Chasing Your Tail Can Make You Dizzy
The past several weeks have been crazy busy as we’ve been pushing to meet a project deadline. Getting subcontractors on the job, coordinating material deliveries, and lining out the order of operations…all while juggling other construction projects in various stages, working on new proposals, and helping customers with project designs. Add to that everything outside of work like family, church, community, you name it.
Sounds like a pretty normal week in construction, doesn’t it?
Having too much to do and not enough time to do it is a common situation for people running a construction business. “Chasing your tail” is a pretty accurate description…and a good way to get dizzy.
We hear this saying all the time: “There’s too much to do and not enough time to do it.” And yet, the perception of being self-employed is that you can just work whenever you want and do whatever you want.
This struggle is not new. I would venture to say it’s been a problem from the beginning. Can you imagine how overwhelmed Adam would have felt when God brought every animal on earth for him to name? (Genesis 2:19-20)
The problem of having too much to do is SELF-INFLICTED.
We all know there is a fixed amount of time in a day, so why are we always overfilling it? Even people who aren’t self-employed complain about never having enough time. This battle is internal and if we’re the ones overloading ourselves, we’re also the only ones who can fix it.
The first step in the process is Being aware that we are the problem. The next step is to Understand that we’re responsible for it. Then we must decide if we want things to change. If the answer is yes, then it’s time to be Intentional and take action.
Taking control of your busy life really comes down to that … TAKING CONTROL.
Here are a few things that can help you sort through the chaos:
- Make a list – You need a place to start. Get everything out of your head and onto paper, a computer, a notebook…anything. Trying to remember it all is a losing battle.
- Prioritize the list – Once everything is written down, rank each item from 1 (most important) to 5 (least important). It’s not easy, but it gives clarity.
- Make time for the priorities – Schedule the important things. Estimating how long a task will take is tough, but even a rough plan will help you get further than no plan at all.
- Aim for complete, not perfect – Perfection is the enemy of complete. As a recovering perfectionist myself, I totally understand. This doesn’t mean that you deliver mediocre work but finish a job instead of chasing perfection. Unfinished work doesn’t help anyone.
- Be prepared to say “NO” – This is tough for self-employed people. We want to help everyone. But there just isn’t enough time to do everything even if you want to.
- Use the “5-minute” rule – If something takes less than five minutes, do it. The little wins will add up fast.
- Focus on the present – Don’t get hung up on past mistakes or overwhelmed by the long list ahead. This is why I have a saying: Learn from the past, look to the future, live in the present.
- Delegate where you can – You don’t have to carry the whole load yourself. Find qualified people and trust them to help. This is one I still struggle with. Next week, we’ll look dig into this one some more.
Self-driven people tend to overload themselves. If we want that cycle to stop, we have to start practice a little self-control, self-restraint, and self-discipline.
Because the problem is SELF-INFLICTED, the power to fix it is within our-SELF. Stop chasing your tail.
And if you’re feeling dizzy and would like some help getting control of your business, schedule a free 30-minute call and let us help get you back on track.
