Are you weighed down by obligations? Do you wake up in the morning with a to-do-list which carried over from last week?
Why are we so time poor?
I really do think that sometimes, in order to achieve what we really, truly want, we need to say ‘no’ and give away some of our extraneous obligations.
But, to do that, we need to work out which ones are actually critical and which ones are superfluous! Which are the need to do and which are the nice to do. Which are the urgent and which are the important.
Luckily, there are three simple words which you should chisel on the memory stone of your mind to help you decide if you’re dedicating time to the right things… Want! Need! Me!
Here’s how you use them…
Do I want to?
If you enjoy it, maybe you should do it! If you hate it, maybe there is some way make the task more enjoyable, perhaps someone else is better skilled to complete it, or maybe you really just need some education, or practice on how to do it more efficiently.
Do I need to?
Do you really need to do things the way you do them now? Can you outsource it? Is there a better way of doing the task?
For example, we waste between one and three hours a day on email alone. I’ve noticed most people let Outlook distract them with those pesky “New Mail Desktop Alert” previews but do we need to have our email account open 24/7? Is there a better way to organise it? (By the way, if you want to disable them but didn’t know how, just follow the instructions here).
Email comes into your mailbox with a time stamp, which allows you to work from the oldest message to the newest. Don’t be distracted by the new messages emailing about today – You are doing a disservice to all those sensible, forward thinking people who emailed you yesterday about tomorrows tasks!
Personally, I am quite frequently working on the road, out of the office. In my mind, if it really was sudden, unexpected and time critical you would be calling me.
And for those time wasting phone calls and SMS’s I have a very simple solution… message bank. If I’m busy and can’t answer, I don’t!
If you have tasks you do need to do, do them justice and put time aside to actually focus on them. Respect your own time! Don’t let other people steal it! And don’t do the superfluous, the nice to do or the urgent!
Why me?
Naturally we all like to help and instinctively we say “Yes” when we are asked… but look at the first two questions above; Do you really want to? Do you really need to? Are you the best person suited to this task? Do you have time to put aside and do it justice?
Although you might have a hard time saying “No”, sometimes it truly is the best choice for both you and the person asking! If you aren’t able to do it well because of other commitments, you should be honest with yourself… and them. Even if you say “yes” the task will probably go to the bottom of your to-do pile. Is that really fair for to your other commitments or this new task?
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