I have a sign in my office that reads:
Coffee. Money. Love.
I’m only half-kidding when I say it’s my life motto.
I have adopted a similar mantra for
organizing and prioritizing my days.
People. Money. Things.
When I plan my day,
typically the night before,
I think first of the tasks
that involve other people.
Who’s wanting for a response
from me?
Who needs my time & attention?
People always come first.
Second, what tasks will make me money?
Often this means tackling billing
or reaching out to former or prospective
clients to talk about new projects
or working on some aspect of marketing.
If you work on salary, you may not
think daily about making money,
but you may think in terms of what tasks
will move you toward a promotion,
a bonus or a new job.
Finally, I focus on things.
What are the things that need to get done?
This could be administrative work,
like scheduling or reading or research,
or, as (all too) often is the case, could be buying
things on Amazon Prime at 10:00 p.m.
But, hey, sometimes you need
a $3.99 kitchen scrubber tomorrow.
So what’s your version of
People. Money. Things?
