One of the most common time wasters is procrastination.

Whenever I ask an audience to make a list of their top ten time wasters, they inevitably put “procrastination” on their list. Realizing that, let’s plan to talk about procrastination tomorrow.

Sound OK to you?

Leverage helps you make your minutes count.

You and I both know that we have a lot to do every single day. We also know that the amount we can accomplish is limited. Even when knowing this, most people get so hurried and overwhelmed that they forget the principle of leverage – leveraging your time!

Here’s what I mean: Picture a triangle!

Now please write the word “Administrator” in the lower left hand corner of the triangle and jot the number “40” next to the word “Administrator” to show the number of hours an administrator might handle for you (if you hired an administrator).

Next, please put the word “Sales” in the lower right hand corner of the triangle and jot the number “40” next to the word “Sales” to show the number of hours a sales rep might handle for you (if you hired a sales rep).

Now put your name at the top of the triangle and write the number “40” next to your name to show the number of hours most people work in a typical week.

Ok, please now notice that the triangle is showing you that if you hire an administrator and a sales rep, both of whom work 40 hours for you, you end up getting 120 hours of results for yourself in your 40 hour workweek.

This is the power of leverage, which is so often overlooked.

I’m not telling you that you need an administrator or sales person. I am suggesting that if you do indeed hire two people (or even one person) to do some of the lesser value items you’re now handling yourself, you’ll be leveraging your time and getting more done in your day – and in your week.

Realize also that, if you hire one or two people to do the lesser value items you’re now taking care of yourself, you can pay the people you hire a fraction of your own rate, thereby helping you get full dollar value for the time you yourself invest in your week.

Leverage helps you get more done in your day and more value for your own time — and it’s worth remembering this and implementing it whenever you can.

Does this make sense to you?

A “Portable Desk” helps you make your minutes count.

When I was being interviewed on Vern Moter’s “Practical Advisor” nationwide radio program over the weekend, a caller named Angel called the show and said he needed help.

Angel said he is in the apparel business and that he had just moved to Alabama where he and his family are now living, yet his job is in Minnesota. Angel explained that, because he now must fly back and forth between his new home and his job, he is forgetting things, stressing, and accidently letting things slip through the cracks. He asked me if I could suggest anything that might help him.

I asked Angel if he had any kind of portable organizing device, paper or electronic. He said he did not. I then suggested that it’s important for him to immediately get an organizing device that he can carry with him at all times.

I told Angel that it doesn’t matter to me which organizing device he chooses (Franklin Planner, iPhone, Blackberry, Palm, or whatever), but that I suggest he look at his new organizer as a “portable desk.”

I pointed out that, if Angel carries this “portable desk” with him wherever he goes, he’ll have a trusted place where he can put his notes, ideas, to-do list, projects, etc. and, thus, he can plan, create, and make decisions wherever he is: at home, at the office, or on an airplane.

I’m writing about the conversation I had with Angel to suggest that you do the same thing. If you don’t have a portable organizer, get one as soon as you can.

I wrote about PDAs in a previous post on this blog. (See “How to Make Time for You-#7.)

When you have a portable organizer (I use an iPhone which I love), you can start getting better use of your time and you can get things done wherever you are. (Example, I was the 48th person in line for a flu shot yesterday so, while waiting in the long line, I was able to check the email on my iPhone and write these words for the blog you’re now reading.)

A portable organizer will help you plan, make decisions, save time, and reduce your stress.

Does this make sense to you?

Keep prioritizing simple!

Prioritizing is crucial to your daily success so here are some tips for prioritizing quickly in these fast-moving, turbulent times. I’m listing several methods here so you can choose the one that fits you best.

Before you do any prioritizing, realize that you’re better off when you make a written list of your tasks in advance, so you can look at them objectively. If you don’t do that, you’ll be trying to prioritize in your head – and with all of today’s pressure and last minute changes — you’re apt to get sidetracked by emotions and the stress of “urgent.” You don’t want that, so sure to always make a written list – in advance!

Once you have a written list there are a number of ways you can prioritize. Let’s call these ways “methods.”

Method #1: Use A’s and B’s

This is the procedure I described in detail in my book, “Get Your Ducks in A Row!”

Look a your written list and put the letter “A” to the left of those items on your list that are items you absolutely have to do on that given day. Then put the letter “B” to the left of the items that you’d like to do that day, but which, if you get in a jam, you could move them to another day.

When you do this, you’ll notice that you have a lot of “A” priorities, so put the number “1” as a footnote to the right of the most important “A” priority (A1). Put the number “2” as a footnote to the right of the second most important “A” priority (A2) and keep moving forward with the number 3, 4, 5, (A3, A4, A5). so you end up with a prioritized list.

Now, whenever you look at your list, you’ll now be able to focus on your most important priority first: (A1) and, when you’ve accomplished it, move on to A2, etc.

When you follow this method, you’ll find you reach your goals faster because you’re focusing on your key priorities.

Method #2: Use 1’s and 2’s

Method #1 (described above) works perfectly with a paper organizer (Franklin Planner, Daytimer, etc.) If you use an electronic organizer, however, you’ll note that it (PC or Mac) doesn’t have A’s and B’s in the areas where you make lists. It does have numbers, however, so use the numeral “1” for what you’d call an “A” priority in Method #1 (described above) and the numeral “2” for the “B” priorities (described in Method 1).

Get “Act” or “Outlook” software to help you prioritize with numbers on your PC. Get “Things” or “Remember the Milk” to help you prioritize on a Mac.

If you use a portable organizer (Blackberry, iPhone, or Palm), you can connect your Blackberry or Palm to your PC using “Act” or “Outlook” and then you can manage your priorities on the move. Likewise, if you use a Mac, consider “Remember the Milk,” “Toodledo,” “FCTasks by Franklin Covey or “Things” (described below). Each of these Mac programs has an Ap that can connect your iPhone with your Mac.

No matter what electronic device you use, you’ll quickly discover that you accomplish your goals faster by focusing on your “1” priorities first. That’s what matters most.

Method #3: “Green Time & “Red Time

Robert Krietel, best-selling author and professional speaker, recommends to clients that they with put their tasks in time blocks, which he suggests they call “Red time” and “Green time.” He defines “Green Time tasks” as those that promote value (i. e. call a client, follow through on customer matter, etc.) and that “Red Time tasks” are items that are “Bureaucratic” in nature (write report, check e-mail, etc.).

If you choose this method, it’s obvious that you’ll make better progress towards your goals when you focus on accomplishing the “Green Time tasks” first.

Method #4: $5,000 tasks & $5 tasks

My friend, Steven Iwersen, (http://www.steveniwersen.com/), a professional speaker, says that after he has made a list of all his tasks, he determines which ones are his “$5,000 tasks” and which ones are “$5 tasks.”  He says that the “$5,000 tasks” are the ones he knows will bring him the most value in his day (i.e. talk with prospect, update brochure, write proposal) and that his $5 tasks are the ones that bring him the least amount of value (check e-mail, file papers), etc.

If you choose Steven’s method, it’s obvious that you’ll reach your goals faster if you concentrate on your “$5,000 tasks” first.

Method #5: Mac & iPhone

If you’re an Mac User and if you use an iPhone (I use a Mac and an iPhone), you might want to get the software called “Things” which is described at www.culturedcode.com.

This software helps you list all your ideas, tasks, and projects in visible and invisible categories.  Thus, each and every day you can focus only on those steps that you said you wanted to take that day, while keeping all the other items (distractions) out of sight.

Summary

If you want to conserve time and get more done, it’s important to keep your prioritizing simple. The above four methods will help do that.

Do you have a comment or a favorite method of simplifying your priorities every day? Please let me know.

Time management is much broader than most people think!

Many people think time management is a narrow subject for managing their own time. I suggest that good time management is much broader than that.

I propose that time management includes any and all management skills that help you, your team, and others “save” time. And, yes, I did say “all management skills are necessary” because, whether or not you are the manager of a group or team, you are the manager of yourself. Correct?

Please consider the following.

I went to Jiffy Lube last week. They had exceptional teamwork there and they got the job done fast. Their teamwork saved time for them – and for me. Realizing this, wouldn’t you say that the minutes that Jiffy Lube saved because of their teamwork efficiencies are minutes they can use – and minutes I can use? I sure do. Isn’t this what time management is all about?

Or, how about this?

I went to The Apple Store and they had excellent customer service. In essence, the Apple Store saved time for me – and for them. Correct? And the minutes the Apple Store saved because of their customer service efficiencies are minutes they can use – and minutes I can use too. I love those extra minutes and, to me, that’s what time management is all about.

And what about performance evaluations?

Some leaders tell me they put off giving performance evaluations for their people because they don’t have time. I say that is a misguided excuse and that they are fooling themselves with that excuse. Please think with me.

When you clarify expectations with your employees, and when you develop clear understandings with them, you save time for you – and for them. Correct? Once again, the minutes you save for you – and the minutes you save for your employees – are minutes that you — and they – can use. Isn’t this time management?

Ok, how about this?

My wife and I had breakfast at a Pancake House and my wife asked a waitress for some maple syrup. The waitress said, “Ask your own waitress.” Ok, please forget the rudeness of the waitress (terrible customer service) and realize that if the waitress had simply helped, she would have saved time for the other waitress – and for my wife. Those minutes would be minutes they could use. Thus, I say again that teamwork and customer service both are part of time management.

My point is simply this: Make your minutes count, no matter what item or person you are dealing with. To do so, please think of time management as the broad management skill it is, one that includes teamwork, performance evaluation, customer service, and leading meetings. I suggest that all of these management skills save time for you — and for others. And, boy, is it ever great to have any and all extra minutes to use in these chaotic, fast-changing times! Correct?

Does this make sense to you? Please leave a comment here.

Ask yourself, “What can you eliminate?”

When working with officials at the City of Georgetown, a very nice lady told me she was absolutely “overwhelmed” in her job. She asked me to suggest anything at all that might help her, and I responded by saying, “What can you eliminate?”

This might sound rude on my part, yet I didn’t mean it to be rude and the woman didn’t take it that way. Instead, she listed intently when I told her about the book, “The 4-Hour Workweek” by Timothy Ferris.

Mr. Ferris points out in his book that it’s crucial to keep asking, “What are the things I can eliminate?” because many of the things we work on in our days are not really that important.

Mr. Ferris puts a smile on my face when he says in his book that, “Being busy is most often a guise for avoiding the few critically important but uncomfortable actions.

He goes on by saying, “The options are almost limitless for creating “busyness”: You could call a few hundred unqualified sales leads, reorganize your Outlook contacts, walk across the office to request documents you don’t really need, or fuss with your BlackBerry for a few hours when you should be prioritizing.”

Mr. Ferris keeps the smile on my face when he says, “In fact, if you want to move up the ladder in most of corporate America, and assuming they don’t really check what you’ are doing (let’s be honest), just run around the office holding a cell phone to your head and carrying papers. Now, that is one busy employee.”

I like what Mr. Ferris says because he makes the point – very forcefully – that a lot of what we work on is not really that important.

How much better would it be for example, to first qualify the leads that will be called, to schedule a time moment to organize the contacts in Outlook, to keep the needed documents as close to you as possible (walking doesn’t just waste time, it invites interruptions), and to forget about the BlackBerry right now since there’s a key priority to accomplish?

I continually tell people that there are four key words necessary for good time management: 1) Plan, 2) Prioritize, 3) Schedule, and 4) Eliminate. The fourth word “Eliminate,” is the one that usually gets forgotten. It’s a crucial word because you can actually “eliminate” a lot of unnecessary things when you plan, prioritize, and/or schedule them.

Consider your cell phone as an example.

Pretend your phone is ringing right now. Do you really need to take that call at this moment? Knowing you receive a lot of calls, why not schedule the times of day when you’ll listen to and reply to them? Why not “eliminate” the habit of answering every call by setting up your voicemail so each caller knows when you’ll listen to and reply to your messages.

And how about all those papers on your desk?

Do you really need all those piles and papers there? Why not eliminate the ones you don’t need today or else they’ll be apt to distract you from the key priorities you need to work on.

The woman who spoke with me thanked me and said, “You know, I’m starting to realize that being “busy” is not being productive. It’s just being busy.”

I loved that comment from her.

My thought for her – and for you — is this: Eliminate what you don’t need for today by scheduling it for another time.

When you “eliminate,” it’s easier to focus on the things that get you closer to your goals. And that’s when you’ll be working at your very best.

Does this make sense to you? Please leave a comment.

Be very, very careful about multi-tasking!

In an earlier post in this blog I urged you to be careful about multi-tasking. I pointed out that “multi-tasking” is one of the hot bywords of today, yet studies by the Federal Aviation Administration, University of Michigan, and UCLA show that multi-tasking can be hazardous to your health and that it can lead to numerous physical problems and memory loss.

New studies announced by John Naish in an article on August 11 (http://bit.ly/rgioC) explains how scientists are discovering that today’s mania “for cramming everything in at once is creating a perilous cocktail of brain problems, from severe stress and rage in adults to learning problems and autism-like behavior in children.”

According to Naish’s article, these studies are made by using advances in medical-scanning technology that enable researchers to watch what happens in the brain when people try to perform more than one complex task at a time.

And, as I said previously, the news isn’t good.

What’s especially interesting in the results of the new discoveries is that multi-tasking makes us less efficient (as opposed to what most of us believe).

Naish’s article points out that researchers are discovering “the human brain doesn’t multi-task like an expert juggler. Instead, it switches frantically between tasks like a bad amateur plate-spinner. The constant effort this requires means that doing even just two or three things at once puts far more demand on our brains compared with is we did then one after another.”

And here’s a key point described in the article:

“The real problem occurs when we try to concentrate on the two tasks we are dealing with, because this then causes an overload of the brain’s processing capacity. This is particularly true when we try to perform similar tasks at the same time – such as writing an email and talking on the phone – as they compete to use the same part of the brain. As a result, your brain simply slows down.”

Naish points out that, “Multi-tasking has rapidly taken over our lives, to the point that we look woefully lax if we’re doing just one thing at a time. We think nothing of texting while also watching television, surfing the internet and talking to our family. Indeed, drug companies are busy developing products to enhance our mental efficience so we can do even more.

And, according to Professor Russell Poldrack, a psychologist at the University of California, “Humans are not built to work this way. We’re really built to focus.”

Dr. Alan Keen, a behavior scientist at Australia’s Central Queensland University, believes multi-tasking is a significant reason why we are witnessing epidemics of rage.

The article suggests that, if you must multi-task:

1) Don’t do so in the afternoon. Researchers say that post-lunch fatigue, added to the strain of multi-tasking, often causes overload, 2) Meditate – because research shows that meditation makes brains more efficient at paying attention, so there is brain power to spare when doing two tasks at once, and, 3) Practice multi-taking with simple tasks.

I’m going to add the following 3 suggestions that I made in this blog last March:

1) Prioritize your tasks. (If you prioritize properly, there’s no need to multi-task).
2) Set deadlines for each task – in advance.
3), Multi-task only with low-level activities such as listening to CDs while exercising and watching TV when cooking.

Does this make sense to you? I’d welcome your comments here.

Take care of your #1 Priority!

Three separate people asked me this week, “If you had just one Self-Management suggestion to make to me, what would your recommendation be?” My answer to all three people was the same:

“Take care of you!”

I’m now making this same recommendation to you:

Take care of you before you do anything else.

It might seem to you as if I’m suggesting that you — and the three people who asked me — be selfish in some way. Selfishness has nothing to do with my suggestion, however.

Instead, I’m saying it’s important to take care of you each and every day because you are your #1 Priority.

Please think with me.

If you aren’t sane and/or healthy, please consider how much more difficult it would be to take care of anyone — or anything — else? I say you want to be certain you are sane and healthy.

To do this:

1) Consider the time of day when you have the most energy. Is it early in the morning, maybe at noon, perhaps late in the afternoon?. Now, please make a note of that time.

2) Decide when you are the most creative. Again, is it early in the morning, at noon, or late in the day? Make a note of that time too.

Now, my thought is this.

Guard those times like they are the gold in Ft. Knox.

You might have to trade those times for your customer, or your associate, or perhaps for your family. That’s OK. What you don’t want to do is trade those times for something as ineffective as simply checking e-mail.

I propose that, when you guard your high-energy time and your creative time, you’re taking care of you.

Next, ask yourself each and every day, “When am I going to have some free time for myself?” Certainly you’ll agree that you’ll make better decisions when you are clear headed. Thus, it’s important to have some time set aside to think, reflect, pray, meditate, and/or develop a creative thought. (This doesn’t have to be a lot of time.) When you do this, you’re helping to take care of you too.

One thing’s for sure: If you haven’t reserved any time for you, you won’t get any. Certainly you’ll agree with that. Too many other things will interfere.

You have a lot to do or you wouldn’t even be reading this blog to learn some time management tips and strategies. Thus, knowing you have so many different things to do, think how essential it is for you to take care of you first.

Never forget that you are your #1 Priority and – for your own sake – I suggest that you take care of you first – each and every day — by following the above suggestions.

Does this make sense to you? Please let me know your comments.

How to save tons of time for entrepreneurs & small business owners!

In the past three weeks I’ve had the opportunity to speak at two different events, both created and developed by Mind Power, Inc. The first event I’m talking about was in Orlando as part of a program titled “Financial Prosperity,” and this week I spoke in Las Vegas at a program titled “Total Prosperity.” Both of these are exceptional programs.

Here’s why I’m telling you about these events here.

My personal mission, which I believe you know from reading this blog, is to help entrepreneurs and small business professionals make the most of the time in their days and/or in their presentations. (Those are the two subjects I spoke about in Orlando and Las Vegas.)

In Orlando and Las Vegas I wasn’t the only person who helped the audiences save time, however. The entire Total Prosperity and Financial Prosperity programs focused on doing that as well. That amazed me — and it pleased me too!

Before I go on here’s some background.

When reading this blog, you’ve undoubtedly noticed that I stay away from the terms “time management” because you can’t manage time; you can only control your portion of the time you have. And, since time management is more about “management” than it is about time, I prefer to call the subject “Self-Management.” Both audiences loved that because managing themselves successfully is the challenge that entrepreneurs have each and every day, and the audiences interacted magnificently when I delivered my “Get Your Ducks in A Row!” and “Capture the Moment” presentations at the Prosperity Alliance events.

Here’s what also happened, however.

Each key speaker led by Marshall Sylver, a highly successful entrepreneur known as “The Millionaire Maker,” covered time saving subject after time saving subject – in every aspect of the audience’s total business — from finances and legalities to specific entrepreneurial and leadership skills! And the material was exceptional (the best I’ve ever seen and heard) and taught in ways specifically designed to help each entrepreneur and small business owner in the audience (including me) avoid the most common pitfalls that business people make (and have made) when planning and growing their businesses.

The reason I’m talking about all this is that attendee after attendee said they learned more at these two events than they ever thought possible And here’s the point.

If you’re an entrepreneur and/or small business owner, I strongly suggest you check out the Prosperity Alliance programs at www.sylver.com. You’ll see – just as I discovered as a speaker for this group — that there are hundreds and hundreds of successful entrepreneurs and small business owners who have attended the Prosperity Alliance programs who will tell you that they saved months and even years of time from common mistakes and lack of information that most business owners start out with.

I am also telling you this because I’ve been in the same boat that you and other entrepreneurs are in and, even though I’m a Self-Management speaker who makes a living by teaching others how to save time and get more done, I began to see ways at the Prosperity Alliance programs to save time for my total business. I love that and, thus, I’m sharing this information with you.

Take it from me. You cannot possibly go wrong by checking out the Prosperity Alliance events. Like me (and I’m saying this with a smile), the folks there will help you save tons of time.

Have a comment? Please let me know.

Here are 2 questions to help you & your team.

When working with ABS in Houston this week, we discussed the differences in generations and the way each generation seems to have a preference for the way they like to communicate.

We agreed that:

  ”Matures” like to use Voicemail.

  ”Boomers” tend to like E-mail

  ”Gen X” like to use Text

  ”Gen Y” (Millennials) like to use social media such as FaceBook, MySpace, Twitter, and LInkedIn.

These conclusions of course are not “absolute” because there definitely are exceptions, yet even so, we agreed that there are differences in communication preferences based on age group.

Suggestion: if you work with a team that’s made up of different age groups, you’re apt to discover – just as we did — that it’s very helpful to you and your group to ask each other the following two questions:

1) What’s the best way for us to communicate?

2) What can we do to save time for each other?

When you ask these questions, you are apt to learn that even though you might like Voicemail, your team might prefer Texts. By the same token, you might like E-mall, yet your team might show you how Tweets might be more effective for the group.

The point to all of this is that by asking the above two questions, the answers can help you and the entire team, and — after all – that’s teamwork.

I say that teamwork is time management. Do you agree?

Does this suggestion make sense to you?