“I was working 5 days/week for other people, so I really was limited by time. [This allowed me to] focus on the things that were going to help me move forward”

Joel Gascoigne, founder of Buffer

I just heard the above statement on Entrepreneur On Fire Podcast, and something clicked. I recently finished Tim Ferriss’ groundbreaking book, “The 4-Hour Work Week”. This is the exact same concept Ferriss describes at length. If you haven’t yet read this book, I’d highly recommend doing so. Right now ☺.

If this strategy has worked well for two, extremely successful entrepreneurs, it’s probably one worth noting. The basic idea is this: the less time you have, the more you’re forced to focus on what truly matters. Anything not absolutely vital to fulfilling your objective must be discarded.

Let’s examine the axiom’s flip side. When folks have weeks or months to complete a project, they’ll often do one of two things:

• Procrastinate until it’s too late.
• Waste time on non-essential tasks, such as: building an overabundance of supporting evidence, drafting complex explanations, and overanalyzing.

If you’re extremely busy (like Gascoigne while developing Buffer) - or if your boss gives you a tight deadline - you’re right where you should be!

If you have an extended period of time to work, Ferriss suggests giving yourself a due date. The sooner the better. Only with a stringent, self-imposed timetable can you truly reach maximum efficiency.

The fact that this sounds counter-intuitive means that Ferriss and Gascoigne are on to something.

For instance, I just had the idea for this blog post today (12/22). No one is “making” me compose this, and I could have easily allowed myself a week or two.

Hmm…no thanks.

Instead, I told myself I had to complete it tonight. I’ll look it over tommorow, then post it. No “ifs, ands or buts”.

This principle can also be applied to larger tasks and goals. Simply break them down into more manageable sub-goals, and give yourself one day to complete them. Boom, done!

What about you? Have you experienced increased productivity in less time? Shoot me a tweet (@JordanOnSocial) — I’d love to hear from you!