ONE OF THE MOST EFFECTIVE SKILLS you can have in life is powerful and effective time management. If you are not managing your time well, there is no way you are going to reach your goals at work or school and the life outside.
The truth is that time is the great equalizer in life. No matter who you are, your age, income, gender, race, or religion, you have the same amount of time as the next person.
Find a good time-management system and work it. There are many— it’s entirely up to you which one you choose. But if you don’t want to become part of the 92% statistic of people who fail to achieve their long-term goals, then you need to pay attention to how you use the precious little time you have in the world. Here are some ideas:
Set goals the right way
Use the S.M.A.R.T. (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, Time-based) Goal Setting method to help you see things through. And when you do set these goals, make sure you have powerful, deep-down meanings for wanting to achieve them.
Find a good time-management system
The Quadrant Time-Management System is probably the most effective. It splits your activities into four quadrants based on urgency and importance. Activities can be Urgent and Important (quadrant 1), Not Urgent and Important (quadrant 2), Urgent and Not Important (quadrant 3), or Not Urgent and Not Important (quadrant 4). Activities in quadrant 4 are the ones you want to stay away from. It’s the not-urgent-but-important quadrant (#2) that you want to focus on.
Audit your time for seven days straight
Spend seven days straight assessing how you spend the time you do have right now. What are you doing? Record it in a journal. What did you get done? Was it time wasted? Was it well spent? At the end of the week, tally it up. The numbers might shock you.
Spend the morning on MITs
Mark Twain once said, “If it’s your job to eat a frog, it’s best to do it first thing in the morning. And if it’s your job to eat two frogs, it’s best to eat the bigger one first.” His point? Tackle your biggest tasks in the morning. These are the most important tasks (MITs) of the day. Accomplishing those will give you the biggest momentum to help you sail through the rest of the day.
Follow the 80-20 rule
Use the 80-20 rule, also known as the Pareto Principle. This rule states that 80% of the reward comes from 20% of the effort. The trick to prioritizing is to isolate and identify the valuable 20%. Once identified, prioritize time to concentrate your effort on those items with the greatest reward.
Use a to-do list
Some people thrive on using a daily to-do list, which they construct either at the end of the previous day or first thing in the morning. Such people may combine a to-do list with a calendar or schedule. Others prefer a “running” to-do list that is being constantly updated.
Do the right thing right
Noted management expert Peter Drucker says, “Doing the right thing is more important than doing things right.” Focus first on effectiveness, then efficiency.
Be flexible
Allow time for interruptions and distractions. Time-management experts suggest planning for just 50% of your time so you will have the flexibility to handle interruptions and the unplanned “emergency.”
Eliminate the urgent
Urgent tasks have short-term consequences while important tasks are those with long-term, goal-related implications. Work towards reducing the urgent things you must do so you’ll have time for your important priorities.
Conquer procrastination
When you are avoiding something, break it into smaller tasks and do just one of the smaller tasks or set a timer and work on the big task for just 15 minutes. By doing a little at a time, eventually you’ll reach a point where you’ll want to finish.
Even for small successes, celebrate the achievement of goals. Promise yourself a reward for completing each task or finishing the whole job. Then keep your promise to yourself and indulge in your reward. Doing so will help you maintain the necessary balance in life between work and play. If you learn to balance excellence in work with excellence in play, fun, and relaxation, your life will become happier, healthier, and a great deal more creative.
Best wishes!
Daniel J. Jachimiak, BA, is a Feature Writer/Journalist and Speaker. Dan can be reached at djachimiak@bex.net or 419-787-2036. ~ You can have a better life ~ ✲
