For the last 5 years, I’ve chosen a word for the year to set the tone and stay focused. Last year’s word was STREAMLINE. I wanted to streamline and simplify my life so that I could be more productive and feel less rushed.
So, how did I do? I successfully streamlined my digital and social media marketing by focusing on the outlets that make the most impact for me (email, LinkedIn and Facebook) and using Buffer to schedule my posts. I also streamlined my time tracking and invoicing by using the Harvest app.
My word for 2019 is ESSENTIAL. After reading the book, Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less by Greg McKeown, I was inspired to examine my business processes and habits so that I can focus on what is most essential to reaching my goals. My creative brain likes to jump from task to task, so I hope that this will help me stay focused and be more productive in my somewhat limited time.
I’ve kicked off this year putting essentialism into practice by doing a manual setup on my new phone, adding apps as I need them, rather than copying over all the clutter from my old phone.
As McKeown advises in his book, “Only once you give yourself permission to stop trying to do it all, to stop saying yes to everyone, can you make your highest contribution towards the things that really matter.” Hear, hear.
See my past words for the year: