Oftentimes, people who schedule a consult with me are doing so because they have been job searching with little to no success. One of the questions on the scheduling form has to do with the number of applications they have completed, the number of interviews with different companies they’ve had, and the number of job offers they’ve received. I ask for this information because it helps me begin to narrow down where their problem might be. Let’s look at each step of this process, and what to do if your problem is in that step.

This week, I want to talk about how to focus on the right things at work, using Stephen Covey’s Four Quadrants. Let’s think about the Four Quadrants as a tool to manage our ACTIVITIES better — so we are focusing on the right things to get the results we are held accountable for achieving. My challenge for you in this area is this: After listening to this episode, decide to make a small — but significant shift — in one of the quadrants. A shift that will yield substantial results in terms of your productivity.