Why Charles Schwab Paid $25,000 in 1918 for a Productivity Tip That Took Less Than 30 Minutes to Explain

Imagine the year is 1918, and you're at the helm of one of the biggest steel companies in the world.

You're swimming in a sea of potential, but the paddles of productivity are just out of reach. Every day, you watch your executive team scrambling from one task to the next with no real, clear focus. They're sucked into the day whirlwind.

This isn't a scene from a black-and-white movie; it was the daily grind that Charles M. Schwab, the President of Bethlehem Steel Corporation, knew all too well.

To overcome his challenge, as the story goes, Charles M. Schwab paid Ivy Lee $25,000 for a time management strategy.

According to the tale, Ivy Lee was a productivity consultant who offered to improve the efficiency of Schwab's team. He asked for just 15 minutes with each of Schwab's executives and claimed that after three months, Schwab could pay him whatever he thought the strategy was worth.

Schwab later wrote a check for $25,000 (roughly $400,000 today), an enormous sum, especially for advice that took less than half an hour to impart.

It's not the hours you pour in but what you pour into the hours that count. 

This adage hit home when Schwab met Ivy Lee. Lee's method, which Schwab implemented, was no voodoo; it was pure focus, bottled and sold.

Here's the essence of the productivity tips distilled:

1/ List the Tasks

Imagine your workday is a tank.

Filling this tank with big rocks, pebbles, and sand, what goes in first? The big rocks, right? These are your six most important tasks. At the end of each day, take a moment to jot down the six "big rocks" for tomorrow. Be ruthless in your selection; only six tasks get the green light. This isn't just about making a list; it's about establishing a course for your day.

If you write down more than six, you're setting sail into a storm with a hole in your boat – you'll sink under the weight of too much task cargo.

2/ Prioritize

Fill your day with better priorities, not more tasks.

Here's how:

• Align tasks with your top goals
• Trim the fat & focus only on what moves the needle
• Focus on quality over quantity

Make each day a masterpiece.

Choose priorities that paint your bigger picture.

— Nate Anglin (@NateAnglin) November 3, 2023

Now you've got your six tasks, it's time to play King of the Hill.

The task that would give King Kong a run for his money, the most important one, that's your number one. Rank the rest in descending order of importance. Think of it like a ladder; you want to climb it one rung at a time, starting from the top. Why?

Tackling the most essential task first provides momentum for the day and what truly matters (you have goals, right?).

3/ Work Through the List

Here's where the rubber meets the road.

Punch in, start with Task One, and keep at it until it's done—no peeking at Task Two or flirting with Task Three. If Task One is writing a report, you're done when the report is ready to be shipped. It's like a game of Whack-A-Mole: you don't look for the next mole until the first one is down. Stick with it.

Focus leads to finishing, and finishing fuels your fire to forge ahead.

A quick tip: If your most important task is a scheduled meeting later in the day, still keep it at number one. Just start your day at number two.

4/ Carry Over

What if the day's whistle blows and Task Four still stares at you, unfinished?

No sweat. That task becomes a new task for tomorrow. If any tasks aren't completed by the end of the day, they get moved to the list for the next day.

This isn't procrastination; it's prioritization.

And if you keep carrying over a task, it's unimportant, so decide to delegate, defer, or delete it.

Before you decide to do any task, first run it through the 6Ds to massive productivity:

1. Delete
2. Defer
3. Design Out = Automate
4. Document = SOPs
5. Delegate

Then:

6. Do It!

You only "do" tasks that have immense value.

Everything else gets handled by the first 5 Ds.

— Nate Anglin (@NateAnglin) January 13, 2023

5/ Repeat

As the sun sets on your workday, take stock and set up for tomorrow.

Create a new list of six tasks for the following day, with any carryovers added. This isn't a one-hit wonder; it's a daily rhythm, a business heartbeat. Like brushing your teeth or locking the front door, it's a habit that sets you up for success tomorrow.

Repeat it enough, and it becomes part of your business DNA, a blueprint for productivity that keeps you moving forward relentlessly, one day at a time.

Schwab's tale and the $25,000 cheque is more than folklore.

It's a testament to the power of prioritizing. What Lee sold to Schwab wasn't just a list; it was the key to unlocking potential, one day at a time.

So, what's on your list for tomorrow?

Trim it down, sharpen its focus, and prepare to unleash the productivity giant within. Dive into the Ivy Lee Method and watch your to-dos bow down before you, conquered and complete.

Revolutionize your focus.