Productivity & Performance

MANAGE YOUR LIFE, NOT A LIST

USE LIFE MANAGEMENT SKILLS TO MAXIMIZE YOUR TIME
Posted by: Team Tony
The expectations you set for yourself are sky-high: You want to dominate at work, be an
exceptional provider for your family, stay in incredible shape and find ways to give back to
your community. People often describe you as an “overachiever,” and, in the past, this title
made you proud.

But you’ve realized that the more you take on, the more you struggle with handling stress.
You’ve relied on to-do lists to stay on top of the many items that fill your calendar, but this
system is not working for you. A to-do list won’t help you become a master of your own life
— it will simply make you feel like you’re not doing enough. You’re ultimately sabotaging
yourself. To truly grow, you have to learn life management skills instead of just piling more
tasks on your plate.

FIVE LIFE MANAGEMENT SKILLS

1. FIND PURPOSE
What do you want from your life? What is your ultimate outcome? The answer isn’t buying a
nice car or fancy house. Your true goal is something deeper and the life management skills
you cultivate need to reflect that. What objective, when you think about it, brings you a sense
of joy, fun and freedom? What does it mean to you to unlock an extraordinary life? That’s
what you’re working for. It could be providing for your family or being the best in your field,
but it isn’t about material things.

All too often you lose sight of your end goal when thinking about what you want to achieve.
This results in creating meaningless to-do lists instead of tapping into life management
resources. You get swept up in the short-term tasks you’ve listed instead of pursuing your
higher purpose. The more clarity you have regarding your end goal, the more likely you are
to achieve it. Once you know what you really want, you start making progress to achieve it.

With a clear vision in mind, you can use life management services such as a Massive Action
Plan to determine your actions with purpose and make true progress toward your goals. As
Tony Robbins says, “One reason so few of us achieve what we truly want is that we never
direct our focus; we never concentrate our power. Most people dabble their way through life,
never deciding to master anything in particular.” Decide to become a master of your life.
Take control of your time and make your actions count.

life management father surfing with kid on shoulders

2. RELY ON CHUNKING
You’re not failing at reaching your goals because you’re incapable of success — you’re
failing because you’re trying to focus on too many things at once. Changing the way you
think about your goals is one of the life management skills that will help you focus. Don’t
think about the things that you need to do to achieve your goal — think about and visualize
the outcome.

Say your goal is learning how to cook. You’re dreading going to the grocery store, finding
recipes, purchasing kitchen appliances and cleaning up the mess at the end of the ordeal.
Instead of focusing on your desirable outcome — becoming an amazing cook — you’re
caught up in all the intimidating details.

Now think of something you already know how to do really well, like working out. You know
you need to drive to the gym, then exercise when you get there. These two manageable
tasks seem much easier than the many steps it takes to learn a new skill because you’ve
done it many times before. But in reality, cooking and going to the gym aren’t that different in
terms of difficulty — you’re just thinking about them in a completely different way.

If you change your mindset and think about the outcome instead of the steps to get there,
you’re more likely to pursue your goal. Chunking is the understanding that when you’re first
learning a new skill or trying to get something done, like cooking, it can feel like you’re trying
to accomplish 100 things. But after working on your skills in the kitchen enough, it becomes
a couple of manageable tasks — going to the store and cooking.

Once you master this skill, you can chunk activities with similar outcomes together.
Empower yourself to get things done by grouping together information into manageable-size
chunks that you can use effectively to achieve your goals.

life management girl sitting on bed using laptop

3. UTILIZE N.E.T. TIME

One of the important steps to achieving any goal is to continue learning at every opportunity.
However, it can be difficult to access the books, podcasts and videos that will further your
knowledge when you feel like there’s no time left in the day. Feeding your mind during
downtime is a life management skill that will take your expertise to a new level.

This is where life management skills like utilizing N.E.T. time come in. N.E.T. stands for “No
Extra Time” and it’s based on the concept that you always have time during your day that
you can fill with learning. This could mean listening to a podcast during your morning
commute or an audiobook while you’re shopping for groceries or reading a book while you
wait for an appointment.

4. SPEND TIME ON RELATIONSHIPS

Life management skills are not all about achieving peak physical health and getting ahead at
work. You should also make sure to take time every day to cultivate relationships with those
you love. Planning for date nights and opportunities for deeper connection is crucial to
creating a healthy relationship with your partner. Reserving time to play with, read to and talk
to your kids about their day is vital to developing bonds with your children. Don’t view the
time you take to relax and connect as wasted time. Instead, see it as an important life
management component that adds to your overall well-being.
5. LEARN HOW TO COMMUNICATE BETTER
How often do you lose valuable time at work or at home because of a miscommunication?
Maybe a project needs to be redone because the objectives weren’t clearly communicated
or you and your partner took the afternoon off work to handle a plumbing issue at home
because you didn’t effectively communicate who would take care of it. Communicating with
your partner and your team at the office leads to better relationships and streamlined
schedules. Learn the communication styles of those you frequently interact with and
understand that life management becomes easier when you slow down and take the time to
truly listen.

LIFE MANAGEMENT RESOURCES

Life management concepts can be very useful, but sometimes you need concrete resources
to help you effectively manage the hours in the day. These life management resources can
help.

RAPID PLANNING METHOD

There’s no reason why you need to dive into life management services on your own. There
are tons of tools out there to help you create the life you’ve always wanted. Once you know
what you want and why you want it, it’s time to seek out valuable resources, like Tony
Robbins’ Rapid Planning Method (RPM). You now know the essential components of RPM
that were discussed above, as you’ve identified your purpose and can utilize chunking to
develop your Massive Action Plan. Adhering to the Rapid Planning Method is as simple as
knowing what you want, identifying why you want it and mapping out what actions you’ll take
to accomplish it.

COACHING
If you’re struggling with life management skills, it may be time to reach out for extra help.
Working with a life or business coach will help you learn more about yourself and your goals
and develop valuable skills to get where you truly want to go. A coach provides
accountability and insight – two things you need to achieve growth.

ULTIMATE EDGE
Ready to take your life to a level you never dreamed of? The next step is using life
management services from Tony Robbins. Ultimate Edge is a program that offers proven
tools to discover what you want most in life in order to overcome the obstacles that are
holding you back and take charge of your own life.

It’s time to throw away your to-do list and embrace change. As Tony Robbins says, “If you
do what you’ve always done, you’ll get what you’ve always gotten.” With a clear vision, and
powerful life management resources under your belt, you’ll be one major step closer to
maximizing your time and reaching your ultimate goals.