There is never enough time to do all the things you want to do. Unless YOU take charge, others will take charge for you. The following 7 points are the foundation to good personal time management and will boost your effectivenes.
1. Have clear goals. Know what it is you want to achieve in business and in life.
2. Take time out to plan and prioritise. Focus on what you want the outcome or result to be and then plan backwards from that picture.
3. Be ruthless with time and gracious with people. Learn to say no. Remember that you’re saying ‘no’ to the request – you’re not refusing that person.
4. Dump any junk you have; paper, clothes, memberships, habits. Clear out cupboards and filing systems. Make sure you keep only what you really need. Archive the rest and, if you haven’t referred to it (or worn it in the case of clothes) for a year then the chances are you don’t need it.
5. Do you need to attend all the meetings you do? Whether they are related to work or home life make sure you know why you’re attending and what value you add. Resign from any committees or meetings which you feel you don’t need to go to.
6. Give yourself ‘time out’ – stop and reflect on what you’re doing and how you’re doing. This means that you will be better able to plan your next steps and use your limited time resource to best effect.
7. Create diary, list and filing systems which work for you. Avoid being tempted by the latest gadget; if you’re not a gadget person it won’t magically make you better at getting things done.
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