What do Grey T-Shirts, Log Cabins, and Hotel Concierge Desks Have to do with Increasing Productivity?
The World’s Most Successful Entrepreneurs Share Their Secrets…
Industry leaders who have made a real impact on the world such as Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg and Steve Jobs are few and far between. We pose the question – what can we learn from their habits and quirks?
While the success of these leaders is impressive, and you might consider them outliers, I firmly believe we can all become more successful in our own businesses by attempting to emulate the top performers in our field.
So, what are some simple productivity hacks that you can take away from the lives of these weird but revolutionary entrepreneurs?
Keep it Simple
Did you know that Mark Zuckerberg has a uniform of identical grey t-shirts and hoodies that he wears each day of the week?
The reason? Having a basic uniform allows him to avoid wasting time on trivial issues like deciding what to wear each day.
Simplicity eliminates unnecessary distractions and preserves your decision making power for the important decisions of the day.
Delegate and Delegate More
Your role as a business owner is to focus on your business and not constantly work within it. You should aim to focus on your core strengths and leave the rest to other people.
If you don’t currently have any staff, hiring a virtual assistant would be a good place to start. Keeping on top of admin, for example, can keep you from working on growing your business. Tim Ferriss, in his fascinating book, “The 4-Hour Workweek”, popularised the concept of virtual assistants in 2007. We recommend you give it a quick skim through if you haven’t already.
Unplug to Get Your Reading Done
Bill Gates reports going on an annual ThinkWeek to a log cabin. He takes books with him that he wants to read. He completely unplugs from everything else and focusses on getting all his reading done without distractions.
Education is vital to an entrepreneur. Reading and absorbing new ideas is difficult if you’re constantly being interrupted, so it makes sense to create times of intense focus where you can concentrate fully on digesting new concepts and thinking big thoughts.
Don’t be Afraid to Say No
When Steve Jobs returned to Apple in 1997, the company was in danger of filing for bankruptcy. Within a period of just two years, he condensed a product line of more than 300 down to a total of 10 products.
By making sure you focus your business efforts on the few things that you do best, you can be much more productive and much more successful. This comes down to priorities. Jobs correctly realised that you need to establish your boundaries and then enforce them at all costs.
Try out New Things
Doing things differently or trying out new things can help you jump start your brain and get it working in new ways. Using Steve Jobs again as an example, he was inspired to model the design of the Apple Store after a visit to the Four Seasons.
You’ll notice that when you visit an Apple store the service bar is located at the back and a concierge greets you instead of a cashier!
I hope you enjoyed the productivity tips. For loads more you can download our Time Management Tips Ebook that includes over 30 actionable tips written by our very own award winning business coaches.
