One of the things I used to tell myself all the time was that I didn’t have enough time.
David Allen got my thinking straightened out on this with his book, “Getting Things Done”. It’s the best book I’ve ever read on getting more done in less time in a more organized and regular fashion
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You could call it a ‘time management problem’, but David Allen would correct you and say, "No one has a time management problem. What they have as a priority management problem. Not a time management problem." We all have the same amount of time in a 24-hour day, but you've probably met somebody who got way more done in that time period than you did.
I would eliminate completely, the word track of ‘you don’t have time’.
You do have time.
If you boil it down to what you say, you’re just making excuses because you aren't efficient. It's almost like it's a socially acceptable in business to make this statement. It takes the onus off of you and puts it on something else. Start saying “I didn't make the time”. It changes the entire mindset around this concept. It changes the responsibility and the lack of excuse making.
A few hacks I’ll give you that I’ve stolen from other people (If I do them long enough, I think I invented them even though I didn't).
Take technology breaks.
I have found that I can get way more done by taking a technology break at very specific scheduled times with no email, phone, or texting. I've done other videos on this and that's just part of this process.
Get out of the office.
Get some thinking done out of the office. For me, there's something that happens when I'm in my day-to-day environment that’s really good for getting things done internally, but isn't so great at getting some of my other tasks done I need to do.
Creating time blocks.
Block off specific chunks of time for specific activities. On your calendar, mark the times for those activities, and do ONLY those activities during that time. If it's just computer work, or planning, that's the only thing that happens for that time.
Focusing on your daily crucial results.
What are the three crucial results you want to accomplish in a day? I don't know how you are, but if I don't focus on my crucial results, I'll do like 20-50 things in a day. But when I'm wrapping up my day, I realize the two or three most important things I didn't get to. Focusing on the three crucial results re-frames my day and gets rid of that time management problem that I could go back to telling myself I have.
Read the book, start time blocking, get out of the office, unplug, and focus on your crucial results. Pick one as your commitment to do in the next 30 days.
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Check out some of my recent blog posts:
The Importance Of Personal And Emotional Pain In Your Sales Process
Using Pain As A Pipeline Motivator
It's A Great Time To Be In Sales As A Chicago Sales Professional
The Importance Of Blocking Out 'Thinking Time' As A Sales Manager
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