Time is what you make not what you have got. “I haven’t got time” becomes “I’m not making the time” becomes “I am going to make the time”. If you are in full employment you will almost certainly have been subjected to a Time Management course at some point. I have attended a few throughout my career.
Those courses made virtually no difference in my life. So here I am sharing what experience has taught me; create a daily “to-do” list (a new one every day). This can help you achieve the goals you set.
A daily to do list
Forget all that urgent and important stuff. If it is on the list it needs to be done. First thing every morning I make a list of what I would like to achieve during the day.
I rarely achieve everything on the list. I have learned its unrealistic to expect to do that. However, knowing what needs to be done helps me feel more in control and less likely to be overwhelmed. If it doesn’t get done today it goes on the list for tomorrow. I use two steps in the production of my list which might help you.
Step 1: Write everything that needs to be done without giving any consideration to its importance, urgency or the effort which might be involved in tackling it.
Step 2: I review the list and highlight the issues which really need to get done and I just start working them. Putting a line through them when they are completed is very satisfying. Seeing six or seven crossed off verges on fun!
I do what needs to be done – which means I don’t just do the easy stuff because I know that my natural inclination is to avoid the difficult stuff. If you are avoiding it, it is probably important!
Give yourself a Break
I read somewhere that people who are happy with their use of time are more likely to be people who take time out for themselves. I do. What time do you make for yourself?
A few years ago I met a guy who had a fantastic business idea. There was no doubt in my mind that this guy had a winning idea. If he could get it off the ground, he would be very wealthy. His problem was he was in full-time employment and he told me “I just don’t have time to make this happen”. At that point I knew he would never succeed.
There is no easy way in business. You need to make sacrifices to make it work. That means late nights, early mornings, weekends.
In my own business, I worked 70 hours a week for the first few years. I often joked that I was working 399 days a year. Yes, I know, there are only 365 days in a year – but every day is 24 hours and if you work for a client for 7½ hours and then work for someone else for another four you will have worked almost a day and a half in the day.
Work it out, If you are prepared to work a six-day week and 11 hours a day, and take no holidays (52 weeks) you have 457.6 working days available. And even if you work a 40 hour week you would have 201.6 days available to build your business. Simples.
Time is not what you’ve got – it’s what you make
You will find time if you have the motivation. If you’re not finding time, then it’s because you don’t have the motivation. So examine your motivations.
Need help managing your time?
A LifeDesign™ could help! Get started by downloading our FREE eBook; LifeDesign™ for Beginners. It will help you as you take your first steps on your life planning journey. You can find out more about LifeDesign™ here.
all our downloads are in PDF format and will work on any device