I’m Just Too Busy
With managing employees, negotiating with outside vendors, collaborating with other departments, balancing the budget and finding time to be creative, I know you are saying to yourself that you are “just too busy.” I hear myself mumbling “I have so much to do” and I don’t feel that great when I say it. So I’m assuming that you are not happy with your long list of ‘to do’s’ that consume your time.
There is a strong belief that the more you have to do, the more important you seem. Is that true? I certainly don’t feel important when I face my long list. Rather I feel more like an overworked, underpaid employee. I work for myself.
I made the decision to recognize that I’m in charge of my life and my busyness is my own doing. This happens because I’ve said ‘yes’ too many times. Every day I work on maximizing my time and finding blocks of time to do my creative and planning time. What about you…how do you organize your time? Do you just respond and put out fires or are you in charge of your day and plan what is important. It’s not easy to take responsibility, but how long do you want to say to yourself that you are “just too busy?”
The world is becoming smaller and smaller and moving faster and faster. We are responding all the time to outside demands, as well as internal beliefs that we must do it all. If we don’t do it all, does it mean we are not good enough? I think it’s time we stop holding on to the belief that we must do it all.
Take time to stop and ask yourself the right questions around the value of your time. Here are some questions you can start with on your journey to managing your time.
- Do you actually have to do it all?
- Where do you focus your attention when you look at your ‘to do’ list – on how much you need to do or what is the most important activities to do?
- Is what you are doing supporting your personal values. If not, then your work will be a struggle.
- What are the most important activities on your list?
- What can you give to someone else?
- What activities on your list must be completed as close to 100% as possible?
- What activities need only 80% quality level and still are effective?
- What would happen if you didn’t do activities on your list?
- When was the last time you said ‘no’ to a request?
Keep asking yourself ‘what’ and ‘if’ questions and see where the trail leads you. You can use this activity with you employees as well. Brainstorm with them on what is important, get their buy in and then spend time executing what is most important.
Pat
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