The 7 Deadly Sins of Time Management – Guest Blog from Kate Christie

Fuelling Ambition Guest Blogger, Kate Christie, CEO at Time Stylers on how to overcome the 7 deadly sins of time management and get back 30 hours of productive time a month.

As entrepreneurs and small business owners we can all be a little sinful when it comes to managing our time. Think about a typical day: the phones don’t stop, the emails don’t stop, the problems to solve don’t stop, the opportunities to win don’t stop, and so you don’t stop. In fact, if you did stop, then everything else would too.

Ok, so here’s the deal. Rather than stopping, maybe just hit the pause button for a few minutes and reflect on how you are going time management wise. Because if you are guilty of one or more of the following 7 Deadly Sins of Time Management then it’s probably time for an intervention.

The sin of Lust – You don’t love yourself

How much do you have on your plate? Do you have so many balls in the air, and often lust for more, that you are starting to drop a few here and there?

Unfortunately, the ball you most often drop is ‘self-care’. When you find yourself with a little time to spare, you never, ever spend it on yourself. Instead you fill it with another task or activity and you ignore your own health and wellbeing.

It’s time to do things differently: Start scheduling time for yourself in your calendar – a jog, a long walk, reading, sleeping, a massage. If you don’t start prioritising yourself then whatever else it is that you lust after – success, growth, happiness, family time – will also suffer.

The sin of Gluttony – You dont say No

Are you a Yes girl? Do you find it hard to say No to the multitude of business and personal requests that come your way every day? Where is it you think you can fit all of this in, and still do the things you really want and need to do for your business? There just isn’t enough time to do everything, and be everything, for everyone.

It’s time to do things differently: Every time you say Yes to someone, you are saying No to yourself. Learning to say No is challenging and will take persistence. Next time a request comes your way, just pause for a few seconds and think ’Is this the best use of my time’? If it’s not, then you don’t even need to say the ’N’ word, a simple: ‘I’m sorry but I’m working to a deadline at the moment’ will suffice.

The sin of Greed – You were told you could have it all. So, what happened?

You might think that you can have it all. You might even think you need it all. Wrong. Not only don’t you need it all, but chasing after the lot will leave your time budget on empty.

It’s time to do things differently: Take the time to think about your goals – what do you want to achieve over the next 5 years? It’s all about clarity and focus. Identify exactly what is most important to you because that’s what you need to chase. The rest is just white noise.

The sin of Sloth – You don’t know where to start and so you don’t

If Lust, Gluttony and Greed are ringing bells for you, then you know you need to start making some time changes. But just not today – today you have way too much on already. Today is just not the day.

It’s time to do things differently: You need to give yourself a deadline. A task or activity without a deadline will expand to fill the time available for it – that is – if you don’t give yourself a deadline to start changing your time habits you will never do it. Lock in a date for next week to start managing your time differently.

The sin of Wrath – Don’t get busy, get productive

When you catch up with a friend and they ask how you are, do you say ‘I’m so busy!’? Busy seems to have acquired a badge of honour. But it’s not – it’s a disease (truely, look it up ‘Busy Lifestyle Syndrome’). Then you feel annoyed that you are so busy, all of the time.

It’s time to do things differently: Next time someone asks you how you are, don’t respond ‘I’m so busy!’. Instead have a suite of positive answers such as ‘I’m great, I’m getting so much done!’. You will be surprised how a positive response will give both you and the conversation a boost.

The sin of Envy – Look at her…

Do you compare yourself to your friends and business colleagues? You know, the girls who seems to manage it all without raising a sweat. Or do you jump online and indulge is a bit of ‘Social Media Envy’? Why does her life look so much better than yours?

It’s time to do things differently: Stop second guessing your choices based on your perception of how amazing someone else’s life is. Set your own Goals. Identify your own Values. It’s your life – control the agenda.

Pride – You don’t ask for help

Are you trying to do it all on your own? Why? Look at this way – if you burn out, you will be replaced by a team of people to manage the many facets of your life. So, if it takes a team of people to replace you, how is it that you think you can manage it all on your own right now?

It’s time to do things differently: It’s OK to ask for help. It’s OK to expect help. It’s OK to pay for help. Start seeking help when you need it. Trying to do it all while attempting to maintain and grow your business success is not sustainable.

If you tick any or all of the 7 Deadly Sins of Time Management, its time to do things differently. Join Newable and Kate Christie on May 10th at our Fuelling Ambition conference to jump start your new approach to managing your time.

Tickets on sale now – www.fuellingambition.co.uk

Guest blog by Kate Christie, Time Stylers.

www.timestylers.com