This week, my own office hours have taken a hit.  You see, my Aunt passed away last Friday evening and while I don’t want to dishonor her memory by turning it into a business opportunity, the truth is… death happens. Sickness happens. Family issues happen. And, as self-bossers, we still have to be productive.   Other people’s jobs depend on us.  Our own “job” and paycheck depends on us.  Atlas, please don’t shrug.  As the engine of our own personal economy, it’s up to us.  To be profitable, we must be productive. EVEN when death happens. EVEN when sickness happens.   So, in keeping with our theme this week, here are a few quick tips to help you reach MAX productivity — especially when you’re dealing with unplanned time off.

First things first, plan for emergencies in your business.  Make sure you’ve got a plan for your assistant and the rest of your team.  Does he / she know what to do when you’re not there to give instruction?  Do they have a plan that keeps them from “sitting on your clock” collecting a paycheck while “waiting” for something to do? Are there evergreen tasks they can do to keep things moving in your business?   If not, create one.

Preschedule what you can. Plan ahead.  Be sure others on your team know what you’ve committed to, so they can jump in and support you during your absence.

Next, create a “bare minimum list.” This is a list of things you’ll do NO MATTER WHAT.  Maybe you won’t be able to blog every day, but you can certainly share a previously written blog post every day… as a simple idea.  Keep this list simple and short.   It should TRULY be “bare minimum.”

Finally, when you — for any reason — know you’re getting ready to “go absent” in your business, your ability to prioritize takes on incredible significance.  You must  be more discerning with your schedule.  In times of extended or sudden absence, anything not mission critical will have to be cancelled or delayed.  A great question to ask  — before taking a machete to your time obligations — is this:

Is this moving me measurably closer to my goals?

If so, keep it and reschedule if you must. If not, delay it and cancel it if you must.  Choose well.