Get It Done Weeks: The Quick Way To Reach Your Business Goals
As small business owners, we’re constantly juggling a million priorities but how often do we actually focus in on one specific goal and get it done? Not often if you’re swamped with client projects, drowning in deadlines and churning out content on the regular.
That’s where the magic of the “Get It Done Week” comes in! By honing in on one specific goal, setting yourself a deadline and incentivizing completion, you’re far more likely to actually make progress! In this blog, I’ll be showing you how to harness the power of these productivity sprints to make real progress in your business.
What is a “Get It Done Week”
Popularized in the small online business space by the fabulous Elizabeth Goddard*, the “Get It Done Week” is a lot like the Sprint framework often favored by tech companies, but with an extra sprinkle of motivation added in.
Basically, the idea is that a course creator will have their content available year-round for students to buy and learn. But actually motivating those students to do the work and get the thing done is tough, especially when the course doesn’t come with some sort of support.
So they add in a limited-time container to encourage past students to do the work (and nudge new students to join in the process!) and at the end of that period, they offer up some sort of reward for those who have completed their mission!
Sounds pretty great, right?!
Running a “Get It Done Week” for your students
Your “Get It Done Week” can be as intensive or laid-back as you like! You really do have a ton of control over how you structure your event, but I will say as someone who has participated in dozens of these events that you’ll want to include the following elements.
Things to include in your “Get It Done Week”:
Give your students - and your potential buyers - plenty of notice that you’ll be running this event!
Let them know at least a week or so beforehand that you’ll be offering this sprint so they can prepare to clear their calendars for it.
Create a community!
Even if you have even a relatively small group it’s nice to gather everyone into a communal space where they can all cheer each other on, and provide extra support and feedback beyond your own input. This not only makes for a nicer experience but it helps take some of the pressure off of you to support each and every person through their work.
Communicate clearly, early and often your rules for the prizes.
If you are offering something up as a reward for completing the task you’ve set, make sure to be very clear about exactly what your students will need to do in order to qualify for the prize, how they can claim it and any details about requirements you might have. And don’t be afraid to repeat this often! In the buzz of the event, these details can get lost quite easily
How to get the most out of a "Get It Done Week” as a student
On the other side, if you are thinking of participating in a “Get It Done Week”, here are a few tips to make sure you get the most out of the experience:
Done is better than perfect!
This isn’t the time for perfectly polished end results. The idea is to get you moving and taking action, and ideally getting something out into the world so you can get real-life feedback on your work.
Here’s an example: Let’s say you’re participating in a “Get It Done Week” about launching a low-ticket offer, like the Small But Mighty $9 Offers* that Elizabeth Goddard has run several times. The goal of that week is to launch your new $9 offer - but she specifies that it doesn’t actually have to be created until a few weeks after the event ends! So if you find that you’re struggling to make the time to build out your sales page, tech and the offer itself - try to focus on just getting the essential elements like the sales page & tech done before the deadline and you can work on the offer at a later date.Maintain your own boundaries.
Sometimes the fever-pitch excitement in these events can get the better of your normally good instincts and push you to overwork, even when you know logically the toll isn’t worth it. While, yes, there is usually a great incentive to get the thing done before the deadline, there’s almost never anything worth pushing yourself beyond your limits.
Make space for the extra work.
To combat overstretching yourself, I highly recommend clearing your calendar and task list the week of the “Get It Done Week” so you actually have the time to sit down and do the work.
Final Thoughts
“Get It Done Weeks” can be hugely motivating for business owners to make progress on something they may otherwise have put off indefinitely. However, if you are participating in a “Get It Done Week” do be mindful of your own energy, schedule and mindset to make sure it’s truly serving you and not just sweeping you up in the excitement only to have you crash after overextending yourself.
And if you are thinking about hosting a “Get It Done Week” for one of your offers, make sure you’ve prepared adequately in advance, communicated clearly with your audience how it will work and set up a communal atmosphere to take some of the pressure off of you.
