How to stay focused. Here is how I do it.

 How do you stay focused? 

You have a ton of things going on. Maybe a career plus a side business? Or a very full time job?   I know how it goes!   I own several businesses, work as a consultant and I also like to do a lot of fun things like playing with my kids and watching sporting events. 
 
I've worked hard over the years to implement strategies that help me keep focused.   I've used a number of strategies and I still occasionally rotate my strategies depending on my needs. Plus I like to keep things fresh.  
 
One of my favorite strategies is very simple but effective. It’s the Top 3 strategy. Sure lots of people advise you to make a list of your top 3 to 6 items to get done during the day. There is a famous story about Schwab making 20k for introducing the concept to rockerfeller. 
 
However, what I find missing in that implementation is the connection to the larger picture. Especially for entrepreneurs with a million things going on. There are just too many things going on in the world to keep a simple list of top things to do. You need to keep the bigger context in mind.   
 
What I've done is used MindManager (www.mindjet.com) to create a simple MAP that I can update to keep me focused. 
 
Nightly you update your top 3 actions for the next day. At the start of each week and month, quarter, and year you also update your Top 3 for each of those categories.    I like to print this out keep it on my desk so it's easy to refer to.  Looking at it throughout the day helps keep me focused.
 

 

 
A couple of important notes. This is not my main list of tasks, or my entire productivity system. Merely a tool I use to keep focused throughout the day and to make sure my Top Priorities are aligned with my weekly and monthly goals.
 
Visit my blog at www.JamesTitus.me to see more tips and sign up to get free productivity and training tips.
 
To your success!
James
www.JamesTitus.me
www.Team-Evolv.com