5 Time Management Mistakes You’re Making Right Now

You begin your day with good intentions of being productive, when all of a sudden the day is gone. The time has ticked away, yet you still have so much to do. You wonder how this happened and exclaim, “I just don’t have enough time to do it all!”

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Do you know what that is?? That is the number of minutes you have each and every year… The same number your neighbor has, the same number your mentor has…

It’s how people choose to use that time that changes our individual outcomes…

Here are 5 time management mistakes you’re focusing on now that will get you nowhere fast…

1. Focusing on “Non critical” tasks first …

When faced with deadlines and many “critical” tasks, people often look at it, become overwhelmed, and start working on all the little non critical tasks that are around them. Clearing your desk top, filing, clearing through the junk mail are all necessary, but not the things that move us forward to achieving big Life Goals…

2. Never using the word “NO”…

The fact is everyone around you needs and wants a piece of you… but what do YOU want for you? One of the biggest problems I see especially with women is they can’t say no. We have been trained to always say YES. But this is a disservice to our own desires. If you find yourself having a very difficult time saying no, try saying “not this time”…

3. Not planning…

Without a plan there is no focus…without focus there is not a deliberate destination, but rather a messy end point! How do you know where to go if you haven’t decided yet where you want to go? Whether you’re planning business growth or your next vacation, planning is essential to any task. What are you planning the next month or so? Are you looking to market your biz more? Host a big family dinner for the holidays? Plan your next vaca?

You are never going to get where you want to go until you decide where it is your going…

4. Not delegating enough…

The act of delegating is a simple way to plug into someone else’s time… Delegation is the way in which you can leverage your time through other people. Anything that is not part of your unique skill set or those items that we get the greatest of joy from is depleting our available time for success and personal growth. Much of our time is spent doing things that ought to be delegated to others.

5. Not working in a clutter free space…

Trying to work with clutter all around you is like time management suicide! Not only do the piles and stacks of uncompleted projects and unfiled papers distract you, but they are also energetically draining! Make sure that the space you are in while doing “creative” work is energy lifting and not draining. Clear your desk top. Keep all unfinished projects in a tickler file. Hire someone to help you organize your space. Whenever you can’t find something, you’re wasting time and having to shift your concentration back to the project at hand. Only keep your current “to –do” list visible. Fresh flowers on your desk instead of unfiled papers can be just the boost your mood needs during productivity time.

My assignment for you this week is to identify which item above can give you back some of your precious time.