This week, I’m thinking about how busy I am, and how much I have to do, and wondering which parts of it are just a lot of wheel spinning. This week, I am taking stock and taking charge.

I’m going to have a think about all the tasks I do in my week and what consumes my time. I want to sit down and really consider these three questions:

• Does this task have to be done?
• What’s the result in profit if I do this task?
• Can someone else do it for me?

Let’s look at the first question. Whenever I have to do a task, I ask myself, “What’s the worst thing that could happen if I don’t do this?” Too often I get consumed with my To Do list and think I must complete everything on it. Then next month, the task proves obsolete and took a lot of my time and energy.

I’m going to get harsh with myself and start the opposite— a “Stop Doing” list. I’m going to list all the things I must stop doing so that I can buy back a lot of my time. Which processes or systems in my business are there just because that’s the way it has always been done? Where can I gain efficiency?

Now for question two. If I want to run a profitable, successful business, I must be focused on the bottom line. Often I’m focused on activity and how much I do, and not my results. It’s one thing to be busy and another to be productive. But I should think about the end game. The result I want. I don’t get proud about all the stuff I do in between. If it’s not giving me the results I want, I change the activity so that it supports my outcomes.

Lastly, let’s look at question three. I’m going to calculate what my time is worth on an hourly basis, and then I’m going to write it on a sheet of paper and put it above my desk. Then I’m going to look at my To Do list and see if there’s someone else who can do it for me who charges less. I often think to myself, “Oh, I will hire that person when I can afford it.” But the truth is that if I’m doing the work myself, it’s potentially costing me more.

Next week, I’m going to implement these ideas. The wheels will stop spinning and this car will be on the road. And in the fast lane, of course.