A week has only 168 hours. Ask any professional; they are currently using all 168 of them. Whether they are being productive with them, or not, at the end of the week the hours are spent. But for productive people, what they do with their hours are different. Those hours are valuable and protected. Consequently, if anyone wants to access those hours, then they need to get to the point.

So, what is the big difference for a productive person’s hours? Well, for starters they are prioritized for other productive people. The professional who treasures his 168 hours, wants to invest those hours with others who treasure them. People who get in and get to the point earn the right to access those hours. But to jump to the front of the line to meet productive people, you have to do more than get to the point. You have to be the point.

Clients, prospects, referral sources, or any contributors to business progress, you are the point!

1. Clients
Clients are the reason that the business exists. Regardless of your role, someone depends on you to provide or deliver a good or service. A client is the beneficiary. Depending on the role, the client can be external, like a buyer of the good, or internal, like a co-worker that requires support for their output. Nevertheless, clients take priority because the professional has an explicit incentive to service them. In fact, clients are the point because they are the reason that there is work to do.

2. Prospects
Prospects are simply clients that don’t know it yet. They take priority because they represent the future. If clients are the reason that there is work to do now, then prospects are the reason that there is work to do tomorrow. Prospects get business leaders’ attention because the ongoing prosperity of the business or operation is the leaders’ priority. 168 hours per week represent resources that are available for investment. To maximize the return on their time allocation, productive professionals invest in prospects who represent business continuity. Prospects are the point. Treasure them. Invest time in them.

3. Referral Sources
Get in, get to the point. Business leaders can easily see that clients and prospects represent current and upcoming business. However, maximizing time remains a point of emphasis. Because the business leader’s week has 168 hours, as does his close colleagues and collaborators, the leader can maximize his hours by leveraging some of his colleagues’ time. When a colleague refers a client or prospect, the business leader earns a return on time that the referral source spent. Referrals most cost-effectively convert prospects into clients because the early sales steps are done on the colleague’s dime. Therefore referrals yield a super-sized return as a result of the new revenue’s lower cost.

To earn productive business leaders’ attention be the point. The point represents satisfied, ongoing clients for today’s work. The point is also prospects that require time and attention to evolve into tomorrow’s clients. And, the point is referral sources that are emotionally invested in the business leader’s success. Investments with these points result in the business leader recognizing business growth.

The professional who expects to get the most out of his 168 weekly hours needs to prioritize his time allocation. Anyone who wants his attention needs to get in and get to the point. Better yet, be one of the points that lead to sustaining the business! Or, accept limited access.

By Glenn W Hunter
Principal of Hunter & Beyond