Are You Productive, or Just Busy? 5 Ways to Tell
Most of us in the work world are familiar with the experience of confronting a seemingly endless to-do list. Learning to prioritize and, as far as possible, streamline work is an essential ingredient for success for professionals at all levels, especially leaders. But in addition to determining what to tackle first (and how to go about it), it’s important to ask this essential question: “Do I really need to be doing this at all?”
It can be especially easy for leaders of small companies and startups to get lost in the day-to-day weeds, failing to focus on the critical work that drives outcomes, aligns with strategic goals and contributes to long-term success. If leaders don’t learn to identify—and set aside or delegate—tasks that don’t require their personal attention and/or don’t meaningfully advance their organizational mission, they’ll likely end up being very busy, but not very productive.
In this as in so many other areas, experience is a great teacher—but even better teachers are those who have already forged successful leadership careers. Here, members of Business Journals Leadership Trust share their own strategies for evaluating tasks and ensuring they focus on what truly matters.
1. Consider whether the work creates measurable value.
I ask, “Does this task move the needle?” A truly productive task creates measurable value—whether for the customer, the team or the business. If the outcome isn’t tied to clear goals or results, it’s likely just busy work. Focus on what drives impact, not just activity. – Bill Rokos, Parsec Automation
Business Journals Leadership Trust is a vetted network of influential business leaders, executives and entrepreneurs in your community.
2. Take a look at the task’s impact.
I evaluate whether a task directly contributes to a key objective or aligns with our broader goals. A genuinely productive task drives measurable progress, whether it’s improving efficiency, delivering value to clients or supporting team development. If a task doesn’t move the needle in a meaningful way or its impact isn’t clear, it’s likely just busy work. Regularly reassessing priorities ensures the team stays focused on what truly matters. – Ali Sinan, Occams Group
3. Evaluate the output.
I always look at the output. Did the task advance something? That something could be progress on a project, better data to make decisions or a deal moving to the next step. If it moves something forward, it is not busy work. – Gary Braun, Pivotal Advisors, LLC
4. Ask whether the task requires problem-solving or creativity.
Busy work is any work that can be (and should be) documented as a process. If something can be documented and delegated, it’s busy work. Productive work is anything that requires problem-solving and creativity. – Phil Singleton, Kansas City Web Design & SEO
5. Measure the task based on alignment with the company’s values.
I measure tasks based on alignment with the company’s vision, mission and core values. If the task at hand doesn’t align or move the ball forward in those key areas, it’s not only lacking in importance, but it may also not be a good use of time at all. – Kent Lewis, pdxMindShare
