Time is one thing that either there is never enough of or there is too much.
Funny thing though, there are only 24 hours in each day.
There are only 60 minutes in each hour and there are only 60 seconds in each minute. You and I have exactly the same amount of time each day.
Managing Time
When you are two years old 10 seconds can seem like an hour if you are waiting for something you want and an hour can seem like an eternity when sitting in the waiting room at a hospital waiting to hear about an operation on a loved one. And when you are on a deadline, there never seems to be enough time.
In business we often have only so much time. Time to make things happen, time to get things done so here are 7 tips for managing time in your business.
- Plan your day. Decide what you need to accomplish in a day. Decide who to contact. Decide what you will do and then set up the circumstances to support you in doing it. Do your best to achieve your objectives but should things fail to work out, accept that you did your best and that the world goes on.
- Keep your word. If you tell someone that you will do something, call them at a particular time or complete something by a certain time then set it up so that you will be able to do that. Create alarms for important deadlines. Most diary programs allow you to set reminders. Most mobile phones can be set with reminders and alarms for important things. And if when the warning comes up, you know you will be unable to meet the time frame, then quickly send a message or make contact and tell the other person what is happening. Apologize but no grovelling if you have truly done your best. Stuff happens. It only becomes a problem if you never succeed in keeping your word.
- Do Your Best. People trust people who try hard. You may sometimes miss the mark or fail occasionally but if people know that you did your best they will forgive you failing sometimes.
- Treat People Respectfully. If you treat people respectfully and realize that they have their own opinions which might differ from yours but that the difference makes neither of you wrong or right. Take nothing personally.
- Remember that sh*t happens. And because it does, always have some contingency plan in place. Oh and remember to ASK for help when things look like they are going wrong.
- Work out your time frames and then double them before committing to a client. Because stuff happens, work out your time frames, double them and then deliver well in advance of the promised time frame. Your clients will be delighted.
- Only take on work you know you can do. One of the greatest challenges for many people is to say NO. If you know you lack the resources, the energy or the time to take on a project or meet a client’s expectations, then say no. In the long run everyone wins and you have less stress.
In business, when you can be on time, on budget and deliver as promised then you can sleep easy, your stress levels go down and opportunities open for you.
When you fail to manage your commitments of time then you will end up stressed, anxious and upset and your business will suffer the consequences. The best way to manage time is to make commitments that you know you can keep. And if you make the commitment, then keep them.
If you have any other time tips, please share them below and if these tips were of value to you, please share them with your friends
Roberta Budvietas
Passionate and Purposeful about your success.
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June 1, 2012
Great advice. You made it clear that it’s up to us to manage our resources. Time is not like a bank- you can’t deposit some for future use. It’s clearly a use it or lose it item!
Roy A. Ackerman, Ph.D., E.A. recently posted..Small Business Says?
So right Roy. And using time wisely is more important than using our money wisely. Money we can always recover but time is gone forever and we all have exactly the same amount of time to work on.
Indeed, time management is important. I’d add one more element — schedule breaks, lunch, the half-days, anything that helps replenishes and keeps you alert so that all the rest can be accomplished. Great steps to live by in the biz world, Roberta. Thank you.
Good point PeggyLee because when we are hungry or tired, we just fail to do our best
Wonderful reminders Roberta! Time management is so important in today’s world. Sometimes I keep working and don’t even know what time it is! Of course, if the room gets dark that clues me in, lol.
But it really does matter that we keep our word when it comes to business and not to be too hard on ourselves when sh*t happens. We are human and in most cases, we are trying our best. Thanks Roberta for this awesome checklist!
Lynn Brown recently posted..Succeeding In Business With A Winning Attitude
Thanks Lynn for commenting and compliment. I especially like the fact that we are human and I do believe that the business mindset makes the difference
I seem to be time management challenged so these tips really hit home for me. Thank you for a great post.
Janette Fuller recently posted..Book Review: Platform by Michael Hyatt
Knowing a little about you Janette, is it a momentary thing or a continuous thing. Either way – stay in control
This is excellent advice and the ideal checklist for making sure anyone who works from home, stays on track. I especially like tip #2 about keeping your word. It’s so frustrating when someone says he or she will do something and then they don’t deliver.
Every business owner needs to read this list at least once. Thanks for sharing it.
Lisa Kanarek recently posted..Time to Shred a Few Pounds
Thanks Lisa Yes that keeping one’s word is a real challenge for some business owners