Time Management and Leadership
“I’ve come to believe that seeking happiness is not a frivolous pursuit. It’s honorable and necessary. And most people forget even to think about it.”
– Goldie Hawn
I was picking my daughter up after a sport practice. Another friend was there getting her daughter also. She was obviously in a hurry as she tried to get her daughter to gather her things. She told me that she now had to take her daughter to softball practice while her son also had baseball practice. Then she also mentioned that her daughter had dance practice after that. I felt exhausted just hearing her itinerary.
Sometimes we get into busy schedules because we think we have to be in those schedules. But the reality is that how we spend each moment of our day is a choice, which is based on what we treat as a priority. There is a statement that where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. How we spend our time is a great way to account for what we see as important.
That week I had also met with a client for a coaching session. Coming into the session, he said he needed help with time management. He is a very successful leader, who happens to be in a time of transition. He is cutting away responsibilities in one area of his job so that he can move into another position. We can all enter seasons with these kinds of challenges.
He kept repeating the statement that he was losing his “margin” time and feared burn-out. When we become too busy we tend to run from one activity to the next without taking time to think. What was revealed in our time together is the need to protect his “reflective” time so that he does not spend his life in reactive activities.
We can feel that there are so many tasks to be done, so we look for every nook and cranny to fit them in. But what happens is that our life becomes directed by activities and tasks rather than our purpose directing our lives. And more important we end up being distracted by tasks from recognizing opportunities of the present, which would help us get to our ultimate purpose even faster. An interim position maintains the current level; a leader moves to the next level.
So here are some questions to ask yourself:
- Is your schedule determined by how to fit in one more task or activity?
- Do you have “margin” time (open space to reflect) in your schedule?
- Do you feel that you are on the edge of burnout?
- Are you maintaining or leading?
How we use our time is ultimately our choice. We can feel so busy at times that we don’t have a choice. But ultimately we always have a choice. What are the options for putting more margin into your schedule? And the big question is: What is the fear keeping you from doing it?