Managing Time vs. Managing Yourself
Mike Williams
Executive Coach, Business Coach, Sales Coach, President of The Growth Coach of Northern VA
I recently did a Zoom presentation on the 12 Principles of Time Management. The purpose was to identify and discuss 12 things we could do to help us be more effective with our time. You see, time is constant. Time keeps moving along. We really don’t “manage” it. We can be more effective or efficient with it. One of the business owners that participated in my Zoom session said “The principles are great Mike, but I was hoping you were going to give me 27 hours in the day.” I mentioned that if I could lengthen the day, I would probably be a rich man.
Truth is, most of us don’t need more hours in the day, or more days in the week. We need to prioritize what we do with our hours and our days. We must manage ourselves. Manage our needs, our goals and the things we believe are most important to our well-being and success. There will always be days when activities and actions get away from us. There will always be “Hair on Fire” days. With that said, each day is an opportunity to be more efficient and effective with our time.
There are a few things that we can do to better prioritize and be more productive each day. One way is to start each day with a list of priorities. At the end of each day, or the beginning of each day, build your To-Do list of priorities for the day (Or the next day). We can also manage our phone better. Only take calls that you are expecting, and plan specific time in the day to return phone calls. Another time loss for many of us is the internet. Limit your time on the internet. Schedule time as appropriate and shut it down when that time is up. Schedule time with yourself to complete key tasks and projects. Put it on the calendar. Block out the time and tackle the most important items first.
Effective use of our time is a daily battle. If we get ourselves in the habit of focusing on high productivity and priority items, it will help us lead fuller lives.
Stay at it each day, don’t give up on yourself, and continue to fight the good fight!