Has technology given you more free time or less? Are you feeling overwhelmed by too much multitasking, information overload and an overcrowded schedule? Do you feel guilty when you’re not doing something productive?

It seems like most of us live our lives based on the clock. We wake up at a certain time, work on a schedule and scrutinize our performance on how long it takes us to accomplish things. If we get more done in less time, we feel good about it. But when something takes longer than we anticipated, we feel disappointed with our performance.

The productivity equals happiness illusion

I think we can all agree that the clock is not the problem. The problem is that we tend to base our worth on how productive we are. We’ve been programmed to believe there is a finish line out there somewhere and once we reach it we will be done. And what does being done represent? Being done represents being happy and relaxed, right?

Being done is only an illusion because we always find more to do. In fact, we usually want more to do because a balanced amount of productivity feels good. There is absolutely nothing wrong with productivity. There is only a problem when we start basing our happiness on our rate of achievement.

The time equals money, which equals happiness trap

In a work by the hour society it is easy to see how the saying time equals money came about. At a set hourly wage, the more hours you work the more money you will make. We can also relate to the fact that a certain amount of money is required to meet our material needs with a reasonable degree of comfort.

Somehow though, the perceived value of money eclipsed the real value of time. Let’s splash a little reality on that idea right now. Time is the most valuable commodity there is. Its value cannot be measured in dollars and cents because time is the fundamental unit of life. Money is just a unit of trade that we have assigned a certain value.

When we exchange our time for money we are actually trading a portion of our life for the things that money can buy. Once we go beyond the basic creature comforts, we are trading our life for bells and whistles that have no actual intrinsic value. That is not happiness, it is slavery. This is where the real value of productivity comes in.

Realistic productivity can actually buy you time

The trick here is to see productivity as a way to compress the time required to meet our goals without using it as an excuse for endlessly doing more. More is not the answer. If we view time as the most valuable commodity, then our goal should be to do enough, not more.

This doesn’t mean filling every waking moment with some activity or appointment. It means raising our level of efficiency to the point where we have more time to enjoy the fruits of our labor.  If I can earn a comfortable living in four hours a day instead of eight, then I have successfully bought myself an extra four more hours for actual living.

I think it’s important that we reject the idea of living our lives based on some arbitrary monetary value. Rather than searching for happiness in productivity or an ever increasing income, we would do well to learn to find satisfaction in the present moment.

5 ways to regain control of your time

1. Maintain a balanced view. Having goals means that there are bound to be times when we make certain sacrifices with regard to our time. But balance means that we will take steps to make sure that those sacrifices don’t define our lives. Make sure to offset those times by also allowing time for meaningful periods of full participation in the life you already have.

2. Keep your perspective. Sometimes we need to drop pursuits or activities that are no longer serving us. It is important to have the courage to pull the plug on a goal that is no longer aligned with your true self. What matters most is that you stay authentic and don’t waste big chunks of your life chasing things that don’t really matter.

3. Weigh the benefits and the cost. Are the sacrifices you’re making now a part of a larger purpose? Our long term goals should enable us to have more free time to do what we want in the future, not create more stress. If the stress outweighs the benefits, it’s likely that your goal is not a healthy one.

4. Just say no. How often do you say yes to a commitment when you really want to say no? A lot of our freedom is thrown away if we are unable to claim ownership of our time. Be humble enough to recognize that you can only do so much. There’s no point in trying to help a hundred other people if it means running your own life into the ground.

5. Follow your natural rhythms. When possible, avoid the temptation to force yourself to be productive when you need to relax. Otherwise, you will end up working against yourself. Try to pay attention to your natural rhythms. When you feel like being productive, go for it. But when you feel the need for some down time, don’t hold yourself back. Doing nothing is not a crime, sometimes it is essential.

Is increasing your productivity increasing your happiness?

If you’re getting more done, but not making more time for the things you want to do, something is wrong. The point of getting things done is not to have more time to get more things done. It’s to have more time for the things you truly enjoy.

If we can learn how to be more content with our level of productivity it will be easier to have a balanced view of time. Then our productivity will contribute to our happiness instead of stealing it from us. Cultivating a balanced and meaningful view of productivity can help you re-claim your time and increase your happiness.

Remember, time is not money. Time is life so spend it wisely.

How do you assess the value of your time?
Where does productivity fit into the picture?
The lines are open!

If you enjoyed this article, consider email or RSS updates!

Do you ever feel overwhelmed because you know that you could not get everything done even if your day was 72 hours long? Do you feel ripped off because you seem to spend all your time doing what needs to get done, instead of what you would like to be doing?

Three questions come to mind:
1. Is this healthy?
2. Is it balanced?
3. Can it be changed?

We all recognize the value of living a balanced life. So why is it so incredibly easy to get out of balance, and so difficult to stay in balance? Obviously, there are several contributing factors involved, and some of them are very subtle. For instance, how often do you say or think phrases like; I have to, I need to, I don’t have any choice, or I can’t because _________?

The power of self-talk

These are common phrases, but what kind of message do they send to your subconscious? You might as well say, I am being forced to do things that I don’t want to do and I am helpless to do anything about it.

It sounds harsh, I know, but that is the message that your nervous system is dealing with. You are conditioning yourself to believe that what you want to do doesn’t really matter because you are a slave to forces beyond your control.

With this kind of mentality, your life can only become more out of balance as time goes by. You will progressively lessen the importance of the things that bring you pleasure, while the list of things that must be done continues to grow.

Of course, you will try to convince yourself that as soon as I get this last project under control I will take some time for me.

But how many times have you said that? Has it ever happened?

A balanced life is one that can embrace reality!

Don’t feel like you are the only one, we all struggle with this tendency. I think it comes from convincing ourselves that we are superhuman, that somehow we can do all these things, and still make time for us.

That will probably never happen unless we make it happen! And the only way to do that is to get a more realistic view of the situation, and make some necessary changes. What kind of changes?

Accept the fact that you have a choice

The first thing we should change is the messages we send to our subconscious about the necessary activities in our life. We are not slaves because we always have a choice. Let’s look at some more empowering ways that we can represent those necessary activities to our nervous systems to support a more balanced life.

Instead of I have to or I need to, how about I choose to? As in, I choose to go to work today. Now, the tendency here is to say, No, I really do need to go to work today because I have bills to pay. That sounds logical, but the truth is, you still have a choice. How about this, I choose to go to work today because the money I make allows me to enjoy my current lifestyle.

So what’s different?

The outcome doesn’t change, you are still going to work, but now it’s what you choose to do instead of what you have to do. Instead of being helplessly pushed around by your schedule, you are doing what you choose.

You will be amazed at the difference this kind of self-talk will have on your life. Not only will it affect your stress levels and attitude, but it will also influence the way you view the things that need to be done anyway.

The practical side

Now that we have a more balanced perspective, it’s a good idea to address the way our life is organized. We need to look for ways to actually make life more manageable and less cluttered. Try this: Write down everything you plan to do so you are not trying to remember it all. I know this seems simplistic, but it will make a big difference. In fact, here are four ways writing things down will serve you.

1. Making a list will breathe reality into your schedule. In your mind, you may have a huge list of things to do today. Once you commit that list to paper, you will quickly see the need to trim things down. That’s why daily planners are so helpful; they have the day broken into time slots. This helps you control the urge to schedule more activities than time allows for.

As you get comfortable with scheduling according to reality, you can purposely leave periodic blanks. In this way, you can systematically give yourself some meaningful space throughout the day.

2. Help you focus on one thing at a time. Multitasking is largely a myth, unless you limit it to walking and chewing gum at the same time. Try to block out enough time to make significant progress on a single task without interruption. Pick one thing from your list and devote a predetermined amount of time to it before moving to something else.

3. Provide a way to make allowances for uncompleted tasks. Don’t be obsessed over getting everything done that’s on your list. There are always unexpected delays. If something doesn’t get done simply move it to the next available time slot and let it go emotionally.

4. Help you value activities that make you feel energized. Learn to schedule time to do things that you really enjoy. Write them on your list and assign them some priority. If you include pleasurable activities in your schedule you will be more productive while feeling much less stressed out.

Adopt a more relaxed view of productivity

You are not a machine and there is no reason to try to become one. Do what you can reasonably do and call it good. A balanced life is about quality, not quantity. Life is not measured solely by productivity. Take some time to reestablish your sense of balance. Once you do, it will be much easier to enjoy the whole life experience.

Do you feel like there is too much to do?
Have you been sacrificing quality for productivity?
How do you stay balanced?

If you enjoyed this article, consider email or RSS updates!

This is the second of two articles in the series Do You Need More Time? Today I am going to look at two simple time management strategies that can work together to help you create more time. The first is eliminating clutter and the second is increasing productivity through applied focus.

As basic and obvious as these two topics are, the truth is that clutter and lack of focus can be serious time thieves capable of robbing us of our most valuable and irreplaceable commodity, time. It’s happened to me and I am guessing it has also happened to you.

The burden of too much stuff

Quite often, less really is more. In this case, less clutter in our lives translates into more time for important things.  It’s amazing how much “stuff” we can accumulate because we think it will somehow contribute to our lives.

It is true that we can gain some enjoyment from our material possessions, but the more we accumulate the more likely it is to become a burden.  If we constantly accumulate without a genuine need, we can eventually find ourselves living under a cloud of confusion and stress. I realize that reducing clutter and letting go of material possessions my not seem like an effective time management tactic, but these things really can weigh you down.

Easier said than done

Admittedly, staying organized is a skill that I have not mastered.  It seems that every time I get things sorted out and organized, the experience is short-lived.  One of the problems comes from not taking a little time every day to put things away when I’m done.  This is one of those areas where a tiny time management effort can make a huge difference.

My desk is a classic example.  I’ve been known to let it get so bad that I can’t even see the wood underneath the paper piles.  Why am I telling you this? Because I understand from personal experience how clutter can eat into your time. I waste way too much time looking for things because I didn’t put them away.

Getting a grip on clutter

There’s no reason to go into great detail about this because it really comes down to common sense.  So here are a few simple steps that you can take right now.

Begin immediately to clear out material possessions that you no longer need or want. If they are useful items you can give them to a friend or donate them to a local charity. This will accomplish two things:  first, you’ll feel lighter and less cramped in your home; and you’ll also feel good about giving these items to people who can actually use them.

As far as the clutter goes, try to set aside a little time each day to tidy up.  If you do this regularly it will never get out of hand and you’ll never feel overwhelmed.  I know that after my wife reads this post she will be watching me to see if I put this suggestion into practice. We call that accountability, right?

Take breaks to increase focus and productivity

One of the best ways to gain more free time is to get more done in less time. We call this productivity and it truly is a vital key to creating more time. Distractions are like mental clutter that can derail our productivity, and there are plenty of ways to get distracted these days. Is there an effective way to eliminate this mental clutter and increase our productivity without increasing our stress levels? Absolutely!

Using applied focus sessions is a simple time management strategy I teach my coaching clients to quickly multiply their productivity. This strategy involves working for 45 minutes with total focus followed by a 15 minute focus shift. The whole process is explained in the article Using Applied Focus Sessions to Boost Productivity. There is also another version that involves 90 minutes of focused effort followed by a 30 minute focus shift. Both work extremely well.

It’s a powerful time management combo

Giving attention to these two areas of life really can give us more time. So often it’s the simple, obvious adjustments that pay the biggest dividends. What if implementing these two time management strategies gave you an extra hour or two every day? What kind of effect would that have on your life?

When we stop to consider how valuable our time really is, we are motivated to make sure we are spending it wisely. Trust me, it goes by faster than you can imagine. How foolish it would be to waste something so precious. Remember, the primary reason that time management is so important is because time is life. So in essence, time management is really life management.

How good are you at keeping clutter under control?
Do you have any personal productivity tips to share with us?
The lines are open!

Here’s the link to part 1 in case you missed it:
Do You Need More Time? Part 1

If you enjoyed this article, consider email or RSS updates!

Time is the most valuable commodity any of us has, so it is appropriate that we examine ways to use time management to make the most of the time available to us.

Think about it. Unlike other commodities, time is something we all get in equal measure. Every living person gets exactly 24 hours a day, no more and no less. Regardless of our economic, social or intellectual status, whether we are old, young or somewhere in between, we are allotted the same amount of hours per day and that cannot be changed.

Why am I emphasizing this point?

Of all the feedback that comes my way from clients, newsletter subscribers and blog visitors, the one question I here most often is, “how can I get more done in a day?” That’s a time management question if I ever heard one. Here are a few partial quotes, “…trying to do everything all at once,” “… getting overwhelmed by committing to too many things,” and, “there never seems to be enough time.” Do you ever feel that way?

With the ever-increasing demands being put on our time and energy, it’s no wonder that people feel overwhelmed. So, how can we deal with it?

Take a realistic approach to time management

There are a few simple strategies I can suggest that will provide a measure of relief. To keep things realistic though, we need to remember that there actually is a limit to what can be accomplished in 24 hours. Nobody gets a 25-hour day, so with that in mind, let’s acknowledge that limiting the number of things we try to pack into a day is a necessary skill we would all do well to develop.

If we habitually spread ourselves too thin, we will be unable to accomplish anything effectively. This just adds to the problem, and increases the pressure we feel to get more done. Avoid this trap by learning to set reasonable limits and focusing on the task at hand.

Now that we’ve acknowledged that we are working within certain limits beyond our control, we see the need for some effective time management skills. With that in mind, let’s examine some areas where we do have a measure of control.

5 ways to improve our use of time

1) Decide which activities will get top priority.
2) Limit distractions and clutter that rob you of energy.
3) Schedule brief but refreshing breaks.
4) Tweak your perception of time.
5) Simplify your life.

Notice that our list starts with the basics.  That’s because if we don’t get the basics right, the rest really doesn’t matter.

3 high priority items that you should never ignore

1) Sleep. Never make the mistake of sacrificing sleep to get other things done.  Your body, your mind, and your emotions all require adequate sleep in order to function properly.  If you don’t like the way you are feeling physically, mentally, or emotionally, take an honest look at your sleep patterns.  If there’s a problem or a lack, make the needed adjustments. Proper time management in this area means making the time to get sufficient sleep.

2) Nutrition.  If you’re living on coffee and fast food, adjustments are in order.  Yes, it takes more time to properly nourish your body, but the time spent is an investment that pays dividends all day long.

3) Exercise.  The human body was not created to sit in a chair all day.  Find some form of exercise that you can realistically commit to and make it a habit.  Spend at least 15 to 20 minutes a day, five days a week in some form of activity that gets your blood flowing and your mind away from work. This is one of the easiest areas to ignore and that’s why it needs to become a priority.

Adequate sleep, nutrition and exercise, play a vital role in your mental clarity, energy levels, productivity, and overall outlook on life.  Make them your first priority if you want to perform at peak levels. Remember, time management means making time for the things that matter most.

Is it important or just masquerading as urgent?

Another important distinction we need to make when setting priorities is to understand the difference between things that seem to be urgent (but aren’t), and things that are important.  Life is full of fake emergencies, and it’s quite possible to spend all your time dealing with them.

The problem with this scenario is, at the end of the day you don’t feel like you’ve accomplished anything.  That’s because you haven’t done anything that makes a long-term difference in the quality of your life or moves you closer to your goals.  In other words you haven’t taken time to do what’s important because you’ve been too busy doing what seemed to be urgent but wasn’t. This is one of those areas where time management requires discernment.

Keep your priorities straight

These days the overwhelming sense of hurry, hurry, hurry is easily confused with genuine urgency. Such demands can easily take control of our lives.  If we let that happen, we will never feel like we have the time to take care of our mental, physical, or emotional health.  Time is not money, time is life. That’s why it is so important to keep our priorities straight.

The only way to truly master your time is to organize your schedule each day so that you can spend the majority of time doing what is really important rather than what is merely masquerading as urgent.

Do low priority activities ever dominate your day?
Have you ever sacrificed your health because you felt rushed?
The lines are open!

If you enjoyed this article, consider email or RSS updates!

In part 2 we’ll look at how distractions and clutter rob us of our time,
and will consider some ways we can gain the upper hand.

Have you ever felt that you are so busy trying to keep up with your life that you just can’t get anything done?

Do you find yourself constantly putting things off because you just don’t have enough time to do it all?

Have you experienced the lack of progress that comes from never getting to the things that would make a real difference in your life?

Let the 80-20 rule work for you

There is a general principle that many business people are aware of called the Pareto Principle or 80-20 Rule. The premise is that you get 80% of your results from 20% of your efforts. This principle seems to apply to just about every area of life. 

In sales, it’s the top 20% of your customers that create 80% of your income. In relationships, it’s the first 20% of the time you spend with a person that reveals 80% of their personality.

In the case of personal development, you will get the biggest gains in the beginning – 80% of your results will come from the first 20% of your effort.

Put more focus where it will have the biggest impact

What is the real difference between those whose performance is average and those who excel? The ones who excel are those who focus more of their time and effort developing the abilities that have the greatest impact on their life.

That’s why we expect professionals to be more accomplished. And as it turns out, 80% of business is done by the best 20% in any given field.

The best 20% of all doctors will make 80% of all the money paid to doctors. The best 20% of all the books published account for 80% of all book sales. The most popular 20% of all musicians get 80% of the money spent on concert tickets and CD sales.

Make it work for you!

So here’s the application – If you want to get the best results from your efforts in life, you need to focus your time accordingly. Why not structure your life so you can take advantage of the 80-20 rule?

Why are some couples happier than others? Obviously, there are a variety of factors that come into play here, but the bottom line is this. The people involved in those relationships have put forth the effort to develop their communication skills and their efforts have paid off.

Those with the best relationship skills tend to have the best relationships. It is very likely that if you were to calculate the percentages, the 80-20 Rule would apply.

Develop the needed skills

For the most part, we all understand that the better we are at what we do, the greater the results we will get from our efforts. But, here’s another important point that people tend to overlook.  When you’re really good at what you do, you can do much less and still get the same results.

Now I need to ask, why would you want to spend 40 hours a week earning a living if you could generate the same income in just 5 hours? Why spend months trying to work through a relationship problem if you can develop the skills to do it in a day?

Multiply you results and get more free time

Would you rather spend your life struggling for every inch of progress or put your time and energy where it can do the most good? We all have “other things” we would like to do if we just had the time and money.

Why not take the time to figure out which areas of your life really matter and which ones are just consuming your valuable time. Once you clearly understand the difference, learn the life skills that will allow you to leverage the 80-20 rule.

Life is full of unnecessary busy work and distractions. How much better would your life be if you could spend most of your time and energy doing the things that really matter to you?

What kind of busy work is consuming your time?
What skills would enable you to better leverage your efforts?
The lines are open!

Did you enjoy this article? Why not sign up for email or RSS updates!

Time seems to be an issue for almost everyone. We all have a lot of things that we need to get done, but many of them have absolutely nothing to do with what is truly important in our lives. With so many demands on our time these days it’s easy to feel like we are losing control.

Do you ever feel as if you are going through life without really experiencing it? Could you benefit from some practical time management tips?

Of course, we all like to tell ourselves that the situation is only temporary. We like to think that eventually life will slow down and we will have more time to focus on the things that really matter. That can happen, but it won’t happen by accident. Time itself will not slow down and demands on our time will not go away. If we want the situation to change, it’s going to be up to us to change it. These time management tips are designed to help you do exactly that.

Taking control of your time

Before we can make more time for the things that really matter in life, we first need to identify what those things are. We need some clarity. We need to have a real grasp of our own values and goals. We also need to know which activities are most important to us. Once we understand what is truly important, we can organize our time accordingly. All the time management tips in the world won’t help us until we know where to put our priorities.

When looking at our own priorities we might think of our personal values as a giant umbrella that everything else fits under. Our goals are like steps that we take to reinforce those values. High-priority activities would be the specific actions that help us reach our goals.

When our goals harmonize with our values, and our activities contribute to achieving those goals,  life becomes more unified and harmonious. This doesn’t mean that we won’t spend large amounts of time taking care of  “necessary things.” But it will change what qualifies as “necessary” and how much time we spend in different pursuits. As in every other aspect of life, balance is the key.

20 time management tips for creating more time

Once we’ve decided what’s really important to us we still need some practical suggestions to help us organize our time more efficiently. That’s the purpose of the following 20 time management tips.

1. List your priorities for each day. In order to avoid getting sidetracked and distracted, we need to know which activities deserve the lion’s share of our focus each day. The only way to stay on track is to write these things down according to their order of importance. Once an item is completed, check it off and move on. Unfinished items get carried over to the next day’s list.

2. Synchronize your calendars. If you have a calendar in your computer, a daily planner, a wall calendar, and a handheld device, they all need to say the same thing. Obviously, too many calendars and planners can lead to unnecessary confusion. So, try to get by with one, or, if that’s not possible make sure that they are all synchronized.

3. Each project needs an action plan. There is always a most efficient sequence of steps for every project. To save time and effort we need to identify what that sequence is and follow it. Before beginning any project try to identify this sequence and write it down.

4. Schedule the most important tasks first. If you tackle your most important tasks first it will be much easier to find time for less important ones. If you allow yourself to get sidetracked on unimportant tasks or busywork, chances are you will never get to the things that really matter.

5. Set realistic goals. The greater control you have over a goal the better your chance of reaching it. For example, you have more control over increasing your skill at a certain job than over becoming president of your company. One of the keys to success is creating realistic goals that can be achieved in a reasonable amount of time.

6. You can’t do everything, live with it! Focus on activities that yield important results. For other activities that simply need to be done, see if you can spend less time on them. It may be possible to put some of these off for days, or even weeks, while you focus on the things that really matter. Assign as much time as possible to the activities that contribute the most to reaching your goals.

7. Keep track of your time. To find out where your time is going, try keeping a time log for a week or two. How much time is being lost on unimportant activities? Where do most of your interruptions come from? Do they occur during certain time periods or on specific days of the week? Once you have this information it will be easier to eliminate time wasting activities along with distractions and interruptions.

8. Schedule less. If you cram too much into your schedule you will always feel rushed and frustrated, and in the end you won’t get much done. Try to be realistic about how many things you schedule into your day. An ounce of accomplishment is better than a pound of frustration.

9. Minimize interruptions. Block off portions of the day during which you are not to be interrupted unless it is an absolute necessity. Whenever possible, turn off your phone, pop-ups, instant messenger, twitter notifications, and anything else that tends to grab your focus away from the project at hand. Learn to focus on a single task.

10. Pick your time carefully. One of the keys to getting things done effectively is to schedule the most challenging work for the time of day when you are most energetic and alert. I like to do my most challenging tasks early in the day because that’s when it’s easier for me to focus. I save the mindless and mundane for later in the afternoon after the most important things have already been accomplished.

11. Do the most unpleasant tasks as soon as possible. Rather than postponing things you don’t really want to do, get them out of the way as soon as you can. Once they are done you will feel more energized and free to focus on the things you really want to do.

12. Expect the unexpected. Stuff happens, that’s just the way life is. If you schedule yourself so tight that you don’t allow for the unexpected, you dramatically raise your chances of feeling frantic throughout your day. If you need to be somewhere and you think you can make it in 15 minutes, allow 25. Leave little blocks of time throughout the day unscheduled so you have a buffer against the unexpected.

13. Use transition time to your advantage. If you commute, try to use that time for something productive. Could you find a way to listen to important information that you would normally have to read later? Have something on hand that you can do whenever you are stuck waiting. Making use of time that would normally be wasted is a simple way of creating more time for the things you want to do.

14. Apply the 80/20 rule. Generally speaking, 20% of our effort produces 80% of our results. That means that if I have a list of 10 things to do, two of those are likely to produce greater results than the other 8 put together. Try to identify which tasks really move you toward your goals and give those the priority they deserve. You will probably find that some of the lesser tasks no longer need to be done at all.

15. Avoid getting overwhelmed. We all know what overwhelmed feels like and it’s not my favorite way to feel. When you feel overwhelmed, try writing each task on its own index card. Now divide those cards into two groups. Group 1 calls for action today, group 2 calls for action tomorrow. When tomorrow comes, do the same thing.

16. Take periodic breaks. I use applied focus sessions in which I do 45 minutes of focused effort, followed by 15 minutes of something else. After 45 minutes our ability to focus begins to taper off and we no longer perform optimally. I use those 15 minutes for walking around, getting a drink, answering phone calls, or anything else that distracts me from the task at hand. This is often when my best ideas come to mind and I end up feeling re-energized and ready to make things happen.

17. Think on paper. When you feel stuck, write the problem down. Describing the problem on paper will help you sort it out. Now, make a list of as many solutions as you can possibly think of. Chances are, you’ve just solved your problem.

18. Don’t be a perfectionist. In all honesty, I struggle with this one. I can spend endless amounts of time trying to get something just exactly perfect. Don’t spend 90% of your time trying to make a 3% improvement. It’s important that we know when it is time to move on to the next activity. Learn to let good be good enough.

19. Ready, fire, aim. Sometimes the best approach is to just start working on the project. Don’t get too weighed down planning every little detail and end up never getting started. Once you start working you will discover what needs to be done. Even if you wind up having to backtrack a little bit, you will still be ahead of the game because you are taking action instead of waiting.

20. Be flexible. These are only suggestions; they are not hard and fast rules. Experiment, find out what works for you personally, don’t be afraid to customize the ideas to fit your individual circumstances and needs. Some of these may work for you and some of them may not, but you’ll never know until you give them a try.

Time is valuable

The most valuable component of life is time. You’ve heard it said that time is money, the truth is – time is life and more time means more life. It’s the most valuable thing we have. If we learn to have a balanced view of how we use our time, life can be both enjoyable and productive.

Two additional articles I want to recommend that dovetail nicely with this information are: 13 Ways To Improve Your Concentration With a Distraction Free Work Environment by Sid Savara, and 33 Ways To Overcome Frustration by Dragos Roua

If applying some of these time management tips allows you to gain just one free hour a day, that would be the equivalent of getting more than two free weeks of life every year. See, we really can create more time.

Do you have a favorite time management tip to share?
Do you feel that your time is being squeezed by increasing demands?
The lines are open!

If you enjoyed this article, consider email or RSS updates!

We are all aware that many people feel that we must be careful when focusing on money or affluence or abundance… that in the pursuit of those things, there is danger. If you pursue money and affluence to the exclusion of other values in life, you have lost, not won.

However, let’s consider this question: If you could do better financially, should you? In the time you have allotted to labor, economics, success, achievement, productivity, the creation of value, the development of skills and creativity, if you could do better, should you?

I believe one of the greatest satisfactions of living life to the fullest is doing the best you can with whatever you have. Doing anything less than your best has a way of eroding the psyche. We are creatures of enterprise. Life seems to say to us, “Here are the raw materials — your creativity, and 24 hours to use it. What splendid things can you produce?”

Work Smarter

It’s an obvious — yet often overlooked — truth: rich people have 24 hours a day. And, poor people have 24 hours a day.

The difference between the rich and the poor is in the management of that time. Successful people often work harder and longer than most, but they almost always work smarter.

If we get more from ourselves, if we can make an hour as valuable as 10 hours used to be, we can get as much done in a day as we used to get done in a week. Imagine the potential compounding effect of working smarter.

By practicing a few simple disciplines every day, you can use time like the rich — with focus and effectiveness.

1. Run the day or it will run you. Part of the key to time management is staying in charge. Some will be masters of their time, and some will be servants. Enterprising people become the masters of their time.

To master your time, you must have clear written goals for each day that you keep with you at all times. It helps to create each day’s list the night before. Prioritize your goals for the day and constantly review them.

2. Don’t mistake activity for productivity. You probably know some people who always seem to be busy being busy. To be successful, you must be busy being productive. Some people are going, going, going, but they’re doing figure eights. They’re not making much progress. Don’t mistake activity for productivity, movement for achievement. Evaluate the hours in your days, and see if there is wasted time that you could manage better.

3. Focus. The third key to time management is good concentration. You’ve got to zero in on the job at hand. This is easier said than done. Concentration takes a lot of discipline. It takes discipline to demand privacy, to not react to the minor activities that try to demand your attention, such as new emails and ringing phones.

If you have a long list of things to get done within one day, do the toughest one while your concentration is at its peak. If you’re a morning person, get the job done in the morning. Don’t wait until the evening when your energy is all spent. Do the jobs that need the most concentration when your body is best able to handle them.

One of the greatest enemies of this sort of concentration is worry. Worrying about your future can prevent you from being where you are right now. We all have worries, and they are useful. But, don’t let worry distract you. Stay focused on changing what you can change — that is the only true way to overcome the source of your worry anyhow.

How could you better leverage your time?
Does  busy ever interfere with your ability to get things done?
The lines are open!

If you enjoyed this article, consider email or RSS updates!

All of a sudden Time management information is pouring into my life and that’s good because it is one of my greatest challenges. Let’s talk about time and its relationship to life and success.

Imagine there was a bank that credited your very own account each morning with a large sum of money. But, it carried over no balance from day to day. Every evening it deleted whatever part of the balance you failed to use during the day. What would you do? Draw out all of it, of course!

Each of us has such a bank. Its name is Time. Every morning, it credits you with 86,400 seconds. Every night it writes off, as lost, whatever of this you have failed to invest to good purpose. It carries over no balance. It allows no overdraft.

Each day it makes a new deposit for you. Each night it burns the remains of the day. If you fail to use the day’s deposits, the loss is yours. There is no going back. There is no drawing against the “tomorrow.” You must live in the present on today’s deposits. So you must invest it so as to get from it the utmost in health, happiness, and success!

Time is a truly mysterious quantity. When you are enjoying yourself, it flies past; when you are waiting for a bus, it drags by – isn’t that true? But time is the stuff from which our dreams are crafted. We must first have our dream, of course, but then our actions cause our dreams to become reality – and our actions are subject to the constraints of time.

Everyday you are blessed with a fresh 24 whole hours to do what you please. If you invest it wisely, you will turn your dreams into reality; if you squander this precious resource, you will forever be just a dreamer.

It’s impossible to dispute the value of  this unique commodity. Here’s a great quote from Carl Sandburg:

Time is the coin of your life. It is the only coin you have,
and only you can determine how it will be spent.
Be careful lest you let other people spend it for you.

PS. Developing a Mindset for Success can help you make the best use of your time.