From downsizing to outsourcing, time management continues to be an integral part of achieving success for today's small business owners, entrepreneurs, executives and professionals. Whether the industry is education, government, healthcare, manufacturing, not-for-profit or professional services, individuals on a daily basis make critical decisions based upon their available or not so available time.
Let's step away the issue of time management for a moment to ask the following question: Why do I need to manage time? In my experiences as a small business coach and business consultant, the responses that I have heard are many. Yet, I have never received the following answer: I need to manage time because of my written goals.
Consider, if you didn't have goals - from being at work, meeting with clients or attending day to day business commitments, why would anyone care about time, let alone the desire to manage time? HINT: Time management is an oxymoron as no one can manage a constant.
Possibly because many individuals do not connect their time management to their written goals this may help to explain why effective and sustainable time management is so elusive. Many time management workshops focus on the standard learning objectives such as:
Identify the 3 D's (Do It, Delegate It, Dump It)
Differentiate between Must Do and Should Do
Understand urgent and important
Create a "To Do List"
Eliminate procrastination
Yet, very few seminars or on-site training integrate time management into goal planning and goal achievement. The W.H.Y. and S.M.A.R.T. (Written, Habit Forming, Yours; Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistically High and Time Driven) criteria for goal setting, clearly demonstrates the value of time because its position is last.
Now imagine your time management system fully connected into your written goals.
Would you not experience more consistent success?
Would you not have a better handle on time because you have a better handle on your own self?
And, how would you feel seeing your successes grow?
To truly be a Time Management expert requires you to be a committed goal planner and goal achievement expert, because good time management is the apex of goal setting.
