Try Something New - 4 Tips To Drive Your Business or Lead Your Team

Here at Conduit International, aka leah jm dean headquarters, we've embraced April as the month to try something new. 

Now I love organization, and I am always on the lookout for ways to drive results creating a plan and then strategically executing on that plan. However, I know for some, the very thought of planning makes you want to cringe.

This month, I wanted to share a few of the things that I do to stay on top of my work and get results with my team. As you kick off the next quarter, I hope you find one tip to help you drive your business and your results forward. 

Be Intentional - 90 Minute Sprints (tested)

In the last 6-9 months I have implemented something called 90 Minute Sprints.

90 Minute Sprints is a method of work that requires me to be very, very intentional about the project that I am working on.

In its simplest form, I pick a task and focus on JUST THAT task for 90 minutes, nothing else, nothing more. Everything else except that task is turned OFF - i.e, phone, email, social, alerts, distractions all put away and turned off. I have found that when we remove all interruptions, we're able to achieve more. 

According to neuroscience, there is no such thing as multitasking, only task switching. And so rather than switching your brain back and forth, you are better off focusing on one task only and putting all your brainpower to work. This one shift has been critical in helping to push my business and my work forward. 

Get Excited About Your Plan (tested) 

The second thing that I do is quarterly planning. There's a quote that says, "If you fail to plan, you're planning to fail."

At the beginning of a year, I always create an annual plan which ties back to my longer-term strategy. Every month, I take some time to go over my progress within this plan, and then at the end of the quarter, I spend half of the day analyzing how I am doing against my goals.

When I schedule the time to check in on my goals I no longer need to wonder about:

1. Where I am in my goals?

2. How am I doing versus budget?

3. Am I really organizing myself in a way that will help me achieve the results for my business?

Whether you're an entrepreneur or you're leading a team, if you're not sitting down at least once a quarter to focus on how to drive your business forward, you won't really move strategically over time. 

Track Your Success! (tested) 

Whether it's the metrics to measure your success or the financial results that you want to achieve for your team or your business, it's so important to understand the numbers.

If you don't take the time to understand your numbers over time, you may find it difficult to achieve the results you want to see. Measurement is not always financial, it could be business, industry, or internal metrics. When you understand your numbers, you can understand if you're making progress. Make sure you're measuring your success so that you're focused on the right thing. 

Find Your Tribe (habit) 

Network with intention. As you likely know by now, tribes are one of the things I hold close, and I am intentional about spending time with my tribe. 

It could be a catch-up for tea, a phone call, a zoom meeting, and when we're able to go out again in the future, it might be a lunch or a dinner, even a walk.

It is so important that we take the time to spend time with people who can not only help us to grow personally but support us with our businesses.

If you're not taking time to invest in your network, then when you need people, they may not be there. However, when you put in the work and you've made the efforts to spend time with your tribe, that is how you can truly create a bigger network with intention.

What's next?

Are you going to commit to trying something new in April alongside us? As you head into the spring I hope that there's one or two takeaways from this blog that you might find helpful. And I can't wait to see what you put into place.

Leave a message in the comments and share a tip about what you do to drive results for your business or your team.

Leah JM Dean, is a leadership strategist, tribe formation expert, certified strengths coach, best-selling author, facilitator, speaker, and founder of the women’s leadership program, the Tribe Advantage. She is on a mission to help women and organizations all across the globe transform their tribes in life and leadership. To learn more about Leah's work, her best-selling book Assemble the Tribe, or join The Tribe Advantage Leadership Program, visit www.leahjmdean.com. Leah lives in Bermuda with her husband and two children.