Stop Fooling Yourself: Productivity Tips That Actually Work

Introduction – Use Your Business Time Wisely

I know this to be true—most of us in the Home Services world aren’t lazy. In fact, we’re constantly on the go, juggling clients, crews, and chaos!😅 But being busy doesn’t always mean being productive. That’s why this article dives into some hard-hitting productivity tips—starting with a sneaky little trap called “Displacement Activities.” If you’ve ever found yourself doing anything except that one task you know you should be tackling… yeah, this one’s for you.👇

Dangerous Displacement Activities

Maybe Fyodor Dostoevsky said it best 143 years ago, “Above all, don’t lie to yourself.” And yes, our Home Services industry is full of hard-working entrepreneurs who are lying to themselves.😥

“Say what, Steve?” Here’s the deal. Everyone “fritters away” time. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing- we all need down time to relax and recharge.😎 But when we fool (lie to) ourselves we may fall into what I call…

Displacement Activities: “Displacing” an essential (but disagreeable) business task with more enjoyable “fun stuff”!

Think about it. All of us face unpleasant chores in our business. Here’s some of the jobs I dreaded in my company!🤔 Anything involving…

Accounting, the endless cycle of hiring/ firing and hiring new employees, collection calls, writing up new business procedures and systems (Business Infrastructure), cold call sales… SHEESH! I’m getting a PTSD panic attack just thinking about this stuff!😬

In this articles we’ll dissect the Insidious danger of “Displacement Activities” offered by the “Busyness Trap”. Productivity tips include what NOT to do. Then we’ll analyze the essential principle of, “What is MY “highest and best use” DAILY for my family’s future welfare?” Finally, I’ll share 3 Essential Business Areas to be more productive on with laser-like intensity!

The Busyness Trap

But now let’s talk about you! I’m sure you’re no slacker. In fact, you’re busy, busy, busy… but this “busyness” may cloak a very real danger. Since you’re likely your own boss (accountable to no one) subconsciously the tendency is to “cherry pick” the stuff you enjoy and “delegate” (dump?) what you don’t like doing to an employee.

Now if these unlikeable task(s) get done? Great! I’m a huge fan of clearly delegating responsibilities while adding “Positive Shared Accountability”!

But properly done this initially require a lot of sustained, focused effort so the tendency instead is to… IGNORE (or postpone which is just “slow ignoring”) these unpleasant but very important tasks.

As the next step in our productivity tips journey let’s do some self-reflection.

Look in the mirror time: I recently shared the “Why (and how to) focus on 3 essential business areas”. But meanwhile, here’s three “Displacement Activity Candidates” (DAC) that are far too common in our Home Services industry…

DAC #1: Staying long-term “on the truck”. I get it. I’m a “hands-on guy” too! I loved physical work. (I still do!)💪🏼 Of course, when starting out you had to do the work. But honestly, don’t you now have a higher and better use of your time than actually cranking out jobs?

DAC #2: Building your own website. (And other technical stuff.) Seriously, people? We put down homeowner “do-it-yourselfers”. But then what do we do when facing a technical issue we know nothing about?

We plunge in and displace (waste!) huge amounts of time and money. Even worse? We painfully develop a website that appears to have been created by an illiterate 3rd grader! (Thereby turning off 1,000’s of potential clients over the years!)😥

DAC #3: Complacently slacking off on consistently recruiting employees. I know. You think (hope) you have a great team now. CONGRATULATIONS! And yet… (listen carefully here) people leave. If you don’t have Career Candidates lined up and waiting you’ll fall into “Desperation Hiring”!

WARNING: Sending “Marginal Workers” into client’s homes exacts a terrible penalty in lost downstream income. Sure, homeowners may not leave a nasty 1-star review on your “I could care less” production employee(s). Instead, customers will never call you again and NEVER refer your services!😰

Highest and Best Use

Abraham Lincoln (a productivity tips expert) wisely stated, “I’m a slow walker, but I never walk backwards.”

As Home Service Business owners we’re often our own worst enemy. I call these “Displacement Activities” “Entrepreneurial Attention Deficit Disorder”!🤪 (Most business owners are blessed [cursed?] with a frenetic, almost manic energy/curiosity!)

Me? I would have driven good, old Honest Abe nuts! (As I did my long-suffering wife Sioux!) Both in business and personally I ran (not just  walked) forward, backwards, and much of the time in meandering energy and time-wasting detours!😥

Then (far too late) I finally learned and (most of the time)🙄 asked this simple 13-word Daily Question to guide my routine every day:

What is MY “highest and best use” TODAY for my family’s future welfare?

NOTE: Before going further, please review the above cautions regarding The insidious danger of “Displacement Activities”.

Now bear with me here.🙏 Let’s break down the power of your new, 13-word Daily Question…

1. What is MY…– Introspective self-analysis is brutal. Even so, no blaming your employee Charlie, the economy, your spouse or your sneaky, low-priced competition is allowed here! In this exercise it is all on YOU!😬

2. “highest and best use”– In real estate the four criteria for judging the “highest and best use” of a given property are what is: (1) legally permitted, (2) physically doable (3) financially possible and (4) what provides the best “return on investment”. I suggest you use these four points to analyze “your property” as in your life…

3. TODAY– Yep, my all-CAPS key didn’t get stuck accidentally here again!😁 I often remind my students, “A day is a terrible thing to waste!” Now painfully reflect on your “Personal ROI” over the past 1,825 days (yep, that’s FIVE YEARS) … GULP! “Depressing financially”? But wait! Before coming totally unglued here focus please on the last five words of your new Daily Question…

4.  …for my family’s future welfare?– You’ll notice there’s no mention of profit, money, business size and/or your net worth here. I sincerely hope you (at least sometimes) make choices focused on your personal and family happiness instead of filthy lucre! (Not that Sioux and I have anything against acquiring wealth OR even more importantly, the Personal Freedom money should bring!)

OK, now you have 13-word introspective Daily Question that will transform your life… IF you choose to do so. And there’s our common challenge- as entrepreneurs we have virtually unlimited choices! Hopefully you now see that this freedom is truly a “double-edged sword”!

Three Essential Business Areas

It is OK to obsess over the “important stuff” in business. (And life!)

The secret, folks? We learned in first section of this productivity tips article to reject treacherous, time-wasting Displacement Activities that add nothing to your home service company bottom line and/or future family happiness. How?

Then I shared a 13-word Introspective Question to ask yourself continually: “What is MY “highest and best use” (HBU) today for my family’s future welfare?”

HINT: Most of the time (even though you may enjoy it)  your HBU is NOT actually doing the physical work.

Of course, your HBU is a “constantly moving target”. After all, at any given moment your focus on your “family’s future welfare” may have absolutely nothing to do with money and/or business success. However…

Here are my TOP 3 Essential “Highest and Best Use” candidates in a Home Services Business…

1) Marketing, 2) Team, 3) Money (MTM for short and no, I’m not talking about the ever sparkling Mary Tyler Moore!)

Let’s do a 30,000 foot overview each MTM topic. (In future KickStarts I’ll do a deeper dive on each one.)

1. Marketing. If you don’t get (and keep) a presence in your prospect’s consciousness everything literally will… STOP!🛑 Sure, homeowner’s 5-star online reviews are the Gold Standard. (And these babies are virtually free!)

You’ll supercharge your ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ online reviews (and word-of-mouth referrals) by programming Positive Moment of Truth for your residential clients. ProTIP: You must also obsess over the “ATA” (Appearance, Actions and Attitude) of your team!  But a multi-pronged, consistent marketing program will complement all of the above efforts.

2. Team. You’ll notice I didn’t put “Employees” here. And not just because “MEM” makes for a lousy acronym!🤪 IF your long-term HBU goal is to build a Critical Mass Business (a company that will run smoothly without you) then you must create a TEAM of the Very Best People.

NEWS FLASH! Most Very Best People are already working! So you must git out there and recruit (encourage, entice, convince, romance 💖 and/or even poach)😲 these great Career Candidates to work for you!

RESOURCE #1: You’ll get 100’s of new hiring ideas and systems in my 3-hour, online Hiring the Very Best! seminar. To learn more and/or easily register online click HERE.

3. Money. I’m always amazed at how fragile even a great company can be. Complacency (especially when it comes to a consistently profitable cash flow) will doom even the most established service business. As my accountant always reminded me, “Steve, every number tells a story.” And so it is…

HINT: If (like me) you dread focusing on “da numbers” at the very least dramatically raise your residential pricing immediately! Trust me, homeowners expect to pay more- but they’re not going to offer to do so! Still nervous?😖 Then test this “charging more” hack!

RESOURCE #2: In my “Winning over your caller!” seminar I share a “Booking Previous Residential Clients after a Price Increase” phone script guaranteed to close the sale!

Meanwhile, we can all learn from the one and only, original MTM – Mary Tyler Moore, “You truly have to make the very best of what you’ve got. We all do.” Wise words indeed.

Summary – True Productivity Means Sacrifice

So, what’s the bottom line here? Stop lying to yourself and start leading yourself with purpose. The truth is, you don’t need more hours in the day—you need better decisions during the ones you’ve already got.💡 Want real productivity tips that actually move the needle? Start by ditching those Displacement Activities, obsessing over your Highest and Best Use, and drilling down into MTM: Marketing, Team, and Money. Your business—and your family’s future—will thank you.👏