Needs to Ask

2 Questions Every Woman in Business Needs to Ask

As working women, we have a lot going on. Everyday new demands come to us and it is hard to discover and determine what we really should do. One think that has helped me and my clients better determine where we need to invest our time and focus is to create a checks and balance system. We need to take a moment before agreeing to do something and ask ourselves two important questions… Question 1 – Does this make good business sense? Not all items are created equal. And we should not do everything. We need to make sure that if we take on a new task, it is one that is worth doing. How do we know if it makes good business sense? Well this is where you need to look over the items form all angles. Ask yourself: • Is this task for my ideal client? • Can this task move my business forward? • Will this task pay me what I am worth? • How much time will this require of me? Asking this question as saved me hours in distraction and also in doing the wrong things. One example was a speaking opportunity that came up. At first, I was ready to say YES, but upon further thought, it didn’t make good business sense for me. Why? The audience was not my target audience. The location was in a challenging spot to get to so travel would cover 3 days for a 90 min talk. The budget was lower than my standard fee. After really looking at this opportunity, it just did not make good business sense so I could feel confident in saying NO and allowing my time and focus to stay where it needed to for that week. Question 2 – Is this in alignment with my Vision and Goal? People will ask you to do things because that is what they need, but it may not be what you need. This question helps to insure that you stay in alignment with yourself. We only have so many hours in a week and day, if we give too many of those hours away, it is going to be difficult for you to accomplish your goals. By pausing and assessing this question, you can make sure you are making

smart decisions about where you invest your time. You may ponder: • Is this a client I want to work with? • Will this provide me a skillset that will benefit me? • Will this help keep me “ in my lane” ( my area of expertise)? An example here was when I was asked to attend a networking opportunity There are so many, you can spend everyday at a new conference or group. So you have to really be focused and strategic. In this case, the group was centered around Working Women Business owners. Breakout talks were covering topics like leadership, marketing yourself and leveraging relationships.

In addition, there were opportunities for me to highlight my skills as a panelist. In this case, this opportunity definitely fit the criteria of being in alignment so I could attend knowing exactly what I wanted to take away from my time there.

Bonus Question – If I Choose to do this new item, what will I have to say NO to? Give Up? If you are still struggling, let me offer you this Bonus question. The reality is you can only do one thing at a time, so if you say yes to one thing, you must also say NO to another. Think about what you will have to say NO to are give up, and then circle back to the other above questions.

You do not have to do everything; not should you want to. When you have free time, yes help others, but during your peak productivity hours, protect your time.