Robert G. Allen Quotes

From a productivity perspective, prioritization is key. And it's very easy to focus on clearing the decks of minutia, especially when one's very busy.

It is possible to be busy-very busy-without being very effective.

Don't confuse activity with productivity. Many people are simply busy being busy.

There just isn't enough time for everything on our 'to do' list - and there never will be. Successful people don't try to do everything. They learn to focus on the most important tasks and make sure they get done.

Never confuse activity with productivity.

Do one thing at a time. Start the day with a list of things you have to do, and do the most important things first. Even if you don't get the list done, you've gotten the most important things done. So many people spend so much time on things that aren't important.

It's amazing how many things busy people are doing that never will be missed.

If there is any one secret of effectiveness, it is concentration. Effective executives do first things first and they do one thing at a time.

People who can focus, get things done. People who can prioritize, get the right things done.

Most of us spend too much time on what is urgent and not enough time on what is important.

The best person to get something done is a busy person.

Do the hard jobs first. The easy jobs will take care of themselves.

A lot of people don't feel like doing very much. Or one project is really all they can do at one time. I can have five or six things going at the same time. It doesn't bother me or tire me, but sometimes it does rattle me.

Perhaps the very best question that you can memorize and repeat, over and over, is, 'what is the most valuable use of my time right now?'

You have to ruthlessly prioritize.

Efficiency, which is doing things right, is irrelevant until you work on the right things.

Delegate - work smarter not harder; do what you do best and drop the rest; get control of your calendar; do what you love because it will give you energy; work with people you like so your energy isn't depleted.

The busiest people I have known in my life always have time enough to do everything. Those who do nothing are always tired and pay no attention to the little amount of work they are required to do. They complain constantly that the day is too short. The truth is, they are afraid to fight the good fight.

Doing more things faster is no substitute for doing the right things.

Your ability to select your most important task at each moment, and then to get started on that task and to get it done both quickly and well, will probably have more of an impact on your success than any other quality or skill you can develop.

He that pursues two hares at once, does not catch one and lets the other go.

We are both busy people, so let's cut the small talk.

Cecil's dispatch of business was extraordinary, his maxim being, "The shortest way to do many things is to do only one thing at once."

As in all things, it is terribly important to have a sense of priorities in what you do. And to make certain that priorities do not clash.

The weakest living creature, by concentrating his powers on a single object, can accomplish good results while the strongest, by dispersing his effort over many chores, may fail to accomplish anything.