The “Never Quit” attitude is a positive one for achieving success in life. However, there are some things which you should quit when you have the chance. Cigarettes would be an excellent example to start! However, is it right to discontinue a professional commitment, a friendship, or a volunteer position?

Quitting something may be sad, but many obligations could get past a point where they do not render any activity of value or interest. Moreover, it is hard to stay idle for long, and more than often, people tend to cram their schedules with many activities to no benefit.

Filling up your day’s schedule with various activities and commitments is not a healthy way to accomplish productivity.

Therefore, you need to sit down for a while and reflect on your tasks in day-to-day life for finding out activities that matter the most to you. This can help you productively in long term planning for yourself as well as your business.

Take some time and create a ‘stop doing’ list by following the pointers mentioned in this discussion.

1. Identify Your Core Values

Every individual has specific values that drive them and give purpose to their life. First of all, you should refrain from activities that interfere with your core values. How to recognize such activities? Anything which does not inspire you or feel productive is a red-zone. Hence, try to get away from it as soon as possible! 

On a personal level, you could try to find better ways to accomplish tasks. For example, working with smaller organizations can allow you to implement your experience and enhance your improvement. Stay away from projects and events that require you to do a lot of formal processes and meetings or involve in a lot of politics. 

Any activity which does not present chances of improvement of your organization should be immediately added to the ‘Stop Doing’ list.

2. Long Term Planning to the Rescue

A vision for success is one of the essential requirements for the progress of your business. Even if it seemed impractical to set out plans for the future ten years, it would enable you to see the larger picture. Subsequently, you can outline midterm goals and outline your objectives for every year leading up to the tenth year of your long term plan.

The advantage of long term planning can be observed in the identification of priorities and activities that can prevent you from accomplishing your objectives. For example, withdrawing from the management of various operational functions in your organization could help in focusing on areas that can assure higher growth and value improvement.

3. Guidance of the Pareto Principle

According to the Pareto principle, 20 percent of efforts are responsible for accomplishing 80 percent of results. This clearly shows that the remaining 80 percent of our efforts and time is wasted!

This principle can be applied effectively to focus on the areas where we are not investing efforts. So, the ‘stop doing’ list should include activities that are in the 80 percent area, thereby enabling us to focus our efforts in areas that can deliver promising results.

For instance, 20% of your company’s revenue may be driven by around 80% of your customers, albeit with the consumption of a significant share of your time. Therefore, it is recommended to focus your efforts on the remaining 20% of customers that can help save time and resources alongside improving the productivity of the business.

4. Beware of Energy Vampires

It is a widely known fact that we have limited energy and time. Therefore, if you are meeting people out of guilt or obligation, then it is a ‘waste of time’! According to self–development experts, some people tend to drain your time and energy. Such people are termed as "energy vampires," and you should be able to recognize them for your safety.

Therefore, your priorities should be inclined towards spending time with people and activities that inspire you and bring energy. Your gut instincts will help you differentiate the experience of spending time with people and events that drain your energy from the ones that fill you up with zeal and enthusiasm.

5. Establish the Returns on Efforts in Your To-Do List

Each activity on your to-do list shall be reviewed in terms of the returns it delivers, either in terms of financial gain or emotional capital. If you find that a particular task can be assigned to another individual and you could be able to find time for better value-oriented initiatives, then it is recommended to add the job to your ‘stop doing’ list.

For example, if you spend time buying groceries at two or three stores every week, then it is advisable to opt for online shopping platforms to get groceries delivered at home. You can delegate the task of grocery shopping and spend that time with family members! Definitely a higher value for you, isn’t it?

The prevalent culture in present times focuses on ‘busyness’ as an indicator of productivity and importance in society. So, it won’t be inappropriate to confuse motion for action!

However, the lack of progress towards long-term goals could only mean that you’re just running continuously without even moving an inch forward.

A ‘Stop Doing’ list would help you accomplish your objectives alongside availing more time to do what you love the most!