One of the most critical Success Principles is using your time wisely. While squandered money can sometimes be replaced, wasted time is gone forever.
The pace at which the world is moving seems to be increasing exponentially: we now have the tools to monitor a universe of information continuously – companies buying and selling; changes of ownership; economic ups and downs; the war on terrorism; the war for talent; the war on drugs; natural disasters; racial tension; campus massacres, and at home my kids growing by inches every time I turn around – things are different and downtime is diminishing.
So, how do you muster enough power to accomplish everything you need to get done in a frenetic world where information overload is the norm, and stay committed to being the best you can be at work and home?
My personal breakthrough in time management has to do with gaining mastery on three levels: leveraging my power, choosing my opportunities wisely, and becoming a power user in Outlook. Each level took me time to grasp, master, and implement. The breakthrough into power, freedom, and peace of mind I experienced came from a course I attended years ago when I was a Landmark Seminar Leader called Mission Control. That course certainly had an impact on me; it showed me that I was spending a considerable amount of time doing things that either did not “light me up,” that I was not particularly adept at, or that were simply distractions on the path to achieving my goals.
That course made me realize that there were a many things I needed to delegate, outsource, or simply stop doing. Over time I built a business in which anything that I was not any good at, did not have value to me personally, or did not bring forth new opportunities for Alliance, was delegated.
Using the power of talented people and resources has enabled me to essentially clone myself 25 times – through the use of full-time, part-time, “virtual” employees, or off-site consultancy capacities. Now I have much more time to watch my sons’ basketball games and to be a part of their lives – and all because I do not try to do everything myself. This is a continual learning process because discovery takes place each time as I ask, Is this the best use of my time and