On average, business people are interrupted once every 7 minutes. Whether it is by a phone call, colleague, subordinate, or senior. It becomes a habit. So much so that many people self-sabotage and can’t stay focused for more than 7 minutes! The result is that what would normally take an hour to do, now takes all day. And conversely, we can get a massive part of a whole day’s work done in one hour as long as we follow a few simple steps.
Imagine what it would be like to set aside an hour, free from interruptions, when you are able to get the key parts of a whole day’s work done… the key actions which produce the most important results. As long as the time, and space, and work, is organised in advance it really is possible.
I call this the Golden Hour… and here are ten keys to making it a success…
1. Put it in your diary… the most important meeting of the day.
2. Focus on the end vision. Imagine how you will feel to have completed all of the key tasks, and the fantastic results that will produce for you.
3. Make sure you have plenty of physical energy available for this hour. It’s no good booking it in for just after lunch! Take a short but brisk walk before starting, to get the juices flowing!
4. Protect the time. Tell your secretary, PA, colleagues that you are undisturbable for the next hour.
5. Have someone take incoming messages for you. That way you can call them back in priority order. Not only is your Golden Hour extremely effective, but your next hour also!
6. Plan the hour in advance… have the relevant files available, the phone numbers prepared, and everything you need close at hand.
7. Work from a clear desk. Keep the one thing you are working on right in front of you, but nothing else. Don’t allow your peripheral vision to be cluttered with other tasks.
8. Stay at your desk. Have all of the work piled up in order on the right hand side (preferably on a separate side table). Take one task at a time. When it’s finished, move that file to the left hand side (again a separate table if possible). At the end you will have a pile of completed actions. Very satisfying!
9. Batch all your phone calls together. And know what you are going to say in advance. Have a single sheet on the front of each file with notes indicating the key points you need to discuss, or even a mindmap. That way, if you can’t get through to the person, and they call you back later, the notes on the file will quickly remind you what you wanted to call about.
10. Once the Golden Hour is complete, reward yourself. You have probably completed the equivalent of one full day’s work in a single hour. You’ve certainly done 80 percent! Or rather, you’ve done the 20 percent that produces 80 percent of your results.
It is important to make sure the hour is planned in to suit your personal work style… for example it’s no good having it at a time when you are least effective. So after a long drive into the office, in driving sleet, and having been cut-up by a mob of fellow motorists, and wrestled with the issues of the day on the radio, you may not be at your peak.
Start by having three such hours planned into your diary for the coming week. Then increase the pace over subsequent weeks. And watch the results flow!
Until next time, wishing you every success.