News Flash…You Can’t Do it All. BUT You CAN Do What’s Important!

I’m always asked about “time management”.

How do you manage time so that you can get what you want to do done?  How do you manage to run your business and get your work done and also have time to live your life and have fun?

I have good news and bad news for you.

First the bad news, you can’t manage time. You have exactly 24 hours in a day, no more, no less.

Now the good news, you’re not alone, the Dali Lama, Mother Teresa, Thomas Edison and everyone on this planet also has exactly 24 hours in a day.

So what can you do to help you use that time to your advantage?

You see, it’s not about doing everything it’s about doing the things that will make the most difference and will help you move further along the path that you want to travel.

Here are five questions that my clients and I use every day to make sure that we’re focusing our attention on the most important things. Give them a try and see what happens.

1. Is what I am doing or about to do moving me closer to my goals? This is a great question to ask yourself when you find yourself suddenly immersed in an article that caught your eye online.
2. If I decide to follow this path and do this task or project what will I be unable to do? Which of these two paths is more important to my overall goal?  This question is great to help you identify your priorities.
3. If there was only one thing that I could accomplish today what would it be? How would it move me forward on my work and life goals?  The combination of these two questions will help you prioritize and then make sure that your priorities fit in with your overall plans.
4. Is what I am doing or about to do necessary or have I moved the project or task along enough so that it’s already “good enough”? I use this question to help regulate how much time I spend on Facebook and Twitter.  As a business owner I know that social networking is very important but I also know that I have to balance it with other business goals.  So I ask myself if I’ve done enough for the moment and will doing more right now make that much of a difference?
5. Is there something else that I can do in either the same amount or less time that would be more effective? Sometimes we do things automatically without even considering other ways that we can achieve the same goal with less effort.  Take time to look at what you do every day.  Is there another way you for you to achieve the same goal with less effort?

As I coach my clients, especially entrepreneurs, we often discover that their life and work goals are tightly interwoven.  It may sound weird but in these situations it’s even more important to make sure to set aside time to shut your business down and reap the rewards of the work you do.  In fact, many of my clients find that the harder they play the more energy the have for their business.

I recently opened three coaching spots specifically for entrepreneurs who are ready to establish or transform their own businesses but are feeling overwhelmed. These spots are by application only.  If you’d like to be considered for one of these spots just reply to this email and let me know what’s going on in your business today and where you want to be in six months.

If you’re ready to take the next step in your business and life and could use some help let me know.  Just send an email to me (Carrie @ CarrieThru.com), tell me what’s going on and we’ll set up a time to talk.