70% capacity planning

It’s very common for me to hear from clients about overwhelm, about trying to get everything done, and trying to keep all of the plates spinning that it takes to keep a business going as well as live one’s life…

and failing…

There’s a very simply solution to this, that is also very hard, and it entails something many of us have trouble doing.

The simple solution is this: plan for 70% capacity.

That’s it. If you have 10 hours free, only fill up 7 hours worth of work. If you have 40 hours, only plan for 28 hours of work.

I know, it sounds kinda crazy, but it’s so critical. I’ll tell you why. And then I’ll tell you what it entails.

Here’s why it’s so important:

• You can’t be constantly productive. You need down time. You need clear head time. You need thinking and musing and day-dreaming and playing the guitar time.
• You can’t really predict how long something will take. We seem to chronically underestimate how much time and focus it takes to complete something.
• Emotions take time. Sometimes fear comes up, or anxiety, or sadness. You need time to care for your nervous system and your emotions, so you aren’t just pushing through.
• Sometimes you need a nap.
• Unexpected impulses and guidance and miracles arises, and you want to flow with it. What if you get an email from someone, a sweet one, and you want to just pick up and call them? What if you could? Amazing things result from that. Years ago I opened my email to an invitation to provide content for a newsletter that went out to over 10,000 people. He was going on vacation, and had emailed a bunch of people, and filled those slots on a first-come, first-served basis. I was one of them, because I responded immediately.
• Sometimes your kids or a your spouse or other loved one needs you.
• Not being crammed into every moment leaves you more resources and creativity and love and presence to bring to other things.

There are other reasons, but aren’t those good enough?

So what is required to be able to plan for only 70% capacity?

One simple thing: choice. You have to choose.

I mean, you have to choose anyway, because even if you have 80 hours, you can’t get everything into that amount of time. But having any even smaller amount of time forces you to choose.

As the saying goes, “You can have anything, but you can’t have everything.”

What do you have to choose?

You have to choose what’s truly important to your business, what the top priority is.

You also have to choose what your true client capacity is (and not just “more”). And when you realize how few clients you can truly serve, you have to choose what a sustainable price is for seeing them.

You have to choose what gets done, and what waits.

What do you need in order to choose?

You need… space. 🙂 Time. Which leads us right back to scheduling for only 70%, so you have some time and space to see the big picture clearly.

At first, you’ll choose slightly randomly. Yes, you will leave important things undone, but you would have any way. So choosing which ones is better than having that choice made for you when you drop balls by accident.

Then, as you have space, you’ll get more clear on what your business, and your life, is up to. You’ll see the big picture. You’ll change your choices, and make them differently.

My plea to you.

As a heart-centered business owner it’s more important than ever that you not fade away, that your business thrives, that people get the help you are bringing.

Lots of people just skimmed over this article, nodding to it, or thinking it’s impossible. Lots of people haven’t read this far. But you have.

If you’ve read this far, please take another moment and really let this sink in. I’ve been doing this for almost 20 years, and before that I ran a non-profit magazine. I’ve been in the trenches a long time.

I wouldn’t be telling you this if it wasn’t important. Take a few moments right now and look away from the screen. Imagine if you really did this. Let it sink in deeply.

How does your heart feel? How does your business feel? What happens as you take charge and make choices like this?

And that’s it for today, beloved. Because I only want you to be scheduling 70% of your time.

With love,

Mark Silver, M.Div.
Heart of Business, Inc.
Every Act of Business Can Be an Act of Love.

P.S. The (almost) return of the one day Business Model Intensive.

Business model is one of those crazy business school terms that make a lot of people cross their eyes. But it ALSO is the doorway to breaking through ceilings around income and capacity in your business.

It’s for folks whose business is already up and running. It’s a day long virtual intensive. It’s been more than a year and half since I’ve run one. And there will be very limited spaces.

More information coming, but just wanted to give you a heads-up.