Time Management – too many tasks and not enough time – 10 day plan
I once was sat with a client who protested “I could have 10 days in a week and I’d still not have enough time to get everything done!”
We went on to create a 10 day week and they were right, they had too much to do! But through their coaching session they created this plan and now miraculously have more time, less stress and achieve more. The 10 day week is a strategy for time management that is so powerful that I share it with many business owners, teams and leaders and it helps increase productivity and creativity and reduce stress too.
Below you can download your own version and ensure you also ask the below questions(these are some of the ones that featured in my session with my client), because often when you don’t have enough time in your day these things are the real issue;
- Not wanting to upset someone by not replying immediately.
- Not wanting to look like you can’t cope.
- Fearing missing out or of what people will think of you if you leave the task they’ve asked you to do.
- Fear of missing out on opportunities.
- Getting on with the unimportant tasks because they feel easier and you assume the big tasks will fail, be hard or not work.
- Lacking confidence.
- Lacking skills.
- Lacking communication skills to ask for what you want or need.
Questions to ask yourself;
- At what time of the day do I set my to do list? (Last thing at night is the key time.)
- Do I open emails at all times of the day or at a set time? (Opening emails and not actioning them wastes precious time, my clients learn to handle every item, message, email task only once.
- Am I on my agenda or manipulated by others needs? (Can you Justers feature in my book Fight the fear in Chapter 6. Learn how to communicate with them so you achieve more.)
- Do I have clear goals for this week? This month? This year?
- Do I honour my needs?
- Do I put myself at the bottom of the importance list?
- What stops me from believing in my ability to achieve?
- What stops me from picking up the phone so I hide behind email?
- What assumptions am I making on the outcome of this activity? Is it helpful or hindering.
There are lot of questions you need to ask yourself, but if you aren’t achieving it is more likely to do with your perception of what is importance, your confidence and communication and prioritising what your success needs. I’m happy to have a chat to look at this in more detail.10 day plan
- When you set up a 10 day week, start on any day you like. You can include weekends or block them out so you only have the working days featuring.
- Follow the instructions on the worksheet and question what reasons there could be on inaction or lack of completion.10 day plan
- Personally I use an A3 piece of paper and different colours to denote money making jobs, clients needs, silent working time, etc. You don’t have to include lines to your day column although for me I find it makes me take time seriously. I quite often find that I’m so focused on the goals for that week/month/year that I can get ahead of schedule and I’ve never been so update on emails too – hope it helps you too.
My online mastermind group is only £5 a month and gets incredibly results. I’ve just launched all my courses for my mastermind group at £1 each so that I can add more low cost ways to support those looking to achieve more no matter what. Learn more here.
I know why you will work on a bank holiday – and you aren’t going to like it.
I know you have a mountain of things to get done and the bank holiday seems like a great opportunity to get ahead, right?
But here’s the thing, I once created a 10 day week for a client, and they could see that no matter how much time you create – you will fill it.
Mountains of research points to the benefits on your minds ability to problem solve, get creative, get productive and even sell more from having a bit of down time. Space.
That’s not checking your phone. That’s going for a bike ride. Painting a picture. Walking the dog. Yoga. The Gym. A barbecue with friends. Reading for no other reading than you love the book. Tinkering in your garage/studio/hobby room or garden.
Just real brain space from work.
The reason you won’t do it is because there’s a real fear hiding there;
- The fear that you will let someone down.
- That you will miss out on an opportunity.
- That someone will think badly of you.
- That you will look unprofessional.
- That you won’t get it all done. (MYTH; No one ever gets it all done. Those that are looking to achieve big, that believe in more will ALWAYS be able to find something else that “needs to be done.”)
- That you believe the only way to success is through agonising hours and making sacrifices (Assumptions are never good for success.)
The list of excuses for not turning off the phone and stepping away is endless. And I’ve probably heard them all;
- You don’t get it.
- It can’t be done like that tin our industry.
- It must be done immediately.
- I’m very driven – and it has to happen today.
- No one leaves these.
- Etc, etc.
In every case the client has been able to see the detrimental effect that needing to work 24/7 has on their long-term success, their happiness, their family and friends, their health even their ability to make more money.
So, trust me when I say, step away from the phone/laptop/report.
Escape.
If you want lasting success – Escape. It’s just one day.
But before you escape you need to;
- Work out what fears stop you. Fixing one day won’t fix the fear – find it, take ownership of it and get a plan of action to fight it. (I’ve seen this work so powerfully, thus please do take action.)
- Put into place clear structure to your working day – that others know and respect too. You may work at 7 am and 8 pm but is that 7 days a week? Is there an hour on a Thursday where you go to a class that is yours? Don’t be afraid to own time.
- Put boundaries in place – if you will answer emails 24/7 do you expect everyone else to as well or is it just you that needs to be a superhero?
- Know your goals. If your goal for this month is to achieve X – how will that still happen with 2 working days off? What needs to happen? Who needs to know? What adjustments do you need to make? (A great thing to remember here is if you can make 2 days disappear for fun this month and still achieve your goals, think how much more you could get done next month since you will be gaining 2 days!)
- Trust – have faith. Don’t get me wrong I can still hyperventilate if there’s a lot going on at work about turning the phone off for 17 days (last holiday duration) but with the right processes, the right clients, the right team, the right attitude and the right believes – wow it’s good for you and your success.
Not feeling it?
Feel this is impossible to do?
I’m more than happy to have a chat anytime. Well you know how it is right?