Defining What it Means to be Productive
Everyone wants to be as productive at their job as possible, right? But what does it mean to be truly productive?
The dictionary boils it down to “producing a large amount” of whatever. But when it comes to being productive professionally, there’s more to it than that.
I was reading Implementing Value Pricing: A Radical Business Model for Professional Firms by Ronald J. Baker and came across, what I think, is the best way to define productivity.
I can sum it up as follows:
Efficiency is doing things the right way.
Effectiveness is doing the right things.
Productivity is doing both at the same time.
Austrian-American management consultant & author, Peter Drucker, has a lot of great insights on being effective in business. One of his books, The Effective Executive: The Definitive Guide to Getting the Right Things Done champions effectiveness over efficiency, stating: “doing the right thing is more important than doing the thing right”.
And that’s true — but why not both?
This line of thinking worked its way into our ethos at Clockwork 9. Collectively, we all strive to be as productive as possible. And that led us to the concept of Productive Collateral.
What it Means to Produce Productive Collateral
Everything we create needs to be efficient & effective and therefore, productive. Striking a balance between doing things right and doing the right things.
Being efficient is about executing tasks with optimal resource utilization, ensuring that every piece of content we create is produced as diligently as possible, with the end result being the best it can be. Effectiveness, on the other hand, is about making strategic decisions, focusing our efforts on the aspects that yield the best results for our clients.
This commitment to productivity is rooted in our desire to make creative decisions within an objective framework. We reject the idea of using subjective opinion as the basis for our decisions — as people’s opinions tend to be biased or worse: non-factual.
Instead, we focus on research, planning, and past experiences to inform our approach. This way, we ensure that every piece of content we produce — whether it’s a video, animation, a new website, or whatever — is aligned with our client’s goals. And then we sprinkle our creative flair on top.
Creating Productive Collateral involves understanding the what, when, where, and why of content deployment. It’s not about creating content for content’s sake.
It’s about understanding the purpose each piece of collateral serves and what kind of collateral best serves that purpose.
It’s about understanding when and where it should be deployed — and why it matters to an audience.
And most importantly, it’s about answering the golden question: will this piece of content deliver a profitable ROI for our client?
Give it a Try
When you work with us, you’re not just investing in content creation. You’re investing in a strategic approach that maximizes efficiency and effectiveness, ultimately driving your business success.
If you’re ready to experience the power of Productive Collateral, get in touch. Let’s create something impactful together.
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