Episode 46: Finding Your Efficiency Magic and Superpower
In Episode 46, Sam explores two non-practical but very powerful pieces of the efficiency puzzle: Finding your efficiency magic and making time for your efficiency superpower. This episode follows on from Episodes 41 - 45 about the practical and powerful belief and habit changes we need to make to become more effective and efficient, so if you haven’t listened to the previous episodes go and do that first.
Sam covers what our efficiency magic is and the mistakes accountants and partners often make with their efficiency magic, as well as the questions to ask to get out of your own way and be more efficient.
Then Sam explains how you can schedule your work based on when you’re most efficient through understanding your energy cycles, and the statement or belief that you must shift because it’s taking you away from your efficiency magic.
Sam explores the power of rest and why it’s actually your superpower when it comes to efficiency, as well as why it’s so hard for us as an industry. She shares how we can make space in our everyday and take time to make times well as some practical tips to create more space and rest. Plus, the reframe we all need to make in order to put taking care of ourselves first to the top of the list.
Listen to an excerpt
What we cover in this episode
What our efficiency magic is and where to find it
The challenges and opportunities for efficiency in our business models
The mistakes accountants and partners often make with their efficiency magic
Questions to ask to get out of your own way and the steps to take to get there
How to schedule your work based on when you’re most efficient
The statement you must shift that is taking you away from your magic
The power of rest and why it’s your superpower when it comes to efficiency
What the last 6 months have taught us about the importance of rest in our industry
Why rest is so hard for us and not a ‘once done’ activity
How we can make space in our everyday and take time to make time
A mindset shift and some practical tips to create more space and rest
The reframe we need to make in order to put taking care of ourselves first on the list
Quotes
“If we know what we're really good at, and what comes naturally, then this is where we will be most effective, most efficient, and frankly, most happy. [But] sometimes we get into areas in our businesses that we shouldn't be in. And this is rampant through our whole industry…If we are not able to do that [thing we’re good at] all the time, schedule time during our week when we are actually in that zone.”
“The first step is you absolutely need to know where your efficiency magic is. Know your magic space, what is it you're good at? What comes naturally? And then the second [step] is schedule some time around that…Have a really good look at what you're actually doing now and spending time on. And it is a great thing, the fact that we do do timesheets, so go back and have a look!”
“Understand where your magic is. Then as soon as you get anything outside those zones that pops up, that's when you need to get somebody else in, because you need to teach other people to do it.”
“Overwhelming fatigue leads to ineffectual decisions and less efficiency. So something you could do in 6 hours will take 9 or 10 hours. And the decisions, you [may] look back and go, ‘What the hell was I thinking?’ And [you’ll have] to fix it later.”
“The important thing is to think of rest as the thing that creates our efficiency and our time. It’s taking time to make time. Schedule it [because it’s] setting us up for success in the day.”
“Rest is critical. And we need to start developing some habits one step at a time in our every day to really put rest in. Some of my tips are to have a lunch break, try to limit your hours, break those hours down to 90 minute sessions…there's not a lot of meetings or sessions that you can't do in under 90 minutes.”
“The efficiency habits we’re learning is not about how we can actually work more, it's how we can work smarter and faster. So we can actually regenerate ourselves and have the joy that everything else in the world is there for us.”
“Particularly as high powered experts, we think we should be looking after our clients first, or families first [but] if we don't look after ourselves first, through doing what we love every day and resting, we can’t be there for anyone else.”
Links mentioned
Enjoying the Show? Let us know!
Are you a fan of The In Demand Accountant podcast? If the ideas and tips we share in each episode are inspiring you to become a more powerful professional, advisor and leader, subscribe to the show and leave your honest review to let us know!
Head over to Apple Podcasts to subscribe and review - would mean the world to us!
