Define What Needs to Be Done, Then Do So Efficiently

The emphasis behind this is the overwhelming feeling I’ve had lately, caused by the myriad number of things that need to be done. There are so many hats I need to wear that I have found it somewhat paralyzing. What’s ironic is that I know better. I know if you “sharpen the saw” you can cut more trees. I know “measure twice, cut once” (life is just full of metaphors). I am very aware of the difference between the urgent and the important. So what to do?

I am getting back to basics. I am in the process of listing and categorizing the different aspects of this business such as marketing, business operation, client communication, financial planning, investment management, etc. Within each category, there are many subcategories. For instance, with business operation (practice management if you prefer), there is client communication, which involves a contact management solution. I have chosen ACT basic and have created new tabs and fields to suit my needs.

In short, I am attempting to create workflow processes to assure that things flow smoothly. Once they’re defined they can be assigned. The problem here is that I don’t have the necessary staff at this point so between myself and my wife (she works in the business part time); there are more tasks than we can handle. So I will probably need to outsource some things. A few years ago I purchased a book from Advisor Impact entitled, “Business Success Kit” which contains letter templates, a series of analytical tools to help assess profitability, capacity, costs, and progress, which should help.

To summarize, I need to clearly define what needs to be done and then create an efficient way to do it. Easier said than done. I’ll keep you posted.