time

Aug 13 2012

3 Things I Learned From Taking An Extended Vacation

For the past several weeks, my wife Sarah and I have enjoyed time away with our two children on a much-needed vacation.

We’ve had a busy spring and summer including Sarah completing a masters degree and her counseling licensure requirements, launching and maintaining this blog, the birth of our son, a significant career transition – you get the picture.

BONUS: I’ve created a NEW Guide that will walk you step-by-step through writing your own Personal Life Plan. You can find out how to get a copy of this life-changing tool at the end of this post.

So we both recognized the need to get away. And I’m glad we did – here’s what I learned…

Apr 30 2012

The Importance of My Weekly Review – Template Download

The number one problem in life planning is that people stop reviewing their life plan. And those things that have been identified as most important fade into the noise of life and work.

Your life and work are not something that you plan once and then put away. They are far too important for that! To have maximum impact, your life plan and business vision should be reviewed regularly.

When I first wrote my life plan – and when I first drafted my business vision – I reviewed them every day for 90 days. Yes, this was time-consuming, but eventually I could review them quickly in 10-15 minutes. This practice solidified the purpose and the practice of reviewing them regularly.

After 90 days, I began reviewing them weekly. I found that monthly wasn’t often enough for me.

I noticed that I had some margin on Sunday during the early morning hours when the family is still sleeping. So I scheduled a weekly review of my life plan and business vision.

Over the years my weekly review has come to include more items which each help me 1) retain margin in my schedule, 2) maintain healthy relationships and connections, 3) be fulfilled in my work, and 4) be more productive and effective.

Today, I’m giving you access to my Weekly Review Template. I’ll share it with you in a moment, but first, here are four ways that my weekly review has helped me find greater fulfillment and effectiveness in my life and work…

Apr 16 2012

7 Simple Tips To Solve Your Email Problem

Over the years, my email volume has increased exponentially – keeping up with projects within my organization, communication with the students I teach, Twitter messages, Facebook messages, blog comments. I’m sure your list looks very similar.

This post is part of the series – Get Your Life Back!
Take Control of Your Schedule
4 Tips for Managing Your Calendar More Effectively
Plan Your Year with Your Annual Plan
Create Your Best Week
You Can Keep Up With Your Email
The Secret for Managing Email More Efficiently

Several months ago, I realized I was receiving hundreds of email messages each day and that processing email was requiring a significant portion of my day.

Despite all the current technology and innovative tools available, many people are falling further behind. They just can’t keep up with the enormous volume of messages hitting their inbox.

I, too, realized that my workload was not sustainable. Because I could no longer process hundreds of email messages a day in addition to my other responsibilities.

I knew something had to change if I was going to be more effective in my work and lead my team to be more effective.

I created a simple guide to help me get control of my email inbox. I’ll share it with you in just a moment.

Since email processing was the biggest “time waster” for me, I began by asking, What can I do immediately to save time with email?

Apr 11 2012

Plan Your Year with the Annual Plan Template

If you don’t make time for the important stuff first, it will be crowded out by the less important – every time – guaranteed!

This article is part of the series – Get Your Life Back!
Take Control of Your Schedule
4 Tips for Managing Your Calendar More Effectively
Plan Your Year with the Annual Plan Template
Create Your Best Week
You Can Keep Up With Your Email
The Secret for Managing Email More Efficiently

If you want to find more fulfillment in your life and work, do the important stuff first. Stephen Covey illustrated this concept brilliantly in First Things First.

I’ve found this to be true for me over and over. My role demands that I spend much of my time on strategic planning and significant projects. Yet the small, urgent day-to-day challenges and problem-solving seem to crowd my days.

Apr 09 2012

4 Tips for Managing Your Calendar More Effectively

One of the top 4 questions that business leaders ask is, how can I increase efficiency and effectiveness? They ask this because time is limited and, consequently, has great value.

This post is part of the series – Get Your Life Back!
Take Control of Your Schedule
4 Tips for Managing Your Calendar More Effectively
Plan Your Year with Your Annual Plan
Create Your Best Week
You Can Keep Up With Your Email
The Secret for Managing Email More Efficiently

Those who maximize their influence and effectiveness, do so because they have a very intentional plan for life and a bold, compelling vision for their work.

If you haven’t already, take a few minutes to read my previous post in which I provide 4 ways to take control of your schedule once and for all. It will provide context for this post.

In this post I will provide 4 tips for managing your calendar more effectively. These are things which dramatically improved how I spend my time at work, at home, and my leisure time. I’ve picked these up from a number of organizational leaders and compiled them into a list that works for me.