“Either Run the Day or the Day Runs You”
-John Rohn
Have you ever been uber-busy all day long, frantic, running from one task to another and, at the end of the day, had someone ask you what you did that day – only to rack your brain and not be able to come up with one item of significance? The day has just run you.
Wouldn’t it be wonderful, instead, to:
- End your day feeling calm, on purpose, and being able to clearly state at least one major accomplishment for the day?
- End your work day and not give another thought to business until the start of the next work day?
- Actually find MORE time in your day? Time for health, fun, other meaningful priorities?
Using my 3 step Finding Freedom through Finding Time (plus some Secret Sauce) process, you WILL make this happen!
STEP 1: IDENTIFY YOUR TOP PRIORITIES
[Side note: We are talking business here but you may just as easily go through this process with all aspects of your life.]
What is the most important use of your time? So often people are not clear here and have to give this thought. How can you know how to best spend your time and NOT waste it, if you are not clear on your own priorities?
Right now, with your work, what is your top priority in your business? Let’s just consider for this current quarter.
- Do you need to improve some aspect of your products or services – what you are offering, it’s quality, the way it is packaged or priced?
- Do you need to optimize some aspect of your operations – find better work space, utilize better equipment or technology, develop systems to ensure your business runs more smoothly, or bring in people to assist you?
- Are your marketing activities stale? Do you need to reassess the way you market, try new methods, or be more consistent?
- With end of year coming, do you need to get your finances in order – make sure all income/expenses are tracked, deductions itemized, accounts receivable cleared?
- Are you as productive during your workday/workweek as you can be or our tweaks needed to your schedule or time management systems?
- What else may be a top priority in your business for you right now?
Now that you’ve figured that top priority out – are you giving it the time and attention it needs?
STEP 2: WHERE ARE YOU “LEAKING” TIME
What are your primary time wasters? Where do you find yourself drifting toward when you’re not focused on your top priorities?
- Social media mindless scrolling
- Checking email way too frequently
- Busy work
- Non-income generating work when you haven’t yet focused on the income generating
- For those working at home:
- TV
- Cleaning/laundry
- Food!
- Working on other activities but to the detriment of your main priority
None of these alone is “bad”. In fact, many are necessary. They become time wasters, though, when they interfere with or take place before your most important priorities.
What is it for you? What is your #1 biggest time leak?
Once identified, how will you reduce or eliminate this obstacle? Consider:
- Only checking social media or emails at certain times of the day
- Doing this activity only as a reward following completion of an important task
- Scheduling time for this activity separate from (and ideally after) working on priority work
- Developing systems to streamline less important work activities so they do not take as much time – or delegating these activities to someone else
What one step will you take to reduce or eliminate your time waster?
STEP 3: CREATE TIME FOR PRIORITIES
There are multitudes of time management tools out there, most of which are probably familiar to you. There is no one-size-fits-all solution. Different methods work better for different people. Shared below are methods that have worked for many of my clients. See if one appeals to you.
- Categorize work activities and develop a time-blocked schedule. This can be as simple as blocking time in your calendar for “non-income generating” work and “income generating”. I block my time into 5 categories: client work, services development/improvement, operations, marketing, finances, and personal management. What categories might work for you?
- “Eat that frog” concept: Do your #1 priority first thing in the day
- Systematize. Create standard operating procedures for frequently done tasks. This will provide a streamlined checklist for yourself and/or for others to whom you may delegate these tasks down the road
- Get help! Hire an employee or contractor to assist
- Eliminate tasks where possible
DON’T FORGET THE SECRET SAUCE
“Rest is not idleness.
It is the key to a better life.”
-Alex Soojunk-Kim Pang
Author of Rest: Why You Get More Done When You Work Less
Quality rest is the basis for everything!! While this often means good sleep, rest also includes: taking breaks or naps, meditating, doing restorative stretching or yoga, reading journaling. Any of these can help people feel more energized, awake and productive.
Are you getting the rest you need?
Put these steps together:
Step 1: Identify the priorities
Step 2: Identify the time leakers – and reduce/eliminate them
Step 3: Create time for priorities
Secret Sauce: Rest
🌟 Now – IMAGINE – what will it be like to have taken control over the time in your day? How will your business change? How will your life change?🌟
🏆What one step will you take today to help yourself
Find Freedom through Finding Time?🏆
For additional resources, tools, and actual client stories of having used this process, enjoy the video of a Finding Freedom through Finding Time Masterclass I recently ran: