Forget Time, Let's Talk About Self-Management
“There’s never enough time in the day to get everything done that I need to get done.” “If only I had 2, 3…or 20 more hours in the day I would be able to get everything checked off my list.” “How can I be expected to complete my work, take care of my family, clean the house, take care of the yard, help my neighbor, walk the dog, take out the trash, care for myself, and get to the gym? It’s just not possible.”
Sound familiar?
First, the disclaimer, hundreds if not thousands of books have been written on the topic of time management, which means there are literally millions of published words teaching individuals how to manage their time. Ultimately it all boils down to three basic principles. First, deciding who or what you want to be, second, creating the goals that will allow you to become that person, and finally mapping out your strategy on a weekly and daily basis to achieve your goals.
Before we start, let’s make sure that we’re clear on at least one thing, and please don’t get discouraged with this statement. Time management is impossible! No matter what you do, no matter what techniques you use or strategies that you implement you will never be able to control time. Time simply is. It never stops; it doesn’t give more to some and less to others. It is the same for everyone and it is always moving. The real challenge is to learn to manage you within the boundaries of time.
And that takes us to the first point… What do you want to be? The answer to that question will probably free up more time than anything else that you do. As soon as you can say who or what you want to be, you can immediately eliminate everything else from your schedule that doesn’t allow you to be or become that person. Take a few minutes to answer the question. Then compare your past weeks activities to the answer of who you want to be. You’ll quickly see that there are a whole host of activities that could have been eliminated, because even though they were worthwhile and good, they did not help you accomplish your ultimate objective. There is nothing wrong with saying no to something that is good, when there is something that is better or more important that can be done in its place.
We can go on-and-on about goals, but at the end of the day, we really just need to make them and then achieve them. Regardless of the strategy that you use, make sure that your goals align with your purpose and with each accomplishment you are closer to becoming who you want to be. Finally, some advice on scheduling, it doesn’t matter if you use paper, your computer, a PDA (do those still exist?), your phone, or a combination of all of them. Use what works for you. What is necessary is that you use a method that allows you to accomplish everything that is important, those things that will help you become the person that you want to be, and ignore or avoid the things that won’t.
A great idea is to take time at the beginning of each week, and determine the most important things that you need to do, or the things that will have the greatest impact in your life. Next, schedule each of those events or activities directly on your calendar. Don’t put them on a task list, put them on the calendar and be as committed to those activities as you are to a meeting with your boss. Once that is done, take time every night to list out the things that must be accomplished the following day. Again, focus on those things that will let you become the person that you want to be. Now put those items directly on the calendar. Give them a time and commit to completing them at the assigned time. Remember one of the biggest time hogs, is assigning more time than is necessary to actually complete the task.
Ultimately it is not about time, it is about you. What are you going to do to manage you? A rule of thumb is to remember who, what and how. Who do you want to be? What are you going to do to become that person? How are you going to accomplish those goals each day?
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