How to Increase Productivity with “Strategic Slowness”

Earlier this year I saw an article in Inc.com about one of the trends for 2024 being “strategic slowness.” Sounds good, right?

Most of the article was about writing articles, but then it expanded to include how business owners and entrepreneurs are working these days—in rushed, reactive, and often frenzied ways—and I believe it’s true for just about every professional today.

It’s time… to slow… down.

You might be thinking, “Leslie, I’d love to! But how can I with all that I have going on?” ??

I get it. I do. I feel the same way sometimes.

But that’s when I remember to rely on the system I have in place—which is the same one I teach—so I can keep a clear head, prioritize accurately, and really zero in on the ONE thing that needs my attention RIGHT NOW. And I NEVER question if it’s THE most important thing I should be doing. I never question if I missed something else.

That’s peace of mind. Even under LOTS of pressure with a LOT of tasks and projects going on.

You don’t have to work harder or work longer hours, or work your fingers to the bone to get this kind of productivity with peace of mind.

Being productive means you can get things completed faster and easier, because nothing stands in your way. Nothing is holding you back. Smooth sailing all the way. Or most of the time, at least. ??

For instance, let’s say you’re trying to complete an email, but you can’t send it, because you can’t find the attachment or the document that goes with the email. ??♀? Time is lost looking for it. Your frustration goes up. ??

Getting that task accomplished—sending the email and moving on—was not something you could do quickly or easily, because something was standing in your way. In this case, it was the inability to find necessary information quickly.

In another example, you might by-pass a task because it was not written or typed as a true “task,” which should be designed as small and achievable. Maybe it was stated a BIG task—like a multi-step task or a project!—or perhaps you documented the task as the FINAL step or the outcome of the task. My clients fall into that trap all the time, because it’s easy to do.

Here’s an example. If you say, “Send the quarterly sales report to John,” you’re actually stating the final step in a process that’s part of a multi-step task or a project.

If you haven’t gathered the data, analyzed the data, or created the report, you’re NOT ready to send the quarterly sales report to John. That’s what we call a “Dependent” task, because what you stated was really dependent upon doing something ELSE first.

What you need to identify is the FIRST action step to get it started. Make it SMALL and achievable.

In this example, where you might have stated the LAST step instead of the first, you might hesitate or kick the can down the road, KNOWING that there are quite a few steps you need to take to not only get this started, but to get it done completely.

You might by-pass it completely and choose something else that’s faster and easier to do so you can feel like you accomplished something and feel good about it.

This is what everyone looks for in their workday…

Steady forward movement… progress… achievement. All things you can feel GOOD about.

And you CAN have it ALL! ???

You just need to know how to design a task REALLY well first—one that leads to ACTION. ??

To help you with this, take a look at this short, 15-minute video on YouTube and get the secrets to designing tasks for EASY action. (This is something no one else is teaching you.)

Being more productive doesn’t mean you have to work harder or faster, or that you have to work longer hours. ????

You don’t have to EXHAUST yourself in rushed, reactive, or chaotic workdays to make progress. ????

You’ll be more productive when you know how to move efficiently through your day and you’re more EFFECTIVE in how you THINK, how you EXECUTE, and how you use your TIME.?

Without road blocks, your efficiency goes UP!

And it’s true, you CAN get more done in less time with less stress. But not because you’re moving at 100 miles an hour. No. You can move seamlessly through your day at a regular pace—or at the pace you’d like to work.?

It’s intentional. It’s deliberate. It’s thoughtful. ??

Enter “strategic slowness.” YES!

I like where this is going, don’t you?

Let’s all slow down a bit and be more deliberate and intentional about where our precious time goes.?

Take a look at how YOU’RE working and decide what kind of workday you want.

Will you be rushing around your day, responding, reacting, and being pulled through your day by the squeakiest wheels?

Will you keep whipping out the fire hose to douse the latest blazing fire?

Will you continue to go home wiped out and exhausted, so you’re only HALF listening to your spouse and kids?

Heavens, no! Let’s not let that happen. It’s time to plan with purpose, execute with agility, and get more accomplished in less time with less stress. Yes, yes, yes! ??

You can do this. Get started today.

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