar. There are only as many days in the year as you make use of. One man gets only a week’s value out of a year while another man gets a full year’s value out of a week.” ~ Charles Richards

There will always be 365 days in a year (yes, except in leap years) and 24 hours in a day. You can’t manage that. What you can manage is how you use that time.

Start by Understanding Where Your Time Goes

Have you ever tracked your time? Are you developing productive habits that grow your business, that UNLEASH your brilliance and UPLEVEL profit potential, or are you spending a lot of time on things that keep you busy, but don't produce results?

If your business isn't going where you want it to, track your time for a week. By tracking your time, you become aware of pockets that you can use differently. It makes you accountable.

Get Real with Yourself

There are a number of ways we can justify being busy, but it is critical that you really test those justifications.

For example, if you are spending hours a day on social media telling yourself you are “growing your business” by building relationships, you are stealing from yourself.

Don’t get me wrong, social media is a fantastic way to grow your business; in fact, my business has made money from every social media site I actively participate in. The trick is to make sure that the time you spend is actually focused on a goal for your business.

Look at each activity on your time log and give it the “sniff” test. If you were talking to a good friend or client who said they were doing the same activities, what would you tell them?

Decide What You Want to Change

Now that you have identified the activities that are “busy,” identify what you are going to do differently. Get really specific here.

The more detailed you are in this part of the process, the clearer you can identify what you want for your business and your life, the better the chances are that you will achieve it.

For example, if you are doing a lot of administrative work in your business that keeps you from your profit-making activities, maybe it is time to delegate.

Be careful not to get caught up in the “how” at this point. Just identify what needs to change. At one point, I did this exercise and found I was spending over 30 minutes a day just downloading and uploading files for my daily podcast!

I would certainly record this podcast, but posting it to my social media sites or distributing it through my RSS feed or iTunes did not have to be done by me. That one realization saved me 2.5 hours a week!

Quick Reminders

“If you always do what you have always done, you will always get what you have always got.”

“Time is money – use yours wisely.”

You can be busy all day and still have gotten nothing done. When you keep the same habits, your results are unlikely to change.

Ask for Help

Often, when we want to make changes to ourselves or our business, we struggle to see what we need to do first, second, or third. This is where a coach or accountability partner can really make a difference for you.

Outside perspectives help you see things that you can’t see on your own and can give you the push you need to move forward. Take responsibility for your success and find someone who can support you in reaching your goal.

If you are not reaching your business goals, if your business is not as profitable as you would like, if you are not spending time in your personal life like you would want, if you are not achieving your vision, then why is your calendar and to-do list so full? Why are you so “busy?” Break down those barriers, claim your productivity, and stop stealing from your profitability today.

Not happy with the way you answered the quiz today? Want to know how you can turn things around? Schedule a conversation today.