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The Difference Between Being Busy And Being Productive

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Midjourney

In today’s high-speed, ever-connected times, being “busy” is one of the most valued social currencies. If we’re busy, then surely we must be important, successful, valuable and living full lives. So “busy” becomes a proxy for inflating our egos, both for ourselves and for those around us. It’s because of this that being too busy to do something becomes such a valid excuse for not getting things done.  

In using “being busy” as an excuse for not doing scary, challenging, intimidating or important things in our lives, we turn “busy” into the new lazy. Think about it, how many times have you used “being busy” as a justification for anything from being inconsiderate to missing deadlines?

“The greatest enemy of good thinking is busyness.” ― John C. Maxwell

You want more success in life, but how productive do you really think you are? When asked how productive they are, most professionals will answer that they’re always so busy and manage to fit so many activities into their work day, they simply can’t do more.

But ask any of them to review how effectively they manage their time, and most of them are shocked at how much procrastination their activities actually involve. There’s a difference between being busy and getting things done and it influences your success directly.

How Can You Tell If You’re Being Busy Or Productive?

A study conducted by Stanford Professor Clifford Nass in 2009, showed that chronic multitaskers were consistently outperformed by non-multitaskers in a range of different tasks. Interestingly, the study found that even when the multitaskers were given activities that required them to focus on one single activity, the multitaskers still used their brains less effectively, suggesting that a cluttered, disorganised mind can have long-term effects that spread outside of multitasking situations.  So how can you tell if you’re a busy multitasker or a productive achiever?

Take a moment to go through the three questions below:

1. How long is your to-do list?

If you find yourself saying “yes” to everything and consequently having a mile long to-do list each day, chances are, you’re always very busy and rarely actually productive. Instead of filling up the time with tasks (usually ones that don’t really matter), productive people are selective about what they choose to do and plan strategically about when to do it. This typically results in a shorter to-do list with items that are actually completed effectively by the end of the day.

2. Are you prioritising?

While busy people are focused on any action, productive people are focused on the clarity and purpose of each action. Being selective about which courses of action are most important and focusing the right time and resources on those actions often results in more productive work being done in less time. You cannot jump aimlessly from one task to the next, hoping to get everything done. When you prioritise one task over another, always ask yourself, why am I choosing this task now? why must it come first? It’s a simple, but powerful question.

3. Are you tracking your progress?

Busy people have a tendency of equating action with accomplishment – you fit so many activities into one day, surely you must have accomplished something, right? If it takes you 20 steps to achieve something that could have taken you 5 steps, it’s obvious that you’re not using your time in the most productive way.

Productive people don’t stall their accomplishments by aimlessly tackling random tasks, they take the most strategic and direct path to achieving goals that are clearly defined and can therefore be tracked, measured and assessed with the help of detailed plans, deadlines and goals.  They want to see the return of investment in their time.

“I don’t know where I’m going, but I’m on my way.” ― Carl Sandburg

Anyone can make the transition from being busy to being productive, so you have no excuse! The first step to transitioning is being honest with yourself. Why are you always so busy? Why do you want to be so busy? Why do you want others to think you’re busy? How does your ‘being busy vs being productive’ affect your success?

These are all questions that you need to answer for yourself and be honest if you want to start onto the path of developing new productivity skills and techniques and therefore, more success in.

What things do you do to stay productive? Please leave your thoughts below!

Kirstin O’Donovan is a “multinational” productivity coach, author and founder of TopResultsCoaching an international company providing coaching services in nearly a dozen countries. With over 10 years working in the field of coaching and personal development, she provides her expertise to help individuals create the life and results they desire.   Kirstin also writes for various international publications in personal development. Kirstin, a certified NLP Practitioner, holds various qualifications, certificates and credentials related to personal and business coaching. She is the author of ‘Maximize your time to maximize your profit’ and Co-Author of ‘The Confident Woman’ and ‘There is GOLD inside YOU.’

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Success Advice

Why You Shouldn’t Discount A Brick And Mortar Store In 2025

We’re constantly told about how stores are closing down and how shoppers prefer online options, but is it worth questioning this theory?

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How to grow a brick and mortar store
Image Credit: Midjourney

In 2024, you’d be forgiven for thinking that physical shopping is a thing of the past. We’re constantly told about how stores are closing down and how shoppers prefer online options. But is it worth questioning this theory? (more…)

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Success Advice

How to Alter Your Business Approach With Technological Advancements

Keeping up with technological trends has become a challenge for almost every business owner.

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Image Credit: Midjourney

Technology’s evolution has impacted everything, and business is no exception. Keeping up with technological trends has become a challenge for almost every business owner. Entrepreneurs unable to do so are being wiped out of the market.

There is no doubt that AI (Artificial Intelligence) and ML (Machine Learning) have taken over the business world. These technological advancements are impacting decision-making, success percentages, and other entrepreneurial aspects.

Adapting to these developments is integral to business success. Let’s explore how you can accomplish these milestones.

Embed the strength of AI and ML.

AI has modified business operations in major ways. For instance, companies have employed bots for customer support. These bots go through an effective learning process via Machine Learning before being able to answer like humans.  

According to CyberGhost (CG) bots can also perform detailed data analytics and make business moves with high success percentages.

ML is used more for the analysis of data chunks and generating successful predictions. This simply means that business owners do not have to worry about large-scale financial losses. 

In terms of deployment and usage, a reputed company like Netflix employs machine learning for decision-making.

Blockchain is increasing the count of business opportunities

Tampering of financial transactions is quite common and causes severe monetary damage to customers. With the rise of digital payments, this risk has increased. 

Blockchain is used to elevate your experience for monetary transfers. It combats penetrating events to extract confidential customer information. 

Most business sectors are using block chain but finance and supply chain management sections have a higher count. These two corporate sections have several monetary deposits and withdrawals taking place. 

In terms of percentage, approximately 72% and 5% of finance and supply chain firms have implemented block chain successfully.

Dedicate Yourself to Continuous Learning and Individual Development

You invest in learning some of the very important skills, including digital marketing, financial management, and how to gain customers as an entrepreneur.

You need to set up your knowledge base about doing business on Coursera and Udemy with the basics that are necessary for the business, building further by networking with experts through webinars.

Besides, Agile methodology will introduce elasticity to your company: this review and feedback system with further correction regularly will allow for enhancing efficiency and promptly reacting to the market.

Developing key skills to achieve goals

Running a business successfully is not only about having niche/domain knowledge. Business owners need to have communication / soft skills as well in addition to niche information.

Here are some key technical/domain-related areas that business owners should have a strong grip on.

Data Storage on Cloud: These days, companies do not store their data on physical servers. Therefore business owners should know how data is stored/edited/removed/updated via AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, and other platforms.

Data Analysis/Interpretation Qualities: These days, data is as precious as gold. Business owners with data analysis abilities make correct predictions. As a result, their ventures grow in volume.

Development/Coding Knowledge

Programming knowledge gives business owners an edge whether the application is developed in-house or outsourced. It assists in getting updates deployed and handling application underperformance without getting professional support every time.

Hacking proof framework

There is no benefit of having an advanced automated system if can be penetrated. Successful business owners have above-average knowledge of cyber security and hacking attempts. They are able to choose top-notch anti-hacking software without much of an ambiguity.

Communication Abilities/Soft Skills

Here are some key communication qualities that business owners should have:

Communication/Conversation: Business owners should use to-the-point sentences in both written and oral communication.

Issue Resolution Abilities: Business owners should be able to drill down to problems and solve them. This is done successfully only if an entrepreneur has in-depth business domain knowledge.

Agile Implementations

It is mandatory for business owners to have knowledge of iterative/agile models. With such a competitive environment, it is impossible for business owners to succeed without adopting an agile framework.

Create a productive well-crafted Business Strategy

A productive business venture starts with a clear vision. The first factor making a business successful is the idea behind it. It helps with endless growth and combating competition successfully. Katherine Philips once mentioned that business goals are inevitable if goals are set concretely.

  • Goals should be based on smart achievements instead of complexity. Focus on the value that each one of them adds. 
  • Business objectives should not be vague. Key indicators should be constructed to measure the success/failure of each milestone.
  • Be realistic when setting goals. Do not aim at impossible milestones since they can be demotivating.
  • Milestones/goals need to be time-bound. Set a completion deadline for each one of them. 
  • Business goals should not be alien. Owners can think out of the box but not be obsolete / unrelated.

Create a productive well-crafted Business Strategy

Business owners cannot succeed without having a network. Some tips help in this case. Attend conferences and professional gatherings to connect with other entrepreneurs.
Here are some other related points business owners should pay attention to.

  • Attend meetings and conferences to stay updated with trends and meet business owners who already have well-set ventures. This helps in enhancing the learning curve of new / growing entrepreneurs.
  • Being a part of business communities/groups is very productive. When one shares opinions and discusses decision-making tactics, it helps in preventing errors and enhancing success rate.
  • Even the most experienced business owners have mentors as learning never stops. Take part in mentorship programs so there is an assurance that you are following the correct roadmap.

Conclusion

There is absolutely no doubt that business dimensions have evolved with technological advancements. Successful entrepreneurs have grabbed these changes in due course of time and continue to evolve. On the other hand, people following old paths and conventional steps fade out of competition. In a nutshell, keep an eye on the processes and practices you follow as these factors decide success rate.

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Success Advice

Understanding the Power of Yes and No: How to Create Boundaries For Success

These words have a significant impact on how our success unfolds

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Creating legal boundaries
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The two smallest yet most powerful words in life, “Yes” and “No,” have a big impact on our growth on both personal and professional levels. In addition to affecting the choices we make every day, these words have a significant impact on how our success unfolds. (more…)

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Motivation

From Couch Potato to Go-Getter: A Step-by-Step Motivation Plan for Everyone

By understanding what motivates you, you can turn your dreams into reality

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How to be motivated
Image Credit: Midjourney

Are you tired of feeling like a couch potato? Do you want to transform your life and become a go-getter? You’re not alone! Many people struggle with motivation, but the good news is that change is possible. (more…)

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