Nicolas Soergel, is the author of Happy About An Extra Hour Every Day. As the CEO of a multi-national corporation, had the opportunity to interview successful executives all over the world about how they manage their time. His book help readers save time negotiating various aspects of their lives, including working, traveling, and housekeeping. Buy the book on Amazon at http://www.amazon.com/Happy-About-Extra-Hour-Every/dp/1600051405or visit his blog at http://www.anextrahoureveryday.com.
Set Goals and Save Time
by Nicolas Soergel
On major step on the way to improving your time management skills, is to be clear as to why you want more time to begin with. The better you get at defining your goals, the more motivation you will have to manage your time. Here’s how:
1) Set goals with short timeframes
Watch out for goals that are set too far in the future since it’s likely that you won’t start working on them right away. Instead, break your longer-term goals down into smaller, more immediate sub-targets necessary to achieve the bigger goal. This way, you will start managing your time to work on the goal immediately and you’ll be motivated because you can measure you progress. These sub-targets also give you a realistic idea of how long it may take you to achieve the big goal.
2) Translate your goals into actionable items
Although you might have spent considerable time defining your goals, you still have to translate them into action items that can be tracked and executed. A good approach is to think of each goal as a project and break it down accordingly:
a) Write down all tasks necessary to achieve a goal
b) Set a sequence for the tasks
c) Define an approximate duration for each task
d) Set a deadline for each task
e) Define who is responsible and who has to contribute to each task
After doing this, you not only have a clearer idea of what you want to achieve in your life but also on what you need to do to make it happen.
3) Make your goals and action items public
If you face difficulties pursuing your goals over a long period of time you can use other people to create public pressure. Announcing your goal makes it more difficult to give up or procrastinate on:
Tell your coworkers you’re going to achieve a goal and report on your progress from time to time.
Tell your family and friends about your goal and ask them to keep you motivated. Keep them updated and report on the progress of your action items.
Write about your goal on a blog and post regular updates.
Register on 43things (www.43things.com) and exchange with people who are pursuing the same goal as well as people who achieved it.
Print out your goals and display them in a prominent place in your house or office.
Following these three simple steps will help you manage your time better. Not because of the recommendation of some time-management guru – but because they represent a step forward in creating the extra time necessary to achieve your goals in life. What could be more motivating!
Nicolas Soergel, is the author of Happy About An Extra Hour Every Day. As the CEO of a multi-national corporation, had the opportunity to interview successful executives all over the world about how they manage their time. His book help readers save time negotiating various aspects of their lives, including working, traveling, and housekeeping. Buy the book on Amazon at http://www.amazon.com/Happy-About-Extra-Hour-Every/dp/1600051405
or visit his blog at http://www.anextrahoureveryday.com.