Perspectives on Time Management (HK)

(Updated: 08.01.11) Our question: How do you free up time to do what you really want to do?

To free up time to do what I really want to do, I set minimums and maximum.  This might sound simple, but it's the key, and it works.

Here is the frame I use for setting boundaries: mind, body, emotions, career, financial, relationships, and fun

For example, for a given week, I set a maximum of 40-50 hours on career, a minimum of 3 hours on body, and a minimum of 8 hours of fun. To enforce the boundaries, I use little rules:

1. No work on weekends
2. Dinner on the table at 5:30
3. Tuesday night is "Date Night"

This helps me establish a baseline schedule of the "big rocks", without getting caught up in the details of the little activities.  This means each week, I'm avidly investing in my mind, body, emotions, career, financial, relationships, and fun ... and they all support each other.  The opposite is true too.  Doing poorly in one area can negatively impact the others.

The key for me is putting in place minimums where I need to spend more time, and maximums where I need to avoid overinvesting.  This helps keep things fluid and flexible, while investing where it counts.

The beauty of putting "maximums" is they force you to get more effective.  When I put a limit of 40-50 hours per week on work, I now have to pay a lot more attention to priorities and value.  I get a lot more critical of what's on my plate and who values it.  When there is no maximum, the default is to "throw more hours" at problems.  The problem here is that then there are no boundaries, and time for one thing, eats into another.  Which leads us to the next insight ...

If I want more free time, I schedule it.  I decide on how much free time I really need, based on goals, and then I work around that.  Of course, I need to make trade-offs, but I put a stake in the ground by deciding up front, how many free hours I want to shoot for.  This is a key concept because it flips the model upside down.  I see people normally fill up their schedule, then "free time" is whatever happens.  This is "lucking your way into free time" and it's ineffective.  By designing your schedule, and starting with your free time, you make more effective trade-offs and you can drive towards the prize.  This is how I've consistently added more "free time" to my schedule.

In the end though, here is the real trick ... "Free time" sounds good, but what a lot of people find is it's not "free time" that they actually want.  Instead, what they really want is to spend more time in their values, and spend more time doing what they love.  This is the place of fullfillment, growth, and renewal, as well as finding your flow.

I have a book that shares this system, and you can read it for free in HTML at Getting Results.com  (Yeah, I actually got that domain ... hopefully I do it justice.)

---J. D. Meier, www.sourcesofinsight.com

To free up time in order to do something I really want to do, I make it a priority and I let go of anything that is not a must-do.  If you’re really honest with yourself, a lot of what is occupying your time is not a must-do.  Learning to let go creates space for freedom to do the tasks that are truly important to you.

First, I evaluate how important the task or activity is to me.  Is my heart screaming out to me in a way that I must listen in order to achieve inner peace?  Do I feel like I am being called, or is it something I’d love to do or try someday?  Make peace with and accept the notion of not doing everything right now.

Listening to my heart comes first.  Inside I know if something I really want to do needs to be a priority.  The only way I know how to really listen for answers within is through meditation.  Therefore, meditation is a priority in my life and I will do whatever it takes to fit in 10 minutes of silence and stillness every day.  It has made all the difference.

---Wendy Irene, www.givelovecreatehappiness.com

One thing that I have been consistently challenged with over the last few years and especially since my kids were born is to think more intentionally about how I use my time. In many ways, I now view time and money in a similar light. I have been given a set amount of each and am responsible to use them to live the most impactful life that I can. So for me, the first key to freeing up time to do what I want to do is to think about what I value and believe. The most important thing I do then is to cut out all the things that don't support those values and beliefs.

So I don't really watch TV. I don't play video games. The second part of this is to think intentionally about the most impactful things I can be doing to support what I want out of life. I spend most Sunday evenings planning out the week by review the week before, creating a sort  of bucket list of projects I want or need to accomplish and breaking each bigger goal down into manageable tasks. So the most important thing I do is to try and make sure I are spending the bulk of my time on the most important tasks and activities. And because there still isn't enough time in a day, I also try and get up early so I can work for a few hours before my kids get up.

 ---Aaron believes everyone can learn another language. You just need a little help. That’s why he writes The Everyday Language Learner and why he has developed the free Ten Week Journey. He wants to get you started on the road to language learning and then give you the tools to keep going. Get started. Don't stop.

For about ten years, I owned and operated a business as a certified personal trainer in addition to working full time for an employer. Frequently, when assisting a client in developing their personal goals for health and fitness, I would listen to a laundry list of excuses as to why he/she had no time for exercise. I would smile, nod and simply wait. The question would inevitably surface, “So, how do you do it? How do you find time to work out and do everything that you do?”

It’s simple. I don’t watch television. I don’t have one in my living room, I don’t spend time absorbing ‘reality’ shows- I spend time Doing. Being. Going. Moving.

I climb mountains. I train hard. I also parent a pre-teen, juggle her considerable schedule on top of my own and create opportunities for us to share quality time together.

Bottom line? There is always enough time in a day, a week or any given month to do what you REALLY want to do.

 “Argue for your limitations- and sure enough, they’re yours."

---Ti Conkle, www.titaniumvertical.com, Climber | Author | Photographer

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