The Most Impactful Time

Management Lesson I've

Learned
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Throughout years of trying to improve my productivity,

there's one, single time management lesson that has had an
enormous, positive impact.

No amount of getting up earlier, time blocking, or clearing

your email inbox will help until you learn this one crucial
lesson.

What's the most important time management lesson

I've learned over the years?

You must learn when to say no.

TIME MANAGEMENT MUST REFLECT YOUR

VALUES
Learning how to manage my time while working from home
has probably been the most profound challenge I've dealt
with over the years that I've been self employed.

I have no shortage of motivation. And, although I'm not

perfect, I'm not a huge procrastinator.

But time management is still tricky.

Time management is deeper and more complex than you

might initially think. It goes well beyond strategies like
managing your email better, or immediately doing any task
that can be completed in less than two minutes.
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Although those kinds of strategies can be helpful, truly

effective time management speaks to your values.
When done with care, saying yes to certain projects and no
to others becomes an expression of your values and
priorities. That, for me, is a balance I feel I'm constantly
working to maintain.

MY MOST IMPORTANT TIME MANAGEMENT

LESSON: YOU CAN ACCOMPLISH MORE BY
DOING LESS
Realizing that I can't do it all, but I can do a small number of
things really well has been the toughest time management
lesson I've had to learn over and over. It's about learning
to evaluate opportunities, so you can choose the ones that
are the best fit with your values and skills, and being willing
to let go of the rest.

Here are a few things I've learned about how to accomplish

more by doing less:

YOUR TIME IS YOUR MOST PRECIOUS COMMODITY

This time management lesson has been the most crucial for
me. Realizing the value and irreplaceable nature of your time
underpins everything else and makes it much easier to say
no when you need to. 

Strangely, I've found that time can become devalued when

you're self employed. As an employee, you think about
exchanging your time for an hourly wage, or a yearly salary,
but when you become self employed, time is the first thing
you begin to give away for free.

Certainly, that can be a necessary phase of business building,

but it can also become a slippery slope.
When you're working to establish your business, and money
is tight, it's easy to get into the mindset that as long as
something doesn't cost money, and only costs time, it's
okay.

I used to measure certain business decisions based on

money alone. Much to my frustration, I've watched others do
it, too.

For example:

If I was comparing two tools for managing social media

accounts, one paid and one free, I'd go with the free option
automatically because, I reasoned, why would I spend
money if there is a free tool.

As I began to value my time more, I started evaluating tools

based on value for money, and how much time they could
give back. Sometimes the free option is still a good solution,
but sometimes it's worth spending a little money to get back
a lot of time.

YOU'RE RESPONSIBLE FOR SETTING BOUNDARIES AND

PROTECTING YOUR TIME

If you've quit your day job, people see that you suddenly
have what looks like a clear schedule, and they think they
can call on you for all kinds of favors. When I realized the
value of my time, it became much easier to turn down people
who wanted to encroach on that time because I could see the
lack of respect underlying their requests.

To the mom who is not even my friend, but aggressively

demanded I should regularly babysit her kid for free while
she was at work, I say, "Hah! No way, babe. Go find
someone else to use." Okay, I did say it a little more
diplomatically, but I have a business to run, and I'm not
giving away my time to someone who clearly has no regard
for me.

The next time you catch yourself thinking something is okay

because you are "only" spending your time and not your
money, stop for a minute.

Then repeat after me:

My time is my most precious commodity.

Ask yourself whether what you're doing is the best use of

that time.

Similarly, the next time someone tries to push you into doing
something that is a complete no-win for you, remember they
are showing a total lack of regard for your time. Keep that in
mind as you formulate your response.

KNOW WHEN AND HOW TO SAY "NO" IN

BUSINESS AND IN YOUR PERSONAL LIFE.
Saying no becomes easier when you realize the value of your
time, but it can still be tough, particularly with people who
are aggressive, or with people who've come to expect you to
say yes.

Saying no can definitely be uncomfortable at first, but if you

practice it a few times, you'll realize you can turn down
requests, and the world won't fall apart. If you say no when
you mean it, you'll probably actually feel like you're doing a
better job of holding your own world together. 

Although there has been the odd awkward conversation in

which I've had to stand my ground, the vast majority of
people have accepted my "nos" graciously. I've discovered I
may have to say no to people two or three times, but once
that's done, the boundaries become clear, and people stop
making certain requests on my time.

THINK THROUGH THE CONSEQUENCES BEFORE YOU SAY

YES

When I'm having trouble saying no to something, I imagine

what would happen if I said yes when I don't want to.

I know myself well enough to realize that when I mean no

but say yes I end up resenting the whole thing. That
resentment typically results in me being sloppy with the task
at hand, and, in turn, those counting on me end up annoyed
and disappointed.

Playing out the scenario in my mind makes it much easier to

just say no in the first place. A little honest conversation can
save a whole lot of resentment later on.

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SET SOME BOUNDARIES WITH YOUR

TECHNOLOGY
Beyond the need to say no to people and projects that aren't
a good fit for my values and priorities, the second biggest
place I've have to set boundaries is with technology.

I'm old enough to remember a time when people didn't

expect immediate responses to every little comment or
question. I remember when it was considered a good time
management strategy to let someone sit with a question for
a few hours before you dove in to respond because often, if
you just gave them a little time, they'd solve the problem for
themselves.

Expectations have changed a lot, but I still believe there's

much to be gained from disconnecting from time to time. 

LIMIT YOUR PHONE'S PUSH NOTIFICATIONS

I have purposely set up accounts and apps on my phone to

limit distractions and keep interruptions to a bare minimum.

I have an email address for messages that come from

customers or readers, and all other emails come on a
separate email address. I let my phone send me push
notifications when email comes in on the customer/reader
address, because that might be time sensitive, but I don't
get push notifications for any other email. 

I check all other email once a day. That's it. I have none of
the email angst that some people struggle with.

If you can set up your email so you know you'll be notified

about the important stuff, and let the rest wait, you'll be less
tempted by constant email checking. You can be confident in
checking your email less often because you know you're
getting notifications for the most important messages, and
everything else can wait.

EMBRACE DO NOT DISTURB MODE

Some people put their phones on do not disturb mode when

they sleep. I take do not disturb a step further. I set my
phone to go into do not disturb mode two hours before bed,
and it stays on until after breakfast when everyone else is
out the door, and I'm ready to start work.
Avoiding constant notifications two hours before bed gives
me time to wind down, so I can get a good night's sleep.
Keeping notifications off for an hour in the morning lets me
start the day right, focused on my family.

It's a small change, but it has had an immense impact. 

There are certainly times when an immediate response is

warranted and will head off problems. However, they are
probably less frequent than you might think.

If you train people to expect an immediate response from

you, that's what you'll be stuck with. If you say no to most
immediate responses, except for the truly time-sensitive,
you'll have far more time to focus and work uninterrupted.

BE YOURSELF. DON'T TRY TO BE SOMEONE

ELSE'S VERSION OF GREAT.
 16Save

You can't do and be it all, so you might as well be a great

version of yourself. The same is true for your business.

You can't chase every business opportunity that exists, but if

you have a firm grasp on what your business is, and what it
is not, it will be much easier to decide what to pursue and
what to leave for someone else.

Decide what makes you and your business special. Be that,

and don't chase someone else's dream.

Sometimes, when I look at other business owners, I catch

myself admiring something they are doing that I am not
doing. Then, I think I'd better get on that (whatever it is) for
my own business.
That feeling doesn't come out of any real research that
indicates a certain project would be a good business move
for me. It's just a gut feeling that comes from a fear of
missing out or comparing myself to someone else. 

It's easier to separate from and let go of those feelings

if you know what your business is and what it is not.

What's right for one business is not right for all businesses.

Laser-focus on the things you do spectacularly well in your

business and on the things that make your business what
you want it to be. Let someone else, in their business, do the
other stuff that's not true to you, your strengths, and your
values.

Learning to say yes to the right projects, and saying no to

everything else is at the root of really good time
management. It's important to avoid committing to every so-
called opportunity that comes along. They aren't all good
uses of your time. 

As much as possible, get others on board and communicate

clearly, so people understand where your boundaries are.
Ultimately, when you choose to say yes or no to the ways
you use your time, those answers should be a clear reflection
of your priorities and values.

MOVING FORWARD
It's one thing to know how to say no and it's quite a different
skill to know when to say no. Even if you're able to say no to
things you know you don't want to, or shouldn't do, it can be
a challenge to recognize the things you'd like to do, but need
to put aside because they don't fit with your other, more
important goals and values.
 That's why I love Tony Crabbe's book, Busy.

It's all about helping you recognize when enough is enough,

see that you can't do it all, and realize what to let go of in
your life, so you can put your best efforts in a few, important
places. If you want to set better boundaries in your life and
your business, I think you'll find the advice in this book is an
excellent place to start.

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