Successful Time Management (aka Managing Yourself!)

Countless books, audios, videos, and training material exist out there already on the complicated topic of Time Management. However, this article is going to review what might be considered hidden productivity secrets or big picture ideas that will help any work-at-home entrepreneur. The material here was largely gleaned from an excellent video on the topic by Eben Pagan.

First off, as a home business operator it is difficult for us to quantify our daily output. Most manual labor jobs, even white-collar jobs, can easily be quantified in terms of productivity or widgets produced/hour or per day. However, when you are you own boss in the network marketing industry you are instead dealing with “knowledge-based” activity which is very difficult to quantify in terms of effort. Because of the onslaught of information and knowledge we face every day, it is very easy to lose focus and fall into the “curse of multitasking”. Multi-tasking…a curse? You bet it is! Why? The bottom line is multi-tasking is not efficient. One recent scientific study actually showed that multi-tasking lowers you IQ to less than someone smoking marijuana! In short, you are far better off to focus on one thing at a time. (And yes, this applies to women as well even though it has been shown that they are better than men at multi-tasking!). Ideally, one should focus on one specific task without distractions for two hours at a time – close your e-mail program, close the Internet browser, switch your cell phone’s ringer and/or text feature off, tell family members not to bother you during these periods, etc. and do whatever it takes for you to remain focused. Then take a short break, but one that is “healthy” as your body naturally goes through pulses of energy, so get in touch with your own rhythms. Another excellent tip is to create routines at the same time of day, day in day out – at first this may seem like “work” as you free-spirited folks may feel that this is limiting, but in fact establishing a routine for important tasks will make you infinitely more productive in the long run. We all have to work at reducing the distractions of life and avoid a scattered “monkey mind” or letting a “busy idiot” syndrome from taking over. Believe it or not, but top producers do not check their e-mail every 2 minutes. Block aside specific periods of time to deal with e-mails if necessary, but frankly you only need to do that a couple of times per day. Working in concerted, focused bouts of activity on one task is far more productive than trying to do 3, 4, or 7 things at once! For example, I bet that the top producers get more done in 90 minutes working on one activity than you can ever do now juggling 3 or 4 actions at once and over double the time frame. However, it is also important to balance your activity with periods of renewal to give your body and brain a chance to rejuvenate. The top producers understand this and have learned how to efficiently renew themselves and increase productivity. This can involve exercise, even simple things like walking the dog, or working in your garden – but try to avoid watching TV or surfing the Internet during your breaks. You’re better off to read a good book on personal development for 10-15 minutes, or do some basic meditation or breathing, or jot down some personal thoughts in a journal. Of interest, I find my most inspired ideas and thoughts come during these periods of exercise. As for structuring your day or time, you can use the following percentages as a guideline to give you an idea of where you should best be putting your efforts:

1. Spend 40% of your time on building your business -- generating leads, tweaking your marketing…anything that drives traffic to your website or landing pages;
2. Spend 20% of your time converting prospects to sales -- this may or may not mean talking on the phone or in person with them, but note this also includes improving your sales copy or sales funnel process;
3. Spend 10% of your time on improving your content or marketing material;
4. Spend 30% of your time “managing” your business -- this includes the administrative or financial side of your enterprise, but also people management (e.g. you may be interacting with staff if you are outsourcing your marketing efforts, or with any team members underneath you who need a nudge or guidance).

Please contact me if you have any specific questions on how to improve managing your MLM or network marketing time. I'd also like to hear your comments and your own tips on time management!

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David Allinson is the owner and creator of Attraction Marketing Leader. David is an online business and lifestyle coach. He specializes in both online and offline marketing for the MLM and network marketing industries. He actively promotes and teaches others the value and benefit of Attraction Marketing -- which simply put, means -- be the "wizard" and leader people are seeking and they will flock to you and your opportunity!

The FIRST EVER Fully Branded, Customizable, Lead Generation & Attraction Marketing System Of Its Kind That Combines Attraction Marketing, Affiliate Marketing, Cash Flow Programs And Traditional MLM into ONE Super Powered Profit Pulling Machine: http://AttractionMarketingLeader.com
Contact info:
David Allinson
performancedea@gmail.com
http://attractionmarketingleader.com
Ph. (250) 391-1786
Skype: thefreshfinancial