Many people complain that they do
not have enough time and can never get caught up. I want to share something
with you that you might not expect.
“You will never have enough time for
everything no matter how hard you try.”
BEING BUSY IS A GOOD THING
As long as you are in the
workforce, work will keep coming your way. If you are adding any value at all
to your business, every time you walk through the door of your workplace a new challenge
will be waiting. The first step to time management is to accept that you will
never get everything done and embrace it as symptom of success rather than a
symbol of failure or poor performance.
People who are always caught up
and not busy at work usually become redundant fairly quickly and you don’t want
to be one of those.
MANAGE YOUR TIME
In order to better manage your
time for maximum efficiency, you must understand and admit to yourself that the
problem is not a shortage of time...it is ineffective use of time!
The most successful people manage
their time effectively, and then take action to accomplish more every day. Good time managers have a laser-sharp focus
on their work and an abundance of energy to get it done.
If you are constantly distracted
from your work by outside, intervening forces, you will never manage your time
effectively.
If you are lacking in energy and
find your work to be drudgery or just too much to handle, you will never get
ahead.
When you are often pulled away
from the task at hand you will find yourself in a constant state of crisis
management which can lead to misdirected action and burnout. If everything
around you seems to be going wrong, you need to evaluate why you are being
distracted from your real work. It could be that you are being affected by old
prejudices, bad influences from co-workers or a lack of clear direction.
Anything that distracts you from your primary tasks must be eliminated if you
want to enjoy good time management.
If you find yourself having
constant interruptions from co-workers or family members that are not directly
related to your immediate task, ask them to wait until a more appropriate time.
I must repeat that time management requires focus and you cannot focus if you
are paying more attention to other people than you are to your own job.
KEEP YOUR ENERGY LEVELS UP
If you find yourself being
regularly short of energy, you must evaluate what is causing it, and then do
something about it.
Low energy levels can be physiological or
emotional. I would recommend that if you are tired all the time, you talk your
doctor to rule out any sort of medical condition. If your health is good and
you are still lacking in energy, you need to consider whether your lethargy is
a result of family matters, personal problems, or a lack of engagement in your
work.
When you have low energy levels
and low focus, you will procrastinate and show up in body alone. You will
hesitate to take initiative to get things done...often until it is too late. It
is possible that your procrastination is a result of having little or no belief
in your own abilities, perhaps you have a fear of failure, or maybe you have
had a negative experience in the past which is preventing you from taking
action. No matter what is causing your procrastination, you must push past it
because it is one of the greatest killers of good time management there is.
DISENGAGEMENT IS A KILLER
Disengagement can be identified
by liberal displays of apathy, excuses and cynicism.
People who do not enjoy their jobs tend to
fall into negative moods which prevent them from enjoying their work. When that
happens they will do what my Mom would call “busy-work.” In other words they
will do all sorts of unnecessary, ineffective things in order to avoid the
important, pressing issues before them. Disengagement is one of greatest killers
of time management.
If you are not engaged in your
work, you must determine why. Some
causes of disengagement include, (but are not limited to) feeling
unappreciated, believing you are overworked or not being paid enough to make
ends meet. If any of those things apply to you, there is a good chance that
your energy levels are low. If that is the case, you need to make some changes
in your workplace situation in order to recharge your batteries and bring your
energy levels back to where they should be. That might include speaking with
your boss about your concerns and working out a plan for improvement.
FOCUS, FOCUS, FOCUS
Without energy, you cannot have
focus.
So, why do you need focus? When
you have focus you:
ð
Are not prone to radical emotional reactions.
ð
You are less likely to become distracted by
unimportant things.
ð
You place full attention on truly meaningful
things.
ð
You are better able to manage your time.
Once your energy levels are up
and you are able to focus on your work, your life will improve immeasurably.
Time management is not about the
clock or too much work...Time management is all about you!
All
the Best
Wayne
Kehl