Photo Courtesy of First People

We’ve all met them.  You know who I’m talking about – those entrepreneurs that seem to never sleep.  If they did sleep, you can bet they are practicing presentations in their dreams.  I admit that it’s hard not to be envious with their non-stop energy level and all that they seem to be accomplishing.

We live in a culture now where the “best never rest.”  Advances in technology let us get more done is less time, stay in constant contact, and multi-task like there’s no tomorrow.  The problem is that it lets our competitors do the same.

Recently, I asked the question Is Multi-Tasking Really That Good for Your Small Business? With the slow down in the economy hitting my businesses, I’ve had the luxury of being able to slow down the pace of my days.

I’ve found that it wasn’t just all the multi-tasking that was taking a toll on my business, but the pace at which my days were running was contributing to a constant burned-out feeling.

I Feel the Need, the Need for … Sleep?

Maybe part of the reason I felt this way began at home?  I can operate on about 4 to 5 hours of sleep a night, and I have done so for most of my adult life.

While scientist say that there is no apparent biological need for the body to have to sleep, they point out numerous examples of serious health issues that can arise from the lack of enough sleep.  It seems our bodies weren’t designed for non-stop productivity.

How Much Sleep Do We Really Need? That’s the name of an interesting article on the National Sleep Foundation website about this subject where concludes …

Though scientists are still learning about the concept of basal sleep need, one thing sleep research certainly has shown is that sleeping too little can not only inhibit your productivity and ability to remember and consolidate information, but lack of sleep can also lead to serious health consequences and jeopardize your safety and the safety of individuals around you.

Imagine what impact being a non-stop 24/7/365 entrepreneur has on your business productivity, your family life, and your health.

Calling the Weary and Heavy Laden

We often think of the area surrounding Galilee as a peaceful pastoral setting where Jesus walked and preached; however, the truth is that the hustle and bustle of Roman industriousness was transforming the landscape while Jesus grew up.

The childhood home of Jesus, Nazareth, was only 3.5 miles from the city of Sepphoris which Herod’s son Antipas spent 23 years rebuilding into a modern Roman city until he built Tiberias in around 19 AD.  It was no small city as it boasted a 15,000 seat theater.

Could watching the toll this face-paced culture was taking on Galilee have led Jesus to utter …

²⁸Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. ²⁹Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. ³⁰For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. (Matthew 11:28-30, King James Version)

What about the call itself?  How does this apply to your calling as a Christian entrepreneur?  How heavy is your burden?  Are you taking His yoke or still pulling your own?

Even God Took a Break

Isn’t it interesting that the Bible takes time to tells us that God rested on the 7th day of Creation?  Not only rested, but He blessed and sanctified it.

I’ve always been baffled by this if I am being completely honest.  He obviously does not need to rest, so why this show? What’s the point?

The only conclusion I can come to is that He wanted to make sure we understood the importance of rest.  It is in rest that we are most thoughtful, creative, and visionary.

New ideas, new inventions, and better business processes seldom occur during the hustle of the day.  It is during these times of respite that ingenuity, inspiration, and genius flourish.

Don’t You Deserve a Break Today?

To rip off an older McDonald’s slogan, “You deserve a break today.”  Make rest a priority in your schedule.  This may even include power naps.

Design quiet times into your work week and personal life.  This is time well “wasted.”

Reflect, recharge, and just chill out.

Photo: Courtesy of First People

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3. What’s Your Small Business Two Minute Drill?

Ever notice how most of the points scored in football games seem to come in the last two minutes of a half?  Why is it that it is more important than any other two minute period of the game?

It’s not, but it takes on an added importance because halftime or the end of the game is about to happen.  It’s easy to focus everything you have into a two minute time frame.

Suddenly, you realize how valuable each second has become, but in truth it had always been that valuable.  The only thing that changes is our recognition of its value.

How valuable is time in your small business?  What is two minutes worth?  Does your small business have a two minute drill?

What Can You Accomplish in Two Minutes?

We all seem to find times throughout our day when we are between meetings or tasks and have about 10 to 15 minutes to kill.  What do you do with this down time?

It’s a great time to put your two minute drill into action.  Just how much can you accomplish in two minutes?  You might actually be surprised.

The Two Minute Rule from David Allen’s book, Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity, says that …

If you’ve decided an action step, and you can finish that action step in two minutes or less, then you’re best off to do that very action that very moment.

He points out that it’s the most efficient use of our time because “it would take more time to stack it, track it, organize it, and look at it again” than just do it right then.

Isn’t This Just the Old Touch It Once Rule?

That sounds familiar, doesn’t it?  Many of you have probably been using the Touch It Once rule for quite some time; however, how important are the tasks to which you are applying the rule?

We’ve applied this rule historically to tasks like paying bills, approving an invoice, or even cleaning out our email inbox.  These are all great examples of things that can be done in two minutes, and are necessary items that need to be completed as part of our workday.

How much value do they add to your small business though? Probably not much, and if they could be delegated they should be.  If you can’t, is it the most efficient use of your time to do these during your downtime?

I’ve found that doing it in a block of preset time allows me to be even more efficient with these types of tasks.  My default weekly schedule has blocks of times reserved to handle these type of items.

You Have to Train for an Effective Two Minute Drill

Think about your most important projects.  If it’s like most projects you will have plenty of meetings along the way.  Most of these can be set up within two minutes.

There may be a critical report that you need to approve, an article that you need to read, or an email response that needs to go out.  You will be surprised when you start looking at larger projects how many steps can be completed in two minutes or less.

Put an egg timer on your desk and start timing your activities.  You will quickly learn what types of tasks you can accomplish in two minutes.  Soon you will start seeing your workday as tasks that will fit inside these two minute windows.

All that it takes is a little training, and you will be running your two minute drill like a pro.

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