Be a Master of Your Time
-----Time-management strategies for entrepreneurs
Self-professed “No B.S.” entrepreneur and author Dan
Kennedy takes a hardnosed approach to time management in his book No B.S.: Time Management for Entrepreneurs
(Entrepreneur Press, 2044). He says despite your description, no one works an
eight-hour workday. Why? “Not a soul on the planet gets in eight productive
hours a day.” The culprits are so-called “time vampires,” meetings,
interruptions and lack of discipline. Kennedy offers these strategies for
increasing your productivity and maintaining your sanity:
1. If
you don’t know what your time is worth, you can’t expect the world to know it
either. Just like an attorney, think of your time as billable. For every minute
you waste, think of the money you also wasted.
2. Time
vampires will suck as much blood out of you as you permit. A typical time
vampire is Mr. “I just have a quick question,” who drops by several times a
day. Kennedy says to imagine him like a vampire sucking out a pint or two of
blood each time. By he end of the day, you’re drained.
3. If
they can’t find you, they can’t interrupt you. The average business owner is
interrupted once every eight minutes. That adds up to a lot of lost minutes. Kennedy
suggests setting aside “do not disturb” times at work, with a closed door and a
phone- and email-off policy.
4. Punctuality
provides personal power. Kennedy says you cannot reasonably hope to have others
treat your time with respect if you show little or no respect for theirs. So,
do what you gotta do, and be on time.
Source: Success ] From Home. Volume 10 – Issue 4,
April 2014.
