It's true that what we focus on tends to expand. When we watch the clock, time moves at its slowest pace. However, when we are conscious of what actions, tasks, and activities we give out time to, we have more of it. If you don’t know how your time is spent, keep a time log for one week. Track how much time you spend on each activity throughout the day. Once the week is done and your notes are complete, sit down and analyze how you've been spending your time and make the appropriate adjustments. You should be able to identify pockets of time that are being misused on the phone, on the internet, with non-clients, too much networking, in front of the TV, sleeping, chatting on non-relevant, etc. That’s not to say you shouldn’t be doing these things, but you do want to make sure they are not stealing valuable time.
Conduct an honest evaluation of yourself and your daily work habits. An honest reflection on your daily work habits will reveal exactly “who, what, where, when, and how” contributes to your productivity or lack thereof. Ten ways to measure your time effectiveness and efficiency, ask yourself:
- Am I being productive or just active? Know the difference.
- Am I inventing things to do to avoid the important tasks and activities?
- What are my non-negotiables? (i.e. how late am I willing to work, do I really need to attend 3 networking events a week?)
- Are you willing to train your unconscious with new techniques? If I keep doing what I’ve been doing, I’ll keep getting what I’ve been getting.
- It takes longer not to write things down than to write them down. My plans, goals and activities don’t need to be complicated, but they need to be written. That which is written, gets measured.
- What have I learned and am I willing to correct what needs to be corrected? This should include mistakes that should not be repeated. Get it right and move along. Time allocated to actually serving clients earns money. Time allocated to administrating and soliciting clients, costs and money.
- What am I currently doing? What actions have worked? Not worked? - Detail the effectiveness of specific tasks. Did each task achieved do what was intended to support the larger goal? Detail actions taken that did not provide the expected benefits.
- What progress has been made, if any, by my current system? Does this system work for me? Does it meet my needs?
- What adjustments to my plan are necessary for maximum results? What can I plan to do differently? What should I do less of, more of, and what should I stop doing altogether?
- What should I add to my plan that I now realize is missing?
These questions used to measure your effectiveness are critical to not only establishing a functional system, but getting rid of time consuming, non-revenue generating activities and maximizing your work efforts; while strengthening your business. And finally:
- Deal with procrastination – “what if I do it, what if I don’t”
- Establish a standard starting format
- Plan and schedule
- Delegate and trade
- Break down projects
- Set and calendar deadlines
- Consolidate like tasks (i.e. return calls, checking phone/mails, emailing/filing, answering letters, sorting)
Submitted by A.Michelle Blakeley, Simplicity, Inc. Founder/CEO. Simplicity, Inc. is a multi-faceted business development and support service. We design the best use of your time, energy and resources with our superior virtual business organization and customized one-page business action plans. We are a boutique business and only work with a small select group of clients at a time to ensure they are rejuvenated, focused and experience structured professional and personal growth in 60 days or less. We are confident we can help you expand your capacity to attract and service more clients. For additional information, please visit: http://amichelleblakeley.wordpress.com/ or http://www.addinghourstoyourday.com/
