The best time to do it is now

The best time to do it is now.

There is one thing I took a long time to get through my head and that was, just do it.

Yes, the Nike slogan that is as motivating as it is popular. Those three little words:

JUST DO IT.

And doing so can make such an impact to your business. I know it did to mine.

Truly, the best time to do what you want and need to do is now. As a former procrastinator, I know if can be hard to just do it. So her are a few tips to help you get going.

How to just do it.

First, what is it you need to do? Second, go do it. Easy, right? It is so you have no excuses. Comment below on what you just completed.

But…if you don’t know what it is you need to do here are your starting steps:

• Do a brain dump. Make a list of all of the things you have in your head. Just start writing, do not worry about priority or order. The goal is to get it on paper or on an electronic list.
• Classify business or personal. Go through and put a “B” or a “P” next to each item so you can easily see whether it is business or personal.
• Delete as you go. You may realize as you classify your tasks that things you wrote out you either do not want to do or do not need to do. That’s awesome, just put a line through it.
• Re-write your list. Get two pieces of paper or open a new window and mark one business and one personal and begin to write down your business tasks and your personal tasks on their own designated spots. Again, deleting as you go (yes, you will start to notice that lots of what you wrote doesn’t need to be done).
• Prioritize your lists. This is where the just do it begins. I like to use $ for tasks that will help me make money (I am in business after all) so I go through and put a dollar sign next to the actions that will bring money into my business. Then I use the 1, 2, 3 system to help me see what is next. I also estimate as best as I can how long I think something will take – will it take me 30 minutes or less, 60 minutes or 90 minutes (I like to work in those 3 time blocks).
• Schedule your tasks into your calendar. Once you know what you need to do and how long it will take you, you can easily schedule them to get done and then, you guessed it, JUST DO IT! =)

Use the motto: If not now, when?

I like to ask myself “if I am not going to do this now, when will I do it?” It gives me time to pause and to be honest, will I have time to do it and if not, perhaps it’s time to let it go.

You may gasp at that, a lot of my clients do. It’s hard to give things up, especially if we have talked ourselves into thinking we have to do it. Yet, when you do, guess what happens? You actually have more time to just do those things that will make the biggest impact to you.

So let me ask you, if not now, when?

Tell me the task that you have been putting off and what your next step for it is, is it to just do it or to let it go?

I’ve been where you may be, having a hard time just doing things and even being ok with letting things go. If you would like help here, schedule a 30-minute complimentary Productive Planning For Success Strategy Session with me. You’ll walk away with a prioritized list, a clear schedule of getting things done and peace of mind about letting things go!