Are You Too Busy to Grow?

Read Growth Brews #032 listening to:
Poor Man's Poison - “Hey Mister”

It’s the start of another day, and Lisa, an ambitious business owner, sits down at her desk with a long list of tasks. 

She’s determined to tackle the toughest ones first—those dreaded, time-consuming tasks that feel like a weight on her shoulders. 

Filing compliance paperwork? Check.
Rewriting internal reports for the umpteenth time? You bet.

It’s not glamorous, but she’s convinced that getting them out of the way will free up time to focus on bigger goals, like signing new clients or growing her revenue.

Lisa's colleagues watch in awe as she grinds through these soul-crushing tasks like a boss. They're thinking: "Wow, Lisa's got it all figured out. She must be killing it!"

She's not.

Despite working later than the cleaning crew and having a more intimate relationship with her desk than her bed, Lisa's stuck. 

Her to-do list keeps growing faster than a teenager in a growth spurt, but her company's growth? It's moving slower than a sloth on vacation.

Meanwhile, her "less organized" colleagues are landing new clients and scaling their businesses faster than you can say "productivity hack."

How's that for a corporate fairytale gone wrong?

It's Not Your Fault

Many of us have been there—believing that tackling the most unpleasant, difficult tasks first is the key to being successful. 

After all, it’s what we’re taught in school and at home: get the hard stuff out of the way first, and everything else will fall into place. 

On the surface, this makes sense. 

But here's the thing: while this might work for personal chores or school projects, it doesn't translate to meaningful progress in business.

To drive real business growth, land more clients, and boost revenue, we need to rethink this approach entirely.

The Real World Reality

There’s a common belief that to be productive, you need to start your day by tackling the hardest, most unpleasant tasks first—get them out of the way so the rest of your work feels easier.

That's not 100% true.

Here's the problem: Just because a task is hard doesn't mean it's important. 

You could spend hours perfecting that internal report, making it so beautiful it brings a tear to your eye. I'm not saying the report isn't important…

But unless that report is going to magically turn into a new client or a revenue boost, you're just polishing the brass on the Titanic.

In other words, productivity isn't about clearing the hardest tasks—it's about honing in on the tasks that will actually make a difference for your business.

I once had a client who was so obsessed with tackling the hardest tasks first that he spent the first three hours of every day updating his company's employee handbook.

Meanwhile, his sales were tanking faster than the Titanic (there's that ship again). When I asked him why he prioritized the handbook, he said, "Because it's the task I dread the most."

The hardest tasks often give us a false sense of accomplishment… 

You feel like you're being productive because they require effort, but in reality, these tasks don't move your company forward.

They’re necessary but not strategic.

Learning From The (Former) Giants

We think if we juggle enough balls, we'll eventually become expert jugglers. We won't. We'll just end up with a bunch of dropped balls and a headache.

It's easy to fall into the trap of thinking that the more you do, the more you'll accomplish. Being busy doesn't always mean you're being effective.

BlackBerry

Remember BlackBerry? Once upon a time, they were the kings of the jungle. But then they tried to do everything at once - new hardware, software updates, tablets - you name it. 

They spread themselves thinner than a dollar-store paper towel. The result? They went from market leader to "BlackBerry still exists?" faster than you can type "LOL" on an iPhone.

I've been there too. In my first marketing internship, I was like a puppy at a dog park - excited about everything and focusing on nothing.

My boss pulled me aside and said:

"Kid, you can do everything, but not at the same time."

That hit hard, but it turned into one of the biggest lessons I've learned.

General Motors

Similarly, General Motors in the 2000s spread themselves thin across multiple car brands and projects. 

Instead of streamlining their operations, they were pumping resources into maintaining brands that weren’t profitable, and as a result, they struggled to stay efficient. 

Their attempt to do everything resulted in a lack of focus, and they ultimately needed a government bailout to survive.

It wasn't about doing more; it was about doing the right things at the right time.

When you focus on too many things, you lose sight of the few key projects that could help you land new clients, close bigger deals, or scale your business faster.

High-Impact First

Instead of being a task machine gunner, spraying bullets everywhere and hoping something hits, it's time to be a task sniper. One well-placed shot beats a spray of bullets any day.

Gary Keller explains this beautifully in his book "The One Thing."

He talks about a real estate company that focused solely on lead generation.

They ignored everything else - internal meetings, software updates, even casual Fridays (okay, I made that last one up).

The result? They left their competitors in the dust.

It’s the same principle you see in the Scrum methodology.

Scrum emphasizes doing fewer things, but doing them exceptionally well. 

Every task on your list should directly contribute to your business growth… or shouldn't be there.

Choosing Your Target

Ask yourself: "What's the ONE thing I can do today that'll make everything else easier or unnecessary?" That's your high-impact task. That's your target.

This is the mindset you need to adopt when prioritizing tasks. Don't get distracted by things that keep you busy, but don't push your business forward.

Instead, focus on what will move the needle—whether that's reaching out to high-value prospects, launching a campaign that directly impacts sales, or improving a core product offering.

It's like that old saying: "If you chase two rabbits, you'll catch neither." 

The Dynamic Duo

Now, I know what you're thinking:

"But Gui, some of those awful tasks actually need to get done! Who's gonna file the reports if I'm out here being a task sniper?"

Enter the dynamic duo of delegation and automation. It's like cloning yourself, but your clone only does the boring stuff. Minus the ethical dilemmas and weird family dinners, of course.

Not every difficult or unpleasant task can be ignored. Some are necessary to keep the business running, but that doesn’t mean you should be the one doing them. 

Automation

With most of the clients I work with, one of the first things I dive into is automation. Why? 

Because it's usually quicker to set up than a microwave dinner, cheaper than a happy meal, and delivers results faster than a pizza guy on a rocket-powered scooter. 

Automations help save time and money but also increase revenue by freeing up resources for more important, growth-driving activities. It’s one of the easiest ways to unlock hidden revenue opportunities that businesses often overlook.

For example, automating repetitive tasks like customer service responses, lead follow-ups, or invoice processing can make a world of difference. 

These tasks are necessary, but they don't move the business forward.

By automating them, you can focus on things like expanding your client base or improving your marketing strategy—tasks that actually grow your business.

Take compliance paperwork or routine reports—critical but time-consuming. These can be automated through specialized software, saving you hours every week. 

Imagine what you could do with that extra time: 

• Close more deals? 

• Improve client relationships? 

• Even develop new products?

Delegation

And for those tasks that can't be automated? That's where delegation comes in. It's like having a personal army of minions, but instead of being little yellow pill-shaped creatures, they're competent professionals who actually know what they're doing.

By automating or delegating these necessary but draining tasks, you free yourself up to focus on what really matters: growing your business, landing new clients, and increasing revenue.

Final Sip

If there's one thing to take away from all of this, it's that business growth isn't about how many tasks you can check off or how quickly you can tackle the hardest ones.

It's easy to fall into the trap of thinking that if you're busy, you're moving forward.

But as we've seen, being busy doesn't always mean you're being effective.

What matters most is that you prioritize high-impact tasks that push your business toward its biggest goals.

So, what’s the next step? 

Look at where you’re spending most of your energy and ask yourself: 

• Is this task directly tied to growing my business? 

• Is it something that will bring in more clients, improve revenue, or expand my market reach? 

If not, it’s time to rethink your approach.

Delegate or automate anything that isn't tied to your most important goals.

Consider hiring a virtual assistant or using AI tools to free yourself up for high-impact work.

By focusing on fewer, more meaningful tasks, you'll drive far greater results than by trying to do everything at once.

You don't have to do it all—you just need to focus on the right things to unlock the growth potential already sitting within your business.

Take a moment today to review your task list and identify which items are draining your time without driving growth. Could they be delegated or automated? 

⭐️ Weekly Good Vibes

» Want to unlock revenue opportunities in your own business?

Let’s chat—schedule a free consultation today, and we’ll dive into how my method can help your business grow smarter, not harder.