Paying Yourself First - How LaunchSquad Does It
There’s been a bunch of conversation in the blogosphere about “Paying yourself first.” As a total devotee of time-management gurus like David Allen, I was a little surprised to hear of some personal productivity trend that I hadn’t at least heard of. (I fancy myself a relatively productive guy - maybe I’m wrong?!)
The deal with “paying yourself first” boils down to this: focusing your priorities on stuff that maximizes your time. It’s the old Pareto Principle in action: the law of the vital few. It basically states that 80% of the effects come from 20% of the causes. For example, it’s highly likely that you wear 20% of your clothes 80% of the time, or that you spend 80% of your time with 20% of your acquaintances.
Here are some of the ways that I do it, on a daily basis:
1. I always read my RSS feeds first thing in the morning, 30 minutes before email, so I can fully “soak in” articles that require a deeper read, before I get on the email treadmill
2. I always put my hardest tasks between 8-10 a.m.
3. I always tie any social campaign I work on to a clear business objective, so I don’t get bored or get thrown off-track.
4. I always wear sunscreen when I leave the house, because I’m too forgetful to put it on during the day.
5. Everything goes on the calendar, but if it takes less than two minutes, I always do it immediately.
Everybody’s got their own way of paying themselves first.
Account executive Carolina says, “Early in the morning I set up my to-dos that I definitely want to accomplish during the day.”
LaunchSquad softball captain Jeremy says: “I always write down (physically write) what needs to be done, then prioritize that list.”
Corey, an account executive says: “I take care of easy emails right away - if something requires a short response, I shoot it off.” He also avoids forcing himself to do things when he’s not in the mood. “If I have to write something and I’m not feeling it, I don’t force myself, because I’ll just waste time.”
Anna, one of LaunchSquad’s newest team members, says: ” I suppose one of the ways I pay myself first is by educating myself every day on current events and world news. While media monitoring for specific articles and trends as they pertain to my clients is essential to my role, by staying updated with the news in general, I am more of a resource to my co-workers and clients. I’m “paid” to read the news! For someone my age, social networks are applicable as well.”
So, the next time someone asks how your workday was, instead of mumbling, “It was okay,” you can print out a Pareto distribution and say: “If you must know, it was within these exact parameters.”
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LA
Posted on July 19th, 2007 at 1:40 pm.
I like it, Adam.
I resonate with what Corey says about writing. Cannot force it. Otherwise, I end up cleaning out the junk drawer in my desk, instead of doing 10 other smaller tasks that really need to get done because I am procrastinating the writing.
LA gets paid first all day long. That is to say, by doing what I love I get to spend a majority of time engaged with content, people and activities I enjoy, AND, I literally get paid for it.
In theory, we’d all like to say that our work is our passion. So, I am sure this sounds like idealistic dribble. And, I sure did not arrive at this place by accident!
I pay myself by remembering that I chose to do what I do (marketing and communications for the social web) and therefore I have the choice to change course anytime I want. Freedom. And, that is payback!