If we manage to do the right things (effectively) and do them really well (efficiently), then we massively increase our productivity and our outcome without increasing workload and stress.
Paradise awaits.
Stuck in too much work for too long? This blog post is for you.
Too Much Work? Questions to Ask to Reclaim Productivity, Effectiveness, and Efficiency
What do we need to do the right things well?
A clear picture of our ideal life (WHY), a structured daily routine (HOW), and the best possible techniques, tools, and skills. (WHAT).
What do we get from that?
Feeling amazing, brilliant results, wonderful experiences, and a highly profitable business with awesome people around us and our ideal life.
What should we master?
Perseverance, clarity, self-love, courage, empathy, and much more.
Is it worth it? Oh, yes.
Will it be easy? Definitely not.
Therefore, the rewards are inspiring and phenomenal along the way.
And do you know what the master skill is that we can always have?
Which word we should learn to say 8 out of 10 times? N – O.
Learning to say no, in order to say yes to our main goals and commitments, is the number one solution to working too much.
What Does Productivity Mean?
The core definition of productivity is this:
“Productivity means achieving the most favorable ratio of input (time, energy, and resources) and output (result). Applied to humans, being productive means achieving the desired results through smart planning and organization with a reasonable effort.”
Who among us wishes to achieve the “optimal” output-input ratio – i.e. productivity – according to this definition?
It’s brilliant!
Why don’t we often achieve it?
The everyday jungle looks different. It seems to be getting denser.
There’s a monkey to marvel at over there, and the machete is getting blunter.
Before we know it, the day is over.
So how can we escape the jungle in concrete terms, knowing in which direction and with a sharpened blade we can cut through the thicket to go our way?
How to Design Your Daily Routine More Productively
1. Know Your WHY
If we have clearly defined our ideal business goals and the life we want, then that’s like our safe fixed point on the compass.
No matter how often we turn and get lost, we can always pull out the compass and align it with our ideal business and life.
How do we find the vision of our ideal business and life? We enter into silence and ask ourselves many profound honest questions.
- How should my ideal business and life look exactly?
- How will it feel?
- How do I live out my passions?
- What do I contribute?
- What does my private life look like?
- Where and how do I live?
- Who do I spend my time with and how?
- What do I give back to society?
Every day we can then ask ourselves in the professional or private context:
Does what I am doing right now lead to where I want to go?
If the answer is NO, then STOP.
What we do in today’s now will create our tomorrow’s now.
At this moment when we say no to the “wrong,” we say YES to ourselves. We say YES to our ideal life and to the business of our dreams.
Does that mean that the “wrong” is generally “wrong”? No. It just means that it is not suitable for us and our ideal business and life.
But why is this so difficult for us?
FOMO is one example – Fear Of Missing Out.
Social media, TV, advertising, and people – all “pull” our attention and show us what we could all do and what we should do to help THEM achieve their goals. 
When you only react to what others want from you, you don’t contribute to your own goals. You contribute to the goals of others without even realizing it.
Crystal-clear renunciation through pure focus is the toughest test and holds the greatest reward. 
2. Plan Your HOW
The HOW – the strategy – describes how we penetrate our way through the jungle.
With a sharpened machete, climbing through the trees, equipped with a top-notch compass, during the day or night?
The questions we can always ask ourselves:
- What resources do I need to reach my ideal business and life and how can I use them optimally?
- What morning and evening routine, for example, do I want to create?
- What should my professional business model look like?
- When I do something, what’s the intention behind it and how do I feel doing it?
- Am I fighting alone in the jungle or with a guide and a team?
- Who can take over what I (currently) do for me?
A basic level of fixed routines is the springboard to freedom.
Every evening, for example, you can fix the “Eat-the-Frog” of the next day:
- Timebox the 3 most important ToDo’s.
- Set clear sacred appointments for sports, family, and health.
- Switch off all sources of distraction to stay effective, efficient, and productive, and get rid of too much work for the day.
Is my professional strategy, including my business model and my routine (HOW to make significant progress and achieve your goals) productive? No?
Then we say YES to ourselves when we change that.
Does that mean the other models and routines are bad?
No. They just don’t fit our ideal business or life.
3. Use Your WHAT
Now we only need the right tools, techniques, and skills.
The machete must be sharpened, the boots well padded, and the mosquito net well patched for the night. Everything we now use and do specifically should fit our ideal life and strategy.
Here, quality plays a bigger role than quantity in achieving productivity and reducing stress from working too much.
“Good tool, half the work.” (unknown)
Above all, staying focused remains the highest good in business and life.
“Less is sometimes more.” (German saying)
With which aids can I do what I am doing right now the best (e.g., social media blocker on the mobile)?
Here, a real optimization may take place to achieve the highest possible efficiency.
And if we do something, then we do it 100%.
Am I really 100% present with what I’m doing?
Am I really just chilling, with all my attention on my family, completely focused while working on my business? No.
Then we should start saying “No” to distractions and 100% “Yes” to the here and now, to the activity that really matters.
Use AI to reduce your workload and stress – watch the video to learn how:
Conclusion: How Much Is “Too Much Work?”
Too much work happens when you say YES too many times and NO not enough times.
The more we say “NO” to what others want from us (mainly online), the more we say “YES” to ourselves, to our ideal business and life.
No is not egoism, but an expression of pure dedication, commitment, and focus, even if it is sometimes difficult.
The inner and outer radiance, with all the beautiful experiences and results on the way to the ideal business and life, is reward enough 😊
So let’s say NO more often and get back to focus, efficiency, and effectiveness without working endless hours.
Want to optimize your business to get faster growth, higher profits, and more free time?
Our free AI-powered business setup will show you a blueprint of all systems to achieve exactly this.
(Credits: This post was initially created by my close friend Andreas Pfestroff. In weekly calls, we’ve talked for hours and hours about this topic. He inspired me a lot and helped me always get back to focus, efficiency, and productivity. To share the conclusion, I translated it into English) language with his agreement. Thanks for your inspiration Andi 🙂
