The Value of Time
Mike Myatt, a CEO coach and founder of N2growth, points out that time is one of the few things that we all have in common, yet how we choose to spend it is such an individual decision.
Many of us know executives who are masters at managing many aspects of their businesses and yet do not give enough attention to their own time management. Research is conclusive that those who manage their time wisely are those more likely to achieve the greatest success.
The proper understanding of how to use your time directly impacts your income and your quality of life.
Myatt has a different take on the statement, "work smarter, not harder" and says that he works very hard at working intelligently.
We all know that we are limited to 24 hours in each day and each one of those hours can be wasted, invested or leveraged - our choice. Each hour that is leveraged allows us to use multiples of a day, rather than only a portion of a day. Those extra hours allow us to serve more and increase our impact on those around us.
An insight from Myatt is that by making use of personal time, leveraging his people and technology, outsourcing across different time zones, associating with quality people and organizations and having a real focus on best use principles he is able to get much more than 24 hours out of each day.
Are you making good choices?
An essential first step is realizing that time is a key success metric. Then, you need to learn how to invest your time wisely and that will allow you to leverage your time better.
Where do I start?
The first step is to maximize your personal time by avoiding the most common workplace time wasters. What are they?
Here is a list of the top 10:
- A lack of focus, often leading to shifting priorities.
- Allowing technology interruptions - such as e-mail, text messages and social media.
- A lack of planning.
- Initiative overload or biting off more than you can chew.
- Ineffective delegation.
- Excessive drop-in visitors.
- A lack of organizational skills.
- Procrastination.
- The inability to say "No".
- Unproductive meetings.
By acknowledging those items that waste some of your time and then using time to your advantage, you can have a new best friend - time.
Accomplish more through leverage. Each moment lost is a moment gone forever.
