The age old question: are there more hours in a day? And, if so, where can I find them?
Time management is a tough task for all of us, particularly those of us managing the 24-hour demands of small businesses as well as our personal life. The best solution would be if there were actually more hours in a given day, but unfortunately, we don’t.
Take a deep breath and a step back. The first step in becoming a good time manager is to observe the ways you currently spend your time. If you do it, write it down. Take notice of where your time goes, and where and with whom you spend it. Once you are aware of where your time goes, it’s much easier to make different choices.
The second step is to make better choices. It takes a lot of character to try something new, but if you don’t change what you’re doing, then you’ll keep getting what you’re getting.
We’ve also compiled some additional tips to help guide you toward becoming a better time manager:
- Make a Time Diary
Take a week and plot out what you do every day. Be honest. If you watch 40 hours of TV each week, write it down.
Learn to Say No
Saying no for some people is a very hard thing to do, but it has many rewards. Ask yourself, “Is this the best use of my time right now?” If you cannot respond positively to that question, say no to the opportunity. - Find a Mentor or Coach
Even Michael Jordan needed a coach. Each of us needs a raving fan who roots us on and teaches us the skills we need to be successful. Find someone who can mentor you and coach you along the path to reaching your goals. If you can’t find an all-round coach, it’s ok to have more than one. Have a coach for each area you would like to improve. - Get Organized
Documentation is one thing. Documentation retrieval is another. Establish a place for everything, and then put everything in its place. You lose, on average, an hour a day looking for things. If you want more time, spend less of it looking for what you need. (Start by buying a label maker, file cabinet and computer. Create a retrieval system using these tools, and you will never regret the time and money you invest.) - Turn To Do’s into Appointments
What is higher in priority than a task prioritized as an “A” on a To Do list? The answer is an appointment on your calendar. To Do’s are discretionary tasks that are time flexible. Appointments are time specific. We defend appointments, but we tend to forget about tasks. To take your time-management skills to the next level, take your A’s off your To Do list and put them on your appointment schedule. - Plan 15 Minutes Every Day
The best way to leverage time is to plan and prioritize. When we plan and prioritize, we control events instead of falling prey to events that control us. When we get to events before they get to us, we reduce the amount of time they take, improve the quality of the results they produce and reduce the stress in our lives.
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