The Hottest Topic in 2023: Productivity
It's not trendy but actually really easy to do.
The Downfall of Solopreneurs
Running a one-man operation means that whatever you do (or don't do) will have a huge impact on the business.
So the biggest challenge that remains unsolved for solopreneurs of any kind is productivity.
And social media is going gaga for this topic.
- SaaS tools like Notion, AirTable, and ClickUp
- Productivity techniques like Pomodoro
- Apps, timers, and day-in-the-life
But as with any topic on social media, titles are often sensationalized and hooks are clickbait-y.
It's not about the tools and techniques.
It's about the fundamentals.
In this week's newsletter, I'm going to share what I learned from my mentor regarding productivity.
I don't know if it's been covered by anyone else out there.
But it worked for me.
And I hope it does for you, too.
The Basics of Tasks
During his mentorship, he taught me that there are 3 types of tasks that any business owner does.
Needle-moving tasks, such as:
- Building your brand and reputation (e.g. networking)
- Proving how good you are (e.g. sharing results)
- Having conversations with potential clients (e.g. having sales meetings)
Necessary tasks, such as:
- Required by law (e.g. taxes and returns)
- Required by operations (e.g. administration)
- Required by performance (e.g. upskilling)
Unnecessary tasks, such as:
- Building a website with custom designs
- Having brand photoshoots
- Consuming content (including courses)
- Repackaging your offers
The biggest mistake is spending less than 75% of my time on anything other than needle-moving tasks.
The second biggest mistake is not outsourcing necessary tasks as early as possible.
Finally, the third biggest mistake is not spending as little time and energy as possible on unnecessary tasks. These are tasks that are not a must-do AND do not have high (or any) ROI.
You might have noticed courses are considered an unnecessary task. I was surprised too.
Well, we learn best by doing.
But in the event where we don't even know what to do or where to start, a course might then be beneficial.
Needle-moving Tasks
Moving the needle is what we as solopreneurs hope for.
Generating leads...
Growing your personal brand...
Making money...
But not all of us actively prioritize and work towards moving the needle in our business.
It gets worse when we manage to brainwash ourselves...
Convincing ourselves that a new look or another course will move the needle.
I know this because I was doing just that.
When I was starting out, I was paying for expensive courses.
I was spending 12 hours a day on YouTube.
I revamped my entire website multiple times.
And I was hoping to get a lead.
Maybe even a client or 2.
I remember feeling like a failure and doubting myself all the time.
“Why aren't there any leads? Maybe I overestimated myself...”
In hindsight, it was so silly of me, thinking that clients will magically fall from the sky.
Things changed when I focused on having conversations instead.
Sending outreach DMs...
Collecting undeniable proof...
Telling my friends and family what I do...
I stopped caring about what my website looked like.
I now consume content passively, when I'm on the move or relaxing over the weekend.
How to identify needle-moving tasks?
You'll know what these tasks are if you simply... ask.
The next time you onboard a new client, ask them:
- How did you find out about me?
- What made you decide to reach out?
- What made you pull the trigger?
The types of content you create...
The social media platform you focus on...
The best call-to-action of choice...
You will find exactly what to double down on and what to eliminate.
Those in my Like-Attracts-Like programme aren't asking their clients these questions before the programme.
And I'm guessing that you aren't too.
So, start now with your existing clients and new clients.
But I don't have an endless supply of clients to ask...
I completely understand.
On a day-to-day basis, you can try asking yourself a couple of questions instead.
Here are a list of prompts that help me to distinguish needle-moving tasks from other tasks:
- Will this help me reach my dream customers?
- Will this prove my competence and show my results?
- Will this make my dream customers trust me to reach out to me?
- Will this make my dream customers trust me to pay me?
- Will this make my clients talk about me to others and in a good way?
- Will this help me achieve more and better results?
Feel free to use them.
Over time, you might even amend the list.
But eventually, you'll realize that most of the things you've been doing don't move the needle.
I hope this helps.
Necessary Tasks
I absolutely hate legal administrative stuff.
The pressure from deadlines and requirements... Ugh.
The biggest irony is that my background is in accounting & finance.
In the first year of running my agency, I suffered from a major disease. You might have heard of it...
It's called Do-It-Yourself syndrome.
I was actually doing the bookkeeping in Excel. No accountant.
I drafted all the contracts we needed, be it for outsourcing partners or client work. No lawyer.
I even filed the taxes and annual returns on my own.
At the end of they day, I had no idea what I was doing. I just did them.
Because the agency needed to do these things.
And why would I spend $2,000 - $3,000 a year on these things, right?
Wrong.
Let me put it this way...
If I were to spend an hour every month on bookkeeping, that would've been 12 hours a year.
If I spent 4 hours on drafting 1 contract, that's 12 hours for 3 contracts.
If I spent 3 days preparing and filing the taxes and annual returns, that's 24 working hours.
In my first year, I spent 48 working hours on tasks that weren't moving the needle.
What if I used all that time to generate leads instead?
What if I had gotten 2 - 3 new clients?
My agency would've made back the money spent on these necessary tasks.
And profited.
So, the next time you're thinking about DIY, consider the time costs.
Time is something you can never get back.
What is upskilling?
I included upskilling as a necessary task because improving our skills is necessary.
But it can easily fall into the Unnecessary Tasks category if you're not careful.
Here are some examples of what I consider upskilling (i.e. necessary tasks):
- Joining an interactive workshop/programme
- Working with a coach/mentor
- Taking on challenging/new passion projects
- Doing collaborations
What these examples have in common is action.
You will get real-time feedback on your strengths and shortcomings.
This is what makes it a necessary task.
Upskilling becomes an unnecessary task when:
- it does not move the needle directly/indirectly
- you don't actively apply your newly-honed skills to your business
Hence, I don't see free or paid courses as a necessary task.
And if you can, invest in upskilling as much as possible.
The goal is to buy back as much time as you can.
Unnecessary Tasks
This last category is probably the most controversial one...
I strongly believe that they should only be done maybe once every few years.
And I don't say this lightly.
I have actually done so many unnecessary tasks.
Website overhauls...
Changing my packages and offers...
Hundreds of hours of content consumption...
Having convinced myself that they are important and will generate leads.
Yeah... Didn't work.
Nada.
As a brand strategist and agency owner, I just want to put this out there.
When you are relatively unknown, you need to prove yourself first.
The way to do that is by stacking results.
And once you have a solid stack of undeniable proof, you will gather an audience as you create content.
As your audience grows, you will have enough data.
Data will tell you what needs to be done.
Your assumptions about how task X will help you to get clients are most probably wrong.
Tough pill to swallow, isn't it?
I know. I had to go through it, too.
But the good news is things can only go up from here.
Because now you know what to do and when to do them.
Have a great weekend, my friend.
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