Growth Spurt: Busy or Effective?

The idea behind this is activity creates the illusion of progress.

A full calendar, a cleared inbox, a long list of things handled, all the checkmarks next to your to-do list feels like evidence that the day worked.

But there is the idea that or the possibility that everything you did never touched the outcome that actually mattered.

Busy is easy to measure, so we measure it.

But being effective is a lot more difficult to measure because it does beg a question that most busy days never ultimately get around to.

Did the things that matter Was I able to move the needle on the things that I should be prioritizing? Motion does not equal progress.

Both do leave you tired, but only one leaves you further along, being that progress.

And ultimately, busyness is emotionally rewarding.

It feels like effort.

We can feel the energy drain at the end of a busy day.

And that effort usually is something that we link to virtues.

But being effective requires deciding on purpose what will not get done today.

There is a bit of a sacrifice in regards to being effective as opposed to being busy, meaning your energy and your time and your focus are going towards the things that matter as opposed to the things that don't, to the things that can be put off to the side.

So a good way to operationalize this, write everything down that's on your mind.

then mark the three items that actually are going to move the outcome.

And when you look at your day, block some time for those three things first before the rest of the day fills in around them, before the noise fills in and fills the rest of your calendar.

And then when you think about the end of your day and you're reflecting, was this a good day? Don't ask yourself, was I busy? But rather, did the needle work? So the question for you all today is, what are you doing right now that might feel productive, but actually isn't?