4 Steps To Reclaim Your Time
By Nancy Fredericks
Nancy Fredericks pens Women Lead Change's "Mindful Mondays" column, appearing the second Monday of every month. Fredericks is a preeminent Business Executive Strategist, Author and Thought Leader. Corporations like Johnson & Johnson, PepsiCo, Adobe, Allergan and Transamerica have retained her to optimize individual and organizational performance. You can find her at www.thrivewithnancy.com. The views of Nancy Frederick's blogs represent her own and not necessarily the views of Women Lead Change.
When I ask clients, “What is the most challenging business issue you wish to resolve right now?” invariably, it’s TIME. This issue tops the list more often than any other in my surveys. But here’s the good news—you can take control.
Here are four actionable steps to revolutionize your relationship with time and calendar.
1. Weed Out Unnecessary Meetings: Did you know that middle managers spend roughly 35 percent of their time in meetings, while upper management 50 percent of their time?1
Given these eye-opening statistics, ask yourself: “Which meetings allow me to add value, gain crucial information, improve my or my team’s performance, or make a meaningful impact on the outcome?”
These are your must-attend meetings. Challenge yourself to cut out—or get cut out of—those that don’t meet these criteria. It won’t be easy, but the reclaimed hours will be worth it. Imagine what you can do with that extra time!
2. Tackle Interruptions Head On: One major time suck is interruptions. In fact, studies show that workers lose an average of 2.1 hours per day to interruptions, costing the U.S. economy a staggering $588 billion annually in lost productivity.2
Start an interruption log. You will soon see some are part of the job—so stop stressing over these disruptions. That’s why you’re being paid!
However, you’ll also notice recurring interrupters, many of which have a similar root cause. Treat these like any other system breakdown. Apply problem-solving strategies and share your solutions with your team. This approach will help you start reclaiming your time—and theirs.
3. Embrace The Power Of “No”: Saying “yes” to everything is a surefire way to overwhelm yourself and always have an overloaded desk. Surprisingly, strategically saying “no” can make you more valuable to your company.
Before you automatically say “yes,” ask yourself two critical questions.
First, “Am I the only person able to do this?”
Second, “Is this project more important than what I’m currently working on?”
If the answer is “yes” to both, go for it! But if not, enjoy the stress-free time because it’s not yours to do now—at least right now!
And remember, if you always have time for everything, including the minor tasks handed to you, how valuable do you appear to your organization?
Say “yes” to leadership. Say “no” to the trivial details that anyone can handle.
4. Maximize Your Prime Time: We all have “Prime Work Time”—those optimal periods when your energy, concentration, and productivity most effectively align. According to Carey Nieuwhof, most leaders have only three to five deeply productive hours in a day when their energy is at its peak.3
And Prime Time is different for every executive. Have you identified when your “prime work hours” are? It’s that period of the day when you can dive into the challenging assignments with laser focus. The more you align your demanding work with your prime energy time, the quicker and more efficiently you’ll achieve your highest productivity level... and achieve top results!
Yes, these four simple yet powerful action steps can significantly increase the time you have each day. But more importantly, they’ll allow you to focus on the big career- making projects that truly matter to your career trajectory and your company.
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