Taming the Whirlwind

nathaningram.com/wcoc

An expert is a person who has found out, by his own painful experience, all the mistakes that one can make in a very narrow field.

Dr. Niels ….

You are not alone

We face common challenges. In five years of coaching conversations, I’ve found very few unique issues.

• Common struggle
• understanding the problem

The Common Struggle

• Strategy vs. Execution
• Execution is what we do
• Strategy is why we do it
• Both are critical
• We understand the need for strategy
• More efficient, more productive, more profitable

How’s your strategy?

• Why is it so hard to keep our strategy in focus?
• emergencies, life, other important stuff

Understanding the Whirlwind?

• The energy and attention needed to run your business.
• Whirlwind is the urgent!

The Problem with the Whirlwind

• Goals and strategy are important … see slides
• Delaying strategy… see slides
• it’s not bad; it just is what it is

The Plan

• You need a plan to accomplish your goals in the middle of the whirlwind.
• Without a plan the Whirlwind always wins — always plan for your week at the beginning
• initial planning
• weekly planning
• … see slides

Initial Planning

• two hours unplugged, schedule it as an appointment
• id the issues
  • what changes do ineed to make?
  • which bring the most immediate impact?
  • top two action items
• pick the top 3 issues

Weekly Planning

• 30 minutes
• Before you start your week
  • Friday evening?
  • Sunday evening?
  • Early Monday morning?
• Plan that time to execute at least one action

Nathan’s Weekly Planning

• Daily columns
• one whirlwind block
• one family block
• one project block
• family always gets one block. others can be mixed

Weekly Execution

• 2-4 hours
• schedule the time and don’t compromise it
• okay, maybe for a real emergency but if you plan well, there are few emergencies

Quarterly Planning

• 4 hours
• every quarterish repeat the process

Suggestions

• prioritize. you will always have more goals than time.
• sometimes good idea have to be put on the shelf.
• separate your roles
  • you are the CEO and the employee who executes the plan.
• taming the whirlwind takes time, give yourself a break.

Anything worth doing is worth doing badly at first.

G.K. Chesteron — or somebody

In six months…

• how would life, business improve
• more work in less time means more free time

advice

• if you don’t have a lot of client work spend more time with the other items. strategy, family etc.