GTD: Unlock Your Potential in 2011

While our blog posts are usually reserved for marketing related topics, my personal success with "Getting Things Done" compelled to write this post. That and the increasing number of conversations that I have with business owners that go something like this:

Me: "What would you say is the biggest problem you are facing right now in your business?"

Business Owner: "I don't have enough time in the day to get things done!"

Me: "You have just as much time as everyone else does. Would you say your personal time is your most important business asset?"

Business Owner: "Definitely. I have too much to do and I don't feel like I will EVER get caught up."

Sound Familiar? All too familiar for me personally.

I am a time management FREAK.  I have to be, because it seems that every year brings more responsibilities:

1. Husband
2. Business Owner (multiple businesses)
3. Daddy - in April we welcome baby girls #3 & 4 so this is a BIG one
4. Guest Writer/Speaker
5. Son (and primary care giver for a parent fighting brain cancer)
6. Homeowner (we all have a "honey-do" list)
7. Church volunteer

My list is probably not too different from yours. At different points in our lives, we can all feel overwhelmed by the responsibilities we face.  This is what I hear over and over again from business owners all around me.

Unfortunately for entrepreneurs and small business owners, poor time management can put you in a situation where STRESS and ANXIETY drown out the pleasure you should enjoy from being your own boss.  It will hamper your ability to be profitable and jeopardize your health.  Poor health just adds to the stress and reduces your functional work time resulting in an ugly downward spiral.

But, there is a fix

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A very effective, systematic fix that will give you a step-by-step process for making optimal time management decisions and unpacking a lot of the mental anguish that comes with trying to remember a thousands different details of your business and personal life.

This fix has had such a profound impact in my life that I share it with all my clients.  And now I want to share it with you to.

Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity by David Allen

Getting Things Done is a guide to developing achieving true productivity and dumping much of the stress associated with constantly being concerned with the 1,001 and one tasks that need to be done YESTERDAY.
As David Allen puts it,

"It's about having a 'Mind Like Water' - creating a stress free, clear mind, that is nimble and ready to give full attention to the right things."

David Allen is one of the most celebrated executive coaches in the world and his "Getting Things Done" philosophy is a big reason why.  He has had success implementing the principles into the lives of Fortune 50 executives as well as doctors, teachers and even housewives. While many of the GTD components are not new, what is unique and highly effective is the systematic way GTD fits together.

I found it so engaging that I developed an internal training program for my team and made December of 2010 "mandatory GTD training month".  Here is the presentation we used internally: