Lessons from a 103-year productivity technique
Have you ever surprised yourself participating in productivity envy? Some people accomplish a lot, but it seems like no matter how hard you work, your to-do list keeps getting bigger and you don’t feel like you’ve made any significant progress.
While there are plenty of “productivity tools” and gimmicks out there that promise instant lightning-fast efficiency; all you need is a sheet of paper.
Charles M. Schwab, was president of the Bethlehem Steel Corporation, the largest shipbuilder, the second largest steel producer in the United States, and one of the richest men in the world.
Schwab was continually looking for new ways to improve the efficiency of his company and maintain an edge over the competition.
Ivy Lee, a well-known productivity and management consultant, successful entrepreneur, and public relations pioneer, set up a meeting with Schwab. (Recounted by Charles “Tremendous” Jones in his book “Leadership Is For You”, pp. 42-44. (1968)
Schwab said, “Show us a way to do more things, I’ll be happy to hear from you. And if it works, I’ll pay you whatever you ask within reason.”
Lee replied, “If that’s what you want, I’ll show you a method that will increase your personal management efficiency, and that of anyone else who applies it, by at least fifty percent.”
This bold promise intrigued the business tycoon.
Lee “handed Schwab a blank sheet of paper and said:Write down the most important things you have to do tomorrow.”
Schwab took about five minutes to do this.
Lee then asked Schwab to number them in the order of their true importance. (This took a little longer for Schwab.)
Lee then shared the last step of this simple system: “First thing in the morning tomorrow, start working on item #1 and continue with it until complete. Then take item #2 in the same way. Then number 3, and so on.”
“You will have completed the most important projects before you get to the less important ones. If you can’t finish everything you planned for tomorrow with this system, it wouldn’t have finished otherwise. And without this system you probably would have finished.” it took much longer to complete what it set out to do, without taking care of things in the order of their real value for you and your company”.
Lee then encouraged Schwab to do this every business day. After he has convinced himself of the value of this system, have his men try it out.
He closed the meeting by saying, “Try it out as long as you want, and then send me your check for whatever you think the idea is worth.”
Charles Schwab and his executive team at Bethlehem Steel used Ivy Lee’s method of productivity with great success. Three months later, Schwab sent a check for $25,000 to Ivy Lee. ($25,000 in 1918 equals $475,318 in 2021).
Schwab stated that this lesson was the most profitable he learned in his business career. It was later said that this was the plan largely responsible for turning a small steel company into one of the largest producers in the world.”
Ivy Lee’s 4-Step Method for Maximum Productivity:
1.) At the end of each work day, write down the six most important things you need to accomplish tomorrow. Do not write more than six tasks.
2.) Prioritize those six items in order of their without importance.
3.) When tomorrow comes, focus only on the first task. Work until you finish the first task before moving on to the second task.
4.) Approach the rest of your list in the same way. At the end of the day, move the unfinished items into a new list of six tasks for the next day.
Repeat this process every business day.
For the last 103 years, many companies have used the Ivy Lee system to achieve maximum productivity with great success. It is about focusing on “managing priorities well”.
I promise you, this will cure your case of productivity envy!
Let me know how it works for you!