Monday Productive #1 with Eli Zheleva

Published on: November 28, 2021

It’s Monday again and it’s time to get s*** done! ⏱

Monday #Productive is a weekly interview format, featuring peak-performers from my network, who share 5 quick ideas on how to boost your productivity and stay at the top of your game.

Today’s guest is Eli Zheleva (Marketer, Speaker and Author). Eli is a seasoned marketing consultant and the author of the book “Marketing Matters in Business and Life”. Her clients include names such as Next, Expedia, Iceland and The University of Cambridge. Eli is also a Mensa member and was regional officer for the South East of England. Currently she’s focused on building up her speaking career, presenting at large stages internationally.

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1. How much planning do you do to organize your time? Do you have a specific method or strategy that you follow to stay on track?

🔻Every day I lock 10 minutes to decide what is my top priority for the day. I use the question from the book “The ONE thing” to do this – “what’s the ONE Thing you can do such that by doing it everything else will be easier or unnecessary?”. Then I see what other outcomes I want to get from the day and schedule those accordingly. 📘

2. Day to day – how do you stay focused on your major objectives, with all the unexpected demands coming at you?

🔻 For a while now I’ve been using an app called Forest. It is aimed to give me a distraction free time with no notifications. This way I can manage my time more effectively and juggle priorities. With the paid version of the app, the more time I spend focusing, the app developers plant a real tree on my behalf, so I’m doing good for myself and good for the world. 😊🌳

3. What do you do to keep your team productive and engaged?

🔻 What I’ve found useful with the team is to “think globally and act locally”. We discuss the plans for the month or the quarter at the beginning of the said period and then on a weekly or bi-weekly basis set the specific tasks and review the progress. After all, if you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it. But if you can manage it, you can master it.

4. In the last few years – what habit or belief have you acquired, that helps you most to be an effective professional?

🔻 #Delegation. I work with an in-house team and freelancers in different countries. I have come to realise that my role within the project should be to oversee it, not do it all. This has prompted me to improve my briefing and communication skills with the people I work with. I often consult senior managers, who get hands-on with too many projects, which adds more to their already busy schedules. I believe there is an easier way to alleviate the stress – using freelancers, virtual assistants and better delegation to your own team.