3 Ways To Re-Think Your Time

If you are like many busy professionals, you might be doing alright or ‘fine’, but feel a bit stuck in the grind, and like you’re ‘going, going, going’ . . .

Yet feeling like you're accomplishing little and not moving forward on your goals (or not as much as you'd like to be).

And, when you are always on the go or overloaded, this can be a serious roadblock to your inner happiness and focus.

You are definitely not alone. One of the most common stressors professionals face is a busy workload. 

When you are continually expected to do more with less and you feel spread thin. The pace is moving fast and things keep shifting or unclear, and it’s hard to keep up. 

You might be ruled by "urgent" requests that fill your inbox, and you’re unable to put those aside to focus on what’s truly important, even when you know you should.

And if you’re like I used to be, you are driven and don’t want to let people down, so you take on too much or feel like you have to be involved in everything going on.

You likely feel the need to work extra hours just to keep up or find yourself always thinking about work at home.

You might worry about what to do, or what others will think if you have to actually say no.

I get it. That used to be me until I realized there was a better way – a path where you can be happy, balanced and successful regardless of your position or career.

"Only once you give yourself permission to stop trying to do it all, to stop saying yes to everyone, can you make your highest contribution towards the things that really matter.” - Greg McKeown

As you have heard me say over and over again, while you might not have control over the demands and expectations that come your way, you do have control over how you view and respond to those demands.

You have a CHOICE and you can be more selective in what you CHOOSE to do and how you think about your time.

And, to step out of the grind, we need to challenge the traditional thinking around “time management”.

Rather than just managing your time with your big to-do list, instead, move into the driver’s seat and be intentional to own your days (instead of your days owning you).

This requires a shift in how you think about your time and your habits.

Highly successful and balanced people think about time differently. They experiencetime differently. This has been well-researched and scientifically proven. 

They use their time more wisely – choosing what to focus on, and thinking about their values, priorities, and consistent habits.

Here are three ways to re-think your time to help you make some of those choices.

1) Value your time WAY more.

Your time is your most valuable, precious resource and extremely limited. Even more than money.

When you look at it through that lens, you will invest your minutes more wisely and waste less of them on unimportant or lower priority tasks. You'll guard your time more closely and design your days, rather than just trying to manage it all.

And you can put more of your time and energy into what really matters, both at work and at home.

Think about this for a moment: If everyone has the same number of hours in a day, why do some people seem to get so much more done than others (without putting in long hours)?

The answer is they have a more powerful mindset and habits, and get to the heart of things that align with their values, and what really matters in their approach and their priorities.

2) Give yourself permission to stop trying to do it all – at work and at home.

Start saying yes to what really matters and get used to saying no far more often.

While it can be tempting to do everything or have ten priorities at a time, you can instead adopt a more focused approach on what is truly essential.

It’s about making trade-offs. You can also do this with grace, confidence and ease.

You only have so much time and energy, and when you spread yourself out, you spread yourself thin.

Besides, you’ll never get caught up because there will always be more to do!

3) Get clear on what is THE most important.

There can only be one most important thing. Many things may be important, but only one can be the most important.

Somewhere in the busy working world, the idea around priorities has been watered down. Is it really a priority, if you have 10 of them? Which to focus on first?

By getting clear on the one thing – the most important thing – it helps guide your decisions when you face those tougher trade-offs and choices when your values or priorities are in conflict.

When you are unsure what to do, being clear on what’s most important can make the decision much easier. And then having the courage to follow through on that decision.

It can mean being clear on what’s the most important goal to focus on for the upcoming quarter, or the most important task for the day, or even stronger, your most important value.

For me, both family and achievement are my values. And there are times when I will be putting my attention more to one than the other.

But I am very clear on what’s most important. For me, family is my number one value. Because, for me, the rest of it doesn't matter without them.

I check in with this value – every. single. day. I rarely ever feel out of balance. And accomplishing more than ever.

To do this, I need to be more focused and selective in what I choose to do to be successful in my work. To play within my boundaries. You can do this too.

Many professionals believe they can’t possibly do more without compromising their happiness and sense of balance – that to be successful, they must sacrifice their personal and family time.

This simply isn’t true – it’s a choice you are making. And there are other choices available to you. Re-thinking how you spend your time and focusing on what really matters is a start!

What Next?

You can sign up for Stacey's masterclass, The Confident "No" here.

Stacey L. Olson is a Leadership and Certified Positive Psychology Coach, has 15 years of corporate experience and has gone through her own transformational change from burning out to balanced in life while performing at a high level (both in her corporate career and own business). She works with professionals who want to work less, live more and be their best even with all the demands, high expectations and messiness of everyday life. Stacey is the founder of The Balanced Leader™ program and offers executive and leadership coaching, workshops, and speaking.