Here’s Why Trying to Manage Time is Causing You Additional Stress

There’s not enough time! Sounds familiar doesn’t it? How many times have you said that there just isn’t enough time to get everything done? Time is such a precious commodity in our life and yet we never seem to have enough time in our day. Ben Franklin has been quoted as saying, “If time be of all things most precious, wasting time must be the greatest prodigality, since lost time is never found again.” This is such a true and insightful comment that rings as true today and it did during Franklin’s life. Time is the great equalizer. No matter how important or rich or famous you are, you still get the same amount of time as everyone else. We each get 1,440 minutes per day, 10,080 minutes per week and 525,600 minutes per year! I’m sorry to say that neither I nor anyone else can get more time for you. It’s not how much time we get, since we all get the same amount, its what we do with our time that matters. Time management is a misnomer. We cannot manage time, the best we can do is develop the skill not to let time manage us. Trying to manage time will just cause you more stress because the minutes and hours will continue to tick away regardless of whether you are doing things you should be doing or not. The way to change this is to learn priority management. It is the priorities you set in your life that dictate how your precious time will be utilized. Your definition of success should guide how you use your time from a macro level. Your life vision will direct your priority management so you use your time to work on accomplishing your goals. When something is trying to take your time, ask yourself, “Does this help me move closer to my goals and my vision?” If the answer is “yes,” then you should invest the time and do it with passion and purpose. If the answer is “no,” then you should not invest any time in it. It really is that simple. Notice that I used the term “invest” instead of “spend” your time. It is important to recognize the difference between these. Normally when we talk about time, we use the consumption term “spend” when we should be talking in terms of “investing” our time, meaning that we are getting a payback when we do something. The payback may be as simple as making your family happy or improving your health. It may be improving your knowledge or increasing the profits of your business. Time must repay you by getting you closer to your ultimate dream of success. Otherwise, if you just spend your time, you will never get that time back and will find yourself getting no closer to where you want to be. It is completely up to you how to invest your time, but let me give you this advice: n Be absolutely BRUTAL with your time! It’s your life and your time. Don’t let time manage you. Don’t let others take control of your time either. Others will want to interrupt you or impose their priorities on you. Learn how to avoid these situations or minimize their impact on your time. Those who stayed focused and stick to the plan they have developed are the ones who accomplish the most. Make sure you keep your plan in a place where you can review it often. Stay focused on how you choose to invest your time for the best payoff. You must be brutal in how you ration out your time because no one else will do it for you. Take control of your priority management, and you will be amazed at how much progress you will make toward fulfilling your life mission! To your success, Dennis