With all the distractions of modern life, time is more precious than ever. How we manage our time affects our stress levels, our enjoyment of life and jobs, and our achievements. There is much advice on the subject, with many different styles and philosophies of time management to choose from. Everyone is different, how we relate to people, how we organize and manage our lives. Finding our own rhythm and system for time management is the best way to assure we stick with it and make it work for our lives.
In Time Management Magic, Lee Cockerell, former executive vice-president, operations Walt Disney World Resort, shares his wisdom and experience. Lee grew up in a poor family and developed a good work ethic and responsibility early on. Although that early self-discipline served him well, he’s never stopped learning how to make things better.
Lee’s advice to everyone is:
“Don’t underestimate what you can achieve . . . Life is all about your attitude. You are the author of your own story. You create your own magic. The greatest job is the job you have. Give it your all, be the best at what you do and never stop learning. If you do this, when the next opportunity comes, you will be ready for it.”
Developing a Time Management System That Works for You
The reality is, we all have the same amount of hours in a day that highly successful people throughout history have had. One thing is clear, to make the most of our time, we do need some type of system, a method to the “madness” of our lives. The system we develop will be unique to us, but it’s our responsibility to define it and stick with it.
Step One: Be Honest About Your Priorities
What’s the first and foremost step in figuring out our own time management system? Self-honesty in evaluating where we actually spend our time, and where we want and need to be spending it. What are our goals? What is it we want to accomplish in our lives? That may not always be clear to us, but the only place we can find that answer is from within. No one else can define our goals for us.
Step Two: Develop a System
Some type of system for establishing priorities and planning is essential. Whether it’s a day planner, to-do list, our brain, a calendar, some place we can make a note of what we need to do and check it off as we get it done. Prioritizing is critical. It’s easy to do what we want to do, not what needs to be done. Feeling we don’t have enough time, that our lives are out of control, causes distress. Self-discipline and making choices to organize our lives is a starting point in gaining control and alleviating that stress. One step that helps tremendously in managing our stress is to tackle the hardest tasks first, those things we really don’t want to do, but know we should do.
Make Time for Essentials
Good time management is working effectively not just efficiently. That requires evaluating what’s urgent and vital not only at work but in every part of our lives. Once we’ve evaluated the vital things (including things like exercise for health and time with family and friends), it’s essential to schedule them in if they’re not getting done. Once they become good habits, we don’t need to be reminded.
Time Management in Business is About Relationships
Time management in a small business takes on a whole different set of nuances. No matter how hard we work, in most small businesses, we can’t do it all ourselves.
According to Lee Cockerell, good time management in business requires that “employees receive excellent training, development and leadership, feel involved in the business, and are appreciated and respected.” Notice that time management in business is directly connected to good relationships and interactions with people. Customer service is king and happens naturally when employees are mentored and treated well. That takes time.
Management of our time embraces how we interact with other people. Our relationships with people in our personal and our work time creates the very fabric of our lives. So good time management isn’t just about money or success. It’s about people.
Read other related posts on the Bread Business Blog:
- What is the Hardest Thing about Owning a Small Business?
- How Should a Small Business Owner Spend Their Time?
- 5 Reasons for Business Owners to Share Their Workload and Responsibility
- 3 Keys to Small Business Success From the Foodservice Industry
Image credit: © dolgachov / 123RF Stock Photo, modified by text overlay.
