Making the Most of your Time

Written by David Foster on May 8, 2009 2:40 pm

Hello Readers!

So how are you managing your time daily for maximum results? This does not just apply to business, but to your personal life as well. Are you making a list every day of things that you want to accomplish? If not then you need to...

See if you do not have a map to guide you every day you can easily get off track and accomplish nothing towards your goals. You know how it happens...you get up, you are in a great mind set to work hard on your business and you are just ready to seize the day! You feel fresh and ready as you sit down in front of your computer so excited and motivated because THIS is the first day of your road to success...

Then you open your email, and the first one that you read is from a friend who is sharing a funny YouTube video with you, and once you watch it you are laughing hysterically, and you notice similar videos on the right so all of a sudden you have been on YouTube laughing for hours just having a great time. Then the phone rings and it's your friends who want you to come meet them for lunch because they NEVER see you anymore...

So you decide that sounds fun so you finish up checking what email you can while you watch the clock counting down until lunch time...then you are off...

You have a GREAT lunch as you talk and catch up on all that you have missed in your friends lives and it is wonderful so you decide that you all need to get together some night to go out.

By the time you get home you see that you have mail so you get it and there is a new catalog in there so you spend some time sifting through it looking at all the great specials at your favorite store...

Then by the time you can actually get in your office to get back to work, you feel like the day is already wasted so you decide that TOMORROW YOU WILL GET BUSY!

Now I know that it may not happen exactly like this, but I am sure that you can relate to what I am getting at. If you can, then you are one of those people who are in constant prep mode and for some reason have a fear of actually getting to work.

See if you don't ever actually decide that you are serious about managing your time, your time is going to manage you and that is when we fail at attaining our goals, and as you already may know it is no fun to fail at reaching goals...

So is there a way to manage time? Sure there is! You need to make a daily action list EVERY day and you do NOT sway from it until every part of it is accomplished. When you see that email with the YouTube link, leave it in your inbox to return to when you have on your list to take a break. Then just watch that video and don't let yourself go longer than your list allows for break time.

You do need fun time to yourself, but if you are serious about becoming successful from home, then you really need to focus on managing your time to accomplish that.

So many times in my career, I have seen so many people have trouble managing their time to the point where they talk all the time about how they are gong to accomplish their goals, but then I never see them do anything about it. They just keep doing the same things over and over and you know how that goes right? If you keep doing what does not work, you are going to keep getting the same results.

If you want to get positive results you need to take positive action. You need to draw your line in the sand! I mean you have to decide that enough is enough and tell yourself that you ARE going to be successful no matter what and stop talking about it and DO IT!

Maybe this is not you, but I am sure that you at least know someone like this.

Here is an example of my list that I follow almost daily.

1. Wake up and walk for 20 minutes/stretch or lift weights/Shower
2. Make coffee and a fruit/veggie smoothie or a bowl of whole grain cereal with almonds
3. Read / watch motivational or educational material
4. Check my emails and answer business related ones
5. prepare for the day with about 5 minutes of relaxation
6. Visit my social sites
7. Check my Google Adwords account and optimize it
8. Work on my web pages
9. Lunch break / read or watch motivational/educational material
10. Check emails
11. work on things for my team members
12. Log into my company back office and see where I need to follow up with applicants
13. Break time again / just relax and not look at the computer screen, maybe have a pear
14. Check how many leads I have received for the day
15. Make any follow up/ getting started calls that I need to make
16. Check Email
17. Most conference calls fall in this time
18. supper
19. Check emails
20. Read/movie/relax/Bed

Now I try to follow this each and every day, but since I have been working on this ebook, I have gotten away from some if it, because I want to get this done, but I am disciplined enough that as soon as I am finished with that, I will be right back on it.

Now there will be days when you have other things to do, but you have to make sure that as soon as you are done you get right back to your list...

Now this is a short list, that is working towards your LONG term goals so make sure that your list that you make is leading you to those. If not then you need to evaluate your list again.

Managing your time is a huge factor in your success, so don't take it lightly. When you "punch in" for yourself, be there on time and give 100%. Make sure that you are away from distractions and take it as seriously as if you were at a job that you loved and wanted to move up the ladder. You would not do that by messing around all day. Give yourself the same courtesy you would a "boss".

So that is your homework assignment for the week. Make a list. Long term and short term goals. Then your daily action list should be a trail leading directly to those goals...

Do this for 2 weeks and I GUARANTEE you that you will see such great, positive results in your business and yourself that you will wonder how you ever got anywhere without doing this.

Have a great week!