1Is Your Personal Life Out of Control?

If you constantly feel stressed and like you do not have enough time to get things done, the truth is that you do have the time. It is the way you are organizing your day that significantly reduces the amount of time you have. If you are going to take control it is necessary for you to assess everything you are doing in your personal life so you can take a look at the big picture. Although everyone’s personal life is different, let's discuss a few suggestions to help you get started with getting the big picture of what your personal life may look like.

You can start by asking yourself some of these questions:

• How much time do you spend on the Internet?
• Is the time you spend on the Internet productive?
• How much time do you spend on housework?
• How long does it take to run your errands?
• What do you do when you run errands?
• How much time do you spend on personal paperwork?
• Does it consume a lot of time to pay your bills?
• How much time do you spend solving other people’s problems?
• Is a large percentage of your personal time spent on the needs of others?

These questions are meant to get you to start thinking about the way you run or don’t run your personal life. Once you begin, you will probably be able to think of a bunch of questions to ask yourself on your own.

As you review the list of questions, write down exactly what it is you are doing for the answer to each question. Once you see everything in front of you then you can break it down and decide how to minimize or eliminate some of the tasks altogether.

For example:

• If you are spending a lot of time on the Internet with unproductive activities, figure out a way to limit your time and pry yourself away from the computer.
• If you are spending a lot of time on personal paperwork, come up with a paperless system that works for you.
• Perhaps you are constantly making little trips to the grocery store. If so, consider bulk shopping so you only go every once in a while or get involved with grocery delivery if you have that service in your area.
• Paying the bills can be time consuming so consider setting up automatic payment.

Once you see the big picture of your list, you will be astounded when you discover how much time you are wasting and how much time you can pick up by doing an assessment and then creating a plan.

2Is Your Professional Life Out of Control?

It is not difficult to lose control of your professional time and it may almost seem like you turn around one day and your work life is suddenly spinning out of control. The truth is that it is the little administrative tasks that accumulate and creep up on you one-by-one. It may seem like overnight but it isn’t; however, that is not the point. The point is that you need to gain control of your time on the professional side of your life.

So how can you streamline your workload to erase the tasks that are most time-consuming without necessarily damaging your income? Does simplifying things lead to more productivity? Well, it may help you to know that there are ways to streamline your income and the answer is a resounding “yes” to the second question.

So let’s talk about some of the questions you should ask yourself:

• How much time do you spend answering email?
• Do you spend a lot of time sitting in meetings?
• Do you spend a lot of time in the car commuting to and from work?
• How much time do you spend on administrative tasks and paperwork?
• Do you spend a lot of time worrying about others?
• How much time do you spend on computer tasks?
• Are you running on overload with your “to do” list?

You can use these questions to get your thinking in motion and then add some of your own. Like your personal life, write down the answers to these questions as well as your own questions so you can see each task in front of you. Seeing it in front of you will help you to get the big picture so you can come up with solutions for each task. Everyone’s work situation is different however here are a few examples of how to free up your time:

• If you spend a lot of time on computer tasks there is a wealth of applications that can place some of these tasks on autopilot. For example, if you are answering emails that have the same questions, consider placing an FAQ list on the website or an autoresponder service.
• If the commute to work is getting to you perhaps you can arrange to telecommute a few days a week. With the explosion of ecommerce and new technology you could also choose to work from home entirely. It saves time and expenses and allows you more control over what you do.
• If you are overwhelmed with administrative tasks find a way to outsource them or delegate them to the appropriate workers. Remember that administrative work will be a significant part of your output so delegating these tasks will free up a lot of time for you to do other things. There are also software platforms that will help you streamline your administrative tasks.

This should provide you with a starting point for winning back control of your life so you can spend time on things you enjoy. Once you begin to eliminate the time wasting-tasks you will be amazed at how much more productive you are and you will have the time to enjoy a higher quality of life.