What's a Niffler, you ask?

Well, if you've read Happy Potter and the Goblet of Fire, you might remember that a Niffler is a critter that hunts treasure. Once it finds one treasure, it moves on quickly in search of the next prize.

Do you do the same thing in your business? Meaning, are you a constant gatherer of the things that you think will move your business ahead, but not so much the implementer of them? Do you get distracted by anything and everything that's new in your industry? Do you come up with one great idea after another, but you never fully commit to completely one of them?

Yes? I hate to break it to you, but there's probably a bit of Niffler in you! You could also call it distractiblity-disorder or failure-to-follow-through or fear-of-success/failure, or focus-challenged... but personally, I like having a bit of Niffler in me. It means I'm still passionate about what I'm doing, I'm still excited about learning new things, and I'm still interested in what's happening in my industry, which lends to my ultimate success.

But what can happen is that all those ideas and thoughts and half-completed projects don't move my business forward. For example, when I started my own business five years ago, there was about half the business-building technology and tools available that there are now. And it's so easy to want to jump on the cutting-edge bandwagon. But at some point, if I didn't focus on actually completing things, I'd still be spinning my wheels instead of driving in the fast lane.

So, how do you tame the Niffler in you?

The strategy that has worked the best for me (not 100% of the time, but close enough) has been to keep an Idea Log. The one I have now is just an old-fashioned composition book, and whenever I have a new idea or thought about something I want to do related to my business, I just jot it down in my Idea Log. Then I go back to working on my current project that I am commit to completing. I know my ideas are saved there for me so I won't forget them, and eventually I do go back and refer to what I've written and choose some to work on. That's when I add them to my Priority Card (read last week's article about my Priority Card).

What this also does, besides helping me to maintain my focus, is it stops me from wasting time on ideas that ultimately don't fit into my business. Many ideas end up almost self-selecting themselves out by virtue of time. So by keeping my focus on the ultimate treasure, I don't get side-tracked by fool's gold... :)

If you think you have a little Niffler in you, try this idea and enjoy a dramatic increase in your own productivity!