In today’s world, there are those who command the details of their lives. As an Olympian Life Coach, you will encounter individuals who deeply desire to make the transition from one of the ordinary people in the world into the world of the extraordinary.
One of the most powerful levers that you can throw that powers your ability to create huge momentum toward the life that you desire, the life that is yours for the having is to gain power over the one thing which once it is gone can never be recovered: Time.
If you can learn to manage your time, you can easily become the maximizer of your efforts and desires. You can harness this power over time and pass it onto your clients who up until now may have been victims of time instead of its master.
As you begin to wield the power of time, your mind, your body, and your higher self become more exponentially powerful. It permeates all areas of one’s life, increasing potential, possibilities, healthfulness, happiness, and love, and things, the desires of your heart, start coming to you more easily.
There are many time management techniques, some will work better for some people than others. You need to find the system that works best for you, who you are, but you will have to try them, to see which one(s) are the best fit, and your clients would be advised to try them on for size as well.
While we understand that you cannot actually change time to fit your needs, you can change the way you interact with and use the time that is available to you.
Before you start to experiment with different methods of managing your time, you need to first evaluate how time is managing you.
The Skittles Time Evaluation is my favorite method to use for myself or my clients in a colorful (and flavorful) way to take a snapshot of what one week of time will look like at any given time. Plus, it’s fun. It’s a light-hearted approach to a heavy subject in life.
Get a weekly time management sheet by the hour, like this one:
There are five colors of Skittles available to designate the five most important areas of life which are restricted by the power of time. Use one Skittle to represent one-half hour of your time in life.
Once you have your Skittles chart of how time is passing day-in and day-out, you can find ways to maximize your efficacy inside the time which you are already using, as well as the undesignated time left available.
While over the course of your life and your work with others, you will learn many techniques to home your time management skills, here are the top 5 ways to manage your time from in the beginning.
5 Ways to Manage Your Time
1 – Set Goals with Intention and Purpose
Most people are not productive when it comes to setting goals. You will be miles ahead if you are mindful of the goals that you set. Prior to setting your sights on a goal to achieve do a heart-check and ask yourself,
“Is this in line with my highest and best?”
This will help you sort through those things that are in your best interests, and those that are not. If you are uniquely aligned with a particular goal, your success is more likely assured, otherwise it would be more of a distraction or side-gig.
2 – Prioritize
As you sift and sort through the tasks that you perform each day, separate them at least into two categories: Important and Unimportant. Focus your attention on the important things first.
A more advanced method of prioritization includes separating goals into short-term and long-term goals, then applying Steven Covey’s 4 Quadrants
Quadrant I is for the tasks which are both immediate and important. Do these tasks.
Quadrant II is for strategizing and development of long-term goals. If they are in alignment with your highest and best, make plans for them.
Quadrant III is for distractions that have pressure attached to them. (Someone wants you to do it now, but it’s not really that important.) Delegate these things for others to do, if you can.
Quadrant IV is for all those activities which do not serve you, have no effect on your life or sense of contribution, and are basically a waste of your time. (Think mindless internet browsing or binge-watching series on Netflix.) Eliminate these things from your list, your schedule, your life.
3 – Map Out Your Day
Make sure you don’t get overwhelmed with putting all your focus and attention on work-related activities. Make time for family, time with your partner, and time for yourself. This promotes healthful balance in all areas of life. Make time for those things that are good and important areas of your life.
Be certain to include time for healthy eating and exercise.
4 – Use or Create a System
I started using the Franklin Covey time management system. FC now has an app for your phone, consider giving it a try. No one system is perfect. Once you find a system that works for you, do not let your commitment be set in stone. It is likely that any form of time management tool will help. Some will be more effective than others, and what works best for you will change over time, as you do.
5 – Evaluate and Refine
With all this attention to managing your use or time balanced with heart and intention, you can maximize your efforts by regularly evaluating where you are at any given time. Do the Skittles project every once in a while and review where you are. Then always be looking at ways you can refine and enhance how you use each hour that is available to you each day.
