The 12 Days of Illumination: Day 11
Doing more isn’t better; doing more of the right things is.
Welcome to Day 11 of The 12 Days of Illumination, a special daily dose of inspiration and easy-to-incorporate insights running from December 20 through the end of the year. Be sure to check out the archives to catch up on previous issues, and feel free to share this one with your friends. Or better yet, invite them to join our Illuminate Me tribe!
Doing more isn’t better; doing more of the right things is.
Here are the eight best ways to level up your time management and boost your career:
1. Get clarity on what matters most
It’s easy to get overwhelmed by the sheer volume of to-dos and requests, believing that you must do everything now, which seldom is the case. The best time managers know that not all tasks are created equal and get clarity on what matters most before working on anything. A fantastic tool to simplify this process is the Eisenhower Matrix, in which you place to-dos in four boxes: Do it now for urgent and important items, Decide to schedule a time to do it for non-urgent but important tasks, Delegate it to someone else for urgent but unimportant things, and Delete items that are neither urgent nor important.
2. Eliminate distractions so you can focus
It’s hard to be productive when you have many things vying for your attention. To maximize your time management, turn off your social media notifications, click out of tabs on your computer, and put your phone on airplane mode. You can also close your door or put on noise-canceling headphones. Do whatever it takes to remove distractions to help you focus on the matter at hand.
3. Resist the urge to multi-task
Multi-tasking destroys clarity, which is essential for productivity. Worse, it promotes a sense of “time creep,” where you lose track of your precious asset in an attempt to do more. To combat this and get the most of your time, switch to mono-tasking, where you’re singularly focused on the most important and urgent thing. Then, tackle the next most important but less urgent task after you complete that.
4. Don’t try to do it all
Just because you can do something doesn’t mean it’s the best use of your time. If there’s something outside of your wheelhouse or a task you despise doing, consider outsourcing it. From accounting to lead generation (or even social media ghostwriting), if there’s a need, there’s a niche of hyper-focused talent available to serve it.
Another time-saver is to use systems and tools for recurring tasks. A little time spent initially setting up things like scheduling software or automating your monthly invoicing will save you much more time later.
5. Batch routine tasks
Some of the biggest time wasters are those everyday tasks like checking social media or responding to emails. Batch routine tasks by carving out specific times in his day for them—and then communicate that to others. For emails, try using an auto-responder message that says something like, “Thanks for your message. I check my emails twice a day, at 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. on weekdays. If your matter is urgent, please call me at 555-555-5555.” This lets people know that you will respond, provides another way to contact you if something is really important, and, more importantly, allows you to manage your time effectively.
6. Leverage the power of FAQs
Compile a list of your frequently asked questions (FAQs) and highlight a section on your website that addresses those queries. Also, be sure to include questions you’re routinely asked about a service you don’t offer. This helps people quickly understand what you do and who you serve, which will attract your ideal customers (and dissuade the less-than-ideal ones) and prevent you from wasting time speaking with someone you can’t help.
7. Work with your body’s natural rhythms
In his book, WHEN: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing, Daniel Pink explains that each of us has a “chronotype” — a personal pattern of circadian rhythms that influences our physiology and psychology. We each follow a three-stage day that includes either a peak-trough-rebound pattern (if you’re an early bird, or “lark”) or the reverse, a rebound-trough-peak pattern (if you’re a night owl). Pink found that regardless of your chronotype, you should do your most important work (whether that’s creative or analytical) during your peak period and your second-most important work in your rebound period. So save the mundane tasks for your trough.
8. Protect your time
If you find yourself always agreeing to things you wish you hadn’t, that are unnecessary, and that burn through your precious time, you need to learn to say no. The best leaders are available for their teams and clients within reason but establish and maintain healthy boundaries. You’re not obligated to be on 24/7, so limit your availability. This also means empowering the smart people you’ve hired to do their jobs without you and trusting them to keep you in the loop, which frees you up to focus on and say yes to what matters most.
Shine on,
Amy
P.S. Now that we’re inbox-exclusive, you might want to follow my musings across the interwebs on Forbes, LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram.
P.P.S. When I’m not creating daily doses of illuminating insights, I’m a social media ghostwriter. (Yep, that’s a thing). I help founders, entrepreneurs, and CXOs craft their stories to communicate and connect better by magnifying their reach and impact. (Think personal branding and thought leadership.) Learn more here.
P.P.P.S. You, my coruscant friend, have great taste in newsletters—thanks for subscribing! You are subscribed, right? If not, let’s fix that; click the blue button.
