Selling with Data #37 - Essentialism

There are many distractions that make it hard to focus on the most important priorities.?

I find there is a constant tug-of-war between my priorities and the other 10,000 things that come up throughout the day. Many of the 10,000 things are important, and often important to other people that I would like to help, but not often aligned to my priorities.?

My approach to managing priorities is influenced from the book Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less by Greg McKeown. I found this to be the best book on the power of choice and how to do more by doing less. If you work in a big company, you will likely relate to how the book captures what could be the downside of working in a big company if you do not take control of how you spend your time and clarify your priorities. One of my takeaways from the book is that we all have "energy units" that are like little arrows of energy. If we spread the arrows across 100 areas (like the image on the left) the impact is not often noticeable, leading to frustration and the feeling you are busy but not productive. However, if we focus the arrows by stacking them (like the image on the right) we can make measurable progress and the impact can be significant.

I try to apply the concepts of essentialism in how I operate by doing two things.?

First, picking the right things to focus on. If I am only going to focus on a limited number of things, picking the right things becomes really important. I pick priorities that are strategic and challenging and have a significant impact on my priority metrics and outcomes. I ask for input and feedback from others especially my upline leaders, so I am aligning with the broader priorities of the company. I focus on no more than three priorities and I make the commitment to stick with these priorities for at least six months. I write down my priorities in words that are clear and concise and share them with others.?

Second, staying true to the priorities. The priorities become the aperture that I use to drive decisions on how I spend my time and where I invest. I do this by following these tips:?

1. I print out my priorities and post them on my desk, front-and-center, to keep a reminder throughout the day. I look at the priorities throughout the day and use them to stay grounded and focused. If I find myself in a meeting that is not aligned to my priorities or the priorities of my up-line leaders or critical to the operations of the business, I will professionally and politely leave the meeting and recapture my time.?
2. I am often asked for help to amplify or advance other people’s priorities. I have become comfortable saying no to a lot of things if they do not align to my priorities, trying not to be a jerk or insensitive to the needs of others. I often listen and assess if the request aligns to my priorities. If it does, I help. If it doesn’t, I’ll say something like "I understand that this is important to you, but it is not the most important thing to me, and since I only have so much time or attention of others, I cannot do what you are asking." Most people understand and respect the clear focus and prioritization. The best outcome is that they align their priorities to my priorities, and we find synergy to join forces.?
3. I control my calendar versus having my calendar control me. My calendar represents how I use one of my most valuable assets – time. I once heard someone say that if you want to know what is important to someone look at their calendar and where they are spending their time. When I look at the week ahead, I make sure I am spending a majority of my available time driving my priorities.?

For sellers – how to use essentialism to drive productivity?

I learned this lesson from Stephen Vance , a top sales leader who coached his team to spend 60% of time on current quarter activities, 30% of time on next quarter activities, and 10% of time on “overhead” like doing expenses and internal meetings.??

I find trying to manage percentages of time to be tricky, instead I split the 5-day work week into a morning and afternoon. Five days with two parts is 10 parts, which is easier to divide. Six of the 10 parts should be current-quarter activities, 3 of the 10 parts should be next-quarter activities, and 1 of the 10 parts should be “overhead” activities.?For example, if a seller is spending more than 4 hours a week, or one workday morning or afternoon, completing expenses or internal meetings the seller needs to look at their priorities and work to reclaim their time. The same is true for next quarter activities, like prospecting or progressing deals, which should be 12 hours or 3 workdays morning or afternoon.???

Through time management and ensuring that time is spent on doing a few highly focused productive activities versus a random set of a lot of activities, I will drive more satisfaction and measurable progress.?

For sales leaders – how to use essentialism to drive transformation

One of the most important areas where essentialism becomes helpful is driving change and building momentum to drive organizational transformation. I have seen organizations try to attack too many things at once and not focus on a few priorities. By not focusing, many organizations and leaders fail because their "little arrows" of energy are spread too thin across too many priorities.?

I view large and complicated transformations like strong person competitions where competitors have to pull a truck from a standing still position down the road and across the finish line. The hardest part seems to be the beginning when the person needs to move the truck from a stationary position. Once the wheels start turning, though, less effort is needed as the truck speeds up, building on its own momentum.??

Organizations, and specifically the leaders driving the transformation, who use essentialism pick limited priorities and focus on building momentum. They focus the organization’s energy on a few high-yield priorities that build momentum, which builds progress, which builds belief. Over time, the belief and focused effort leads to more wins and measurable improvement.?

Please leave a comment on how you prioritize your energy and use essentialism to succeed.

Good selling.?