We are all aware that many people feel that we must be careful when focusing on money, affluence, or abundance… that in the pursuit of those things, there is danger. If you invest time and effort into pursuing money and affluence to the exclusion of other values in life, you have lost, not won.
However, let’s consider this question: If you could do better financially, should you? In the time you have allotted to labor, economics, success, achievement, productivity, the creation of value, the development of skills and creativity, if you could do better, should you?
I believe one of the greatest satisfactions of living life to the fullest is doing the best you can with whatever you have. Doing anything less than your best has a way of eroding the psyche. We are creatures of enterprise. Life seems to say to us, “Here are the raw materials — your creativity, and 24 hours to use it. What splendid things can you produce?”
Work Smarter
It’s an obvious — yet often overlooked — truth: rich people have 24 hours a day. And, poor people have 24 hours a day.
The difference between the rich and the poor is in the management of that time. Successful people often work harder and longer than most, but they almost always work smarter.
If we get more from ourselves, if we can make an hour as valuable as 10 hours used to be, we can get as much done in a day as we used to get done in a week. Imagine the potential compounding effect of working smarter.
By practicing a few simple disciplines every day, you can use time like the rich — with focus and effectiveness.
1. Run the day or it will run you. Part of the key to time management is staying in charge. Some will be masters of their time, and some will be servants. Enterprising people become the masters of their time.
To master your time, you must have clear written goals for each day that you keep with you at all times. It helps to create each day’s list the night before. Prioritize your goals for the day and constantly review them.
2. Don’t mistake activity for productivity. You probably know some people who always seem to be busy being busy. To be successful, you must be busy being productive. Some people are going, going, going, but they’re doing figure eights. They’re not making much progress. Don’t mistake activity for productivity, movement for achievement. Evaluate the hours in your days, and see if there is wasted time that you could manage better.
3. Focus. The third key to time management is good concentration. You’ve got to zero in on the job at hand. This is easier said than done. Concentration takes a lot of discipline. It takes discipline to demand privacy, to not react to the minor activities that try to demand your attention, such as new emails and ringing phones.
If you have a long list of things to get done within one day, do the toughest one while your concentration is at its peak. If you’re a morning person, get the job done in the morning. Don’t wait until the evening when your energy is all spent. Do the jobs that need the most concentration when your body is best able to handle them.
One of the greatest enemies of this sort of concentration is worry. Worrying about your future can prevent you from being where you are right now. We all have worries, and they are useful. But, don’t let worry distract you. Stay focused on changing what you can change — that is the only true way to overcome the source of your worry anyhow.
How could you better leverage your time?
Does busy ever interfere with your ability to get things done?
The lines are open!
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