Productivity might just be THE buzz word of the business world.  There are {quite literally} millions of articles on productivity on my most recent Google search {234 million, in fact}.  But what does productivity actually mean to you?  Getting things done?  Working smarter and not harder?  Having more free time?  See, being productive looks different to different people.  And what you need to creat to be productive varys from human to human.  

Danielle LaPorte suggests that you stop keeping a to-do list.  D is a freakin’-brilliant-rock-my-socks-off-with-mere-words goddess of L.O.V.E. so I gave it a try.  I kicked my to-do list habit.  And it went horribly wrong. {or maybe really right so keep reading…} 

When I stopped keeping track of everything I had to do, I lost focus.  Big time.  My time management went out the window.  I spent HOURS working on a simple project because I was distracted by Facebook, Twitter, and my emails.  Oh, the emails.  And I lost IT.  My entire business started to vanish before me and it made me a nervous wreck.  Self-doubt and self-rejection crept in and I began to listen to those small voices, the ones that tell me I can’t do it all. {for the record, they are wrong}  I can, if fact, do it all and then some.  

See, I let the small voices take over and run my life and my business.  But they don’t run either of those things, I do.  So I took responsibility for what I left un-done, re-started my to-do list {because sometimes I straight up put hair gel on my toothbrush so I need to write things down and that’s okay} and asked for help.  Well, I didn’t exactly ask, but I went searching and found Michelle Ward’s amazeballs {her word, loved and borrowed} list of programs that help her get s#*t done and the lovely little site called Freckle.  You guys, Freckle saved me.  Time: managed.  List: accomplished.  Biz: back on track.  

Is Danielle wrong?  Not a bit.  Dropping your to-do list works for some.  Focus and a little assistance works for others.  

But, the most important thing is: small voices work for NO ONE.  

So what do you need to be bigger than your small voice?