My projects and tasks for my 2013 workshop.

Ask any business owner what some of their biggest challenges are and you’ll likely hear a variation of this: “There’s just always so much to do!”

We’re all busy with a lot on our plates, but I learned something awhile back that was a real game changer for me.

I was treating projects like they were tasks.

For example, when I first decided I was going to create my signature system some years ago, I put it on my daily to-do list as “write signature system.”

Scary!

Why? Creating something like that is actually a project that needs to be broken up into tasks in order to get it done: first, come up with all the possible things you could share with someone about how you take your clients from their initial issue to your solution—do a brain dump.

Then, organize these things into categories. Then put the categories into chronological order. Then write section or chapter 1. Then section or chapter 2, and so on.

Marketing and selling your system would be a different project, which you would also break down into tasks.

The key is to map it out. Figure out the end result you want, and then list all the steps out a-z in sequence. Organize them, and then delegate what you can. (You should not be the one doing all the parts of the project!)

Another example of a project that needs to be broken into tasks would be planning my annual 3-day workshop. I love taking a big sticky post-it note and breaking the projects and tasks out on smaller post-it notes. I even take a picture of it and send it to my team, and we use it as a roadmap and schedule regular calls to discuss progress and next steps.

That big sticky guides me throughout the planning and marketing, otherwise I would be lost!

Another aspect of this that’s really important: your projects and tasks should be aligned with your goals, and your goals should be aligned with your path (your big overall why).

A goal along your path might be to write a book. You would then look at what the projects and tasks are that are associated with that goal.

Your focus should be on creating habits in your life that support the goals along your path.

So, the next time you are feeling overwhelmed by something, think: is this a project? Or a single task? If it feels really big and overwhelming it’s probably not a task! Break it down, map it out, and watch your overwhelm start to melt away.

Isn’t that better?