Everyone has a formula that they believe will work best for how they can get the most out of their day, but not everyone finds success with their strategies. If you have been interested in what you can get from deploying an effective time management strategy, then now is the time to look at the rapid planning method.
What Is The Rapid Planning Method?
The Rapid Planning Method is meant to maximize the results you get out of your life while also maximizing the amount of fulfillment and joy you feel while doing these things. As Tony Robbins explains it:
“RPM is a system of thinking, not a time management system. The goal in life is not to manage time, but to create a life that is absolutely fulfilling, a life that is always growing and contributing.”
He makes it clear that you may feel like you are doing work when you first begin to use the RPM method, but he insists that people who use it properly will ultimately feel more fulfilled and satisfied with their lives. He notes that there are a lot of things that we can spend our time focused on or distracted by in this world, but he also knows that we achieve our best efforts and feel the most satisfied when we are paying attention to the things that matter. That is why he says people should think about three things when using the RPM technique to figure out where they want to go. They need to take actions that are:
- Results-oriented
- Purpose-driven
- Massive action plan
Everything else can and should be cut away from our lives so we can focus on those things that truly bring us joy and contribute to our sense of self and well-being. If we are not focused on those things, then we are not doing everything in our power to achieve results that are truly lasting and significant. We might be focused on chasing rabbits when we should focus on the more important things. If you can cut down on wasted time doing tasks that are unproductive and don’t bring added value, then why wouldn’t you do so? It just makes sense that these are the steps you want to take to get the absolute most out of life.
How Does the Rapid Planning Method Make You More Productive?
The RPM method makes you more productive by helping you see what you truly need to handle daily. Instead of adding an endless number of tasks to your calendar each day, why not focus on the tasks you care about most? You can strip away some of the distractions in your life until you can see what you actually care about and what you should spend more of your time on. When you use something like a traditional to-do list, everything on the list can seem equally important, but we know that isn’t true. The RPM method can help you sort that all out.
“The path to success is to take massive determined action”
-Tony Robbins
Three Questions for the Rapid Planning Method
We have already discussed the three things that make up the RPM technique: Results-oriented, Purpose-driven, and Massive action plan, but we want to dive a little deeper into this. We want to explain why you should ask yourself three questions using the RPM method. Also, we want to discuss how those questions can help you uncover things about yourself and your plan.
Is This Task Results-Oriented?
1. Before adding a task to your weekly schedule, stop to think about if the task is results-oriented for you. In other words, adding a task that will contribute to your success is completely reasonable, but it is less than ideal for adding tasks to have something to mark off. If the things you add to your weekly schedule are not propelling you forward in life, why are they on there?
2. An entrepreneur might include something that helps strengthen their mental health alongside the other tasks they must do for the day. They might practice something like meditation between all the meetings they have to take for the day. Someone could look at this and not understand why they would include it.
However, if entrepreneurs feel that meditation helps keep themselves sharp and focused on the day ahead, then it makes sense that they would want to include this in their routine. Meditation can help make them more mentally prepared and relaxed the next time they go into a meeting, yielding results instantly.
3. Event organizers might include some delegation steps that they need to take to ensure they get everything set up just right for the event they are putting on for a client. Maybe they have an office that needs attention from a cleaning perspective that they can have someone else take care of. That frees up more of their time to focus on the money-making aspects of their work.
Is This Task Purpose-Driven?
People should stop asking themselves if a given task they are working on is likely to contribute to their overarching purposes for working on these tasks in the first place. This means that they need to check that a given task contributes to their life in a positive way.
This is a question that can often find its answer in your gut. You know if something you are doing is really helpful to you or if it is a mere distraction you enjoy accomplishing. Just be honest with yourself and try to figure out how you can shift more of your focus over to the tasks that contribute to your overall well-being.
It is always challenging initially because purpose-driven tasks don’t necessarily produce an immediate dopamine reaction in the brain. However, if you stick with it, you will eventually be rewarded for accomplishing your goals.
Do I Have a Massive Action Plan for This Task?
Everyone needs to check in to see if they have a real plan for how they will take their “to-do” list and turn it into something they will take massive action on. In other words, is it possible to contribute greatly towards accomplishing a given task, and how do you plan on doing so? If you can figure those things out, you have solved the massive action plan part of this equation.
If you lack a massive action plan for a given task, that doesn’t necessarily mean all is lost. It may just mean that you need to take some time to contribute to a plan rather than sticking to it. And plan one that will lead to the results you are looking for. It would be best if you got things together so that you don’t miss out on your opportunity to create big changes in your life.
How to Get Started With the Rapid Planning Method
If you wish to contribute to your RPM method, you must work on setting aside a little time to figure out your vision for your life and how you would like to get there. The RPM technique is great, but you need to establish an overview of what you are trying to accomplish before you set out on this journey.
Here are a few things that you can do when you first get started with the rapid planning method:
- Determine what your end goal is
- Look at the concrete steps that you can take to get from where you are to where you want to be
- Eliminate the steps that do not fit into the RPM model
- Gather information about strategies that others who have used this method have deployed and consider using those strategies yourself
- Start working on the actionable steps that you can take today to get a bit closer to your goal
“Everybody’s got a past. The past doesn’t equal the future unless you live there.” – Tony Robbins
You can start to build a different future from where you are now if you are just willing to look at the choices you have made up to this point and decide that you will not allow those choices to define you forever. If you have some determination in your mind and soul to change who you are as a person, then there is nothing that can stop you or hold you back. You can and should be working on overcoming the obstacles between you and your goals.
Example of Rapid Planning in Action
An easy example to help explain how the RPM technique can work is looking at someone trying to make some extra money from a side hustle.
In this case, someone wants to make some extra money in their food delivery gig job. They set a goal to make an extra $1,000 for the month from the work that they are doing. This is possible if they break it down into easier-to-consume pieces.
Instead of trying to make as much as possible right from the start and potentially getting burnt out, the individual who uses the RPM method will understand that they can break the task down into smaller parts that they can tackle. For example, if he knows that just a few other people are delivering food late in the evening, he can make $25 in one hour. He can break the full $1,000 in 40 late evening hours. Perhaps Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays work great for him.
To get the concept even better, it is also great to imagine someone who would like to participate in running a 5-kilometer race. If they are starting, they need to start small and build up to the point where they can run those kinds of distances. This kind of person should set an attainable daily goal and don’t push themselves too hard beyond that goal so h,e doesn’t lose motivation. If they at least hit that goal for the day, they will consider it a successful day; that is how they should think about things. They are doing just what they need to do to reach their targets.
3 Things to Keep in Mind When Using RPM
When using the RPM technique, it is important to keep a few things in mind. Failure to remember some of these basics may put you in a spot where you are unable to reach the goals that you are aiming for. Here is what you should try to remember.
1. Everything That You Do Needs to Have a Purpose
Do not include tasks on your to-do list if you do not see results from those tasks toward your overarching purpose in life. You will inevitably end up swamped by the tasks you take, and you won’t make the real progress you need to make to get your life headed in the direction you want it to go. Always look at your final goal as what you are aiming for.
2. Delegate Work That Isn’t Contributing as Much
If there are things on your list that you know that you need to do but that you can’t get done quickly and easily or they are just not worth your time, then you need to take the time to delegate that work out to someone else who can better handle it for you. You don’t want to spend all your time working on small things like this, but some small tasks are unavoidable. If you are always dealing with those tasks, you know something needs to change. The best way to make that change is to delegate the work to people who can handle it.
3. Give Yourself Time to Get Used to This New System
It would be best if you prepared yourself for the challenges and changes that may come your way when dealing with the RPM technique. You won’t necessarily make immediate progress on your goals until you have had some time to work through the challenges that this system may present to you. Make sure you give yourself the grace to complete it in due time.
Conclusion
Using any productivity method (such as eating the frog, the Pomodoro Technique, SMART goals, etc.) will be challenging. However, you can gain much momentum by using the same methods as that used by like Tony Robbins to get things done. He has had great success in his career, and you can learn from his methods and use them in your life incredibly important. Please take advantage of his teachings and apply them to your own life today.
