Focus Forward

“Failure is in my history, but greatness is in front of me.”

This past weekend I was watching Back To the Future starring Michael J Fox. In this classic movie, Michael’s character Marty Mcfly, and his scientist friend traveled through time in their DeLorean automobile time machine. If they were unhappy with their results, they hopped in the DeLorean and went back in time to make corrections. Their DeLorean gave them the opportunity for a “do over” if they made a bad decision.

Have you ever made a hiring decision, and after 30 days, wished you had a DeLorean to hop into? Or maybe you gave a sales presentation, but were unable to land the account. What about the time you interviewed unsuccessfully for that position and had regrets about how you answered the questions?

I have experienced each of these setbacks and can relate to the regret that you feel when they occur. When you hang on to the regret you waste time that should be invested in moving forward. The question becomes, how do you maintain a forward focus in spite of a painful past?  The answers below will help you to make better use of your time and experience less stress.

Inquiry
The inquiry I am referring to is with you.  Whenever you experience a setback, you should make an inquiry by asking yourself the following question: “What did I learn from this experience?”  Next,  make a list of your lessons learned and anytime you are tempted to beat your self up, refer back to your list.  Noted philosopher Edmond Burke said these very famous words: “Those who don't know history are destined to repeat it."  Focusing on the lesson will position you for future success and keep you from repeating the same mistakes.

Improvement
The second key to maintaining a forward focus is to commit to daily improvement. Every day you should do something to get better at your craft and move towards your calling. For example, I have a daily reading schedule that results in me reading three books a month. If I had a major setback three months ago, I don’t dwell on it because I realize that I have read nine books since then. I am smarter today than I was three months ago based on what I have read.

According to modern medical research, the cells in our bodies completely regenerate and renew themselves every 11 months. This means that you are a new creature and the mistakes of your past were performed by the OLD you! Referring to your lessons learned list and committing to daily improvement will help you to maintain a forward focus and make the most productive use of your time.

Sincerely,

Eric M. Twiggs
Your Procrastination Prevention Partner 

Don’t Let Technology Kill Your Time

“A failure to properly automate can cause you to procrastinate.”

The lack of technology killed my time. The year was 1992 and I was an undergrad at Hampton University. I wanted to make a phone call and decided to go the pay phone. I realized that I did not have quarter and had to go get change. When I got back, there was someone on the phone so I had to wait. 

Later in the day, I got a letter from a friend who had transferred to a school in Wisconsin. She updated me on how she was doing and wanted to hear back from me. There was no Facebook, email or texting, and I could not afford the long distance bill. My only option was to write her a letter, drop it in the mailbox, and wait. 

That evening, the pay phone was finally free so I decided that I would make a collect call to my parents and ask them to send me some money. The line was busy and since there were no cell phones or Skype service, I had to . . . wait. 

Now that we are in 2012, technology has eliminated all of my time management issues, right? 

Technology is like a gun. When used properly, it can protect your time and add to your life. Just like a gun, technology in the wrong hands can kill your time and keep you away from your family. Think about it, you can spend your entire day responding to emails, answering your cell phone, and communicating on social media. 

Have you ever been out at a restaurant in the evening and seen a guy who is with his family, but spends his entire time on his smartphone? If you can relate to that guy, the tools below are for you. They will help you to effectively use technology and get your time back:

1. RescueTime
   RescueTime is a free app that allows you to measure how much time you spend on email, the Internet and social media. It gives you daily and weekly productivity scores based on the amount of time you spend surfing. You can adjust the settings and program predetermined time limits for any website. Once you exceed your limit the app will deny you access to that site. For example, if you feel you spend too much time on Facebook, you can set a limit of 15 minutes per day. Once you exceed your limit, Rescue time will deny you access.

2. HootSuite
   If you are like me and use Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Google+, the HootSuite app can save you a great deal of time. It will allow you to send one message that will update on all of your social media accounts at the same time. HootSuite also gives you the option to schedule your posts in advance.

3. Sanebox
   This nifty service will help you keep your e-mail inbox clean by creating separate folders for unimportant messages. Sanebox will also allow you to create an “unsubscribe folder” where you can move any newsletter or blogs that you no longer read and unsubscribe to multiple lists with one click. You can also program follow up reminders for emails you've sent that haven't received a response.

There you have it. All three of these services are free and can save you a great deal of time.

Schedule Your Priorities

"Time is what we want the most, but use the worst." -- William Penn

Have you ever begun your week committed to take action only to arrive at Friday realizing that it didn't happen? This was the week that you were going to apply for that job, start that blog, write that business plan, or start writing your book. You tell yourself that even though you missed this week, you will get it done next week. Sadly, next week goes by and you have the same result. You are an intelligent, goal oriented go getter, so why didn't you follow through? 

The reason for your lack of follow through can be summed up in one word: LIFE. 

The normal demands of life can throw you off course. These demands can come from family, career, friends, or the organizations that you belong to. Modern technology makes it easier to be thrown off course now that we have cell phones, email, text messaging, and social media. We live in an era of instant access and interruptions are only one click away. So how do you accomplish your priorities in spite of all of these interruptions? 

Scheduling your priorities in advance is the key to success. Below are my three steps to scheduling your priorities:

1. Identify the Priority 
What are the tasks that if accomplished will help you to achieve your ultimate goal? To accurately identify your priority, you must use what I call "The line up" test. If the task does not "line up" with the ultimate vision and goals you have set for yourself, then it should not be considered a priority. For example, if your ultimate vision is to be an entrepreneur, then the task of writing a business plan passes the line up test and should be given priority status.

2. Isolate the Time 
This is where you use a calendar to schedule in advance those tasks that are priorities for you. Depending on the task, you may need to schedule multiple days to complete it. There are three steps involved with isolating the time: First, set aside a minimum of a thirty minute block of time to get it done. Next, get a timer and set it to alert you once your time is up. The final step is to discipline yourself to not check email, send text messages, use social media, or do anything other than that task during the time you have isolated. 

3. Issue the Communication 
It is very important that you communicate with those around you and let them know that you are not to be disturbed during the block of time that you have scheduled. They will need to answer the phone and take messages on your behalf. This communication can be issued to family members, co-workers, employees, etc. The more advance notice you can give to those around you, the better results you will see. For example, Sunday's from 8:00pm to 8:30pm is the time that I have set aside to analyze my results from the previous week and to make plans for the upcoming week. My family members and friends know in advance I will not be available during this time because I have issued the communication to them.

So there you have it. If you commit to identifying the priority, isolating the time, and issuing the communication, you will be on your way to time management mastery! Remember, it takes twenty one days to form a habit so consistent focus is the key. 

Become High Maintenance

"Delay is the enemy of your destiny."
Eric M Twiggs

Do you anticipate and prepare, or do you just react to what the day brings? While in my late 20s, I competed in Karate tournaments. I had a match scheduled with an older, slower but more experienced competitor named Mike. I was confident that I would win because of my youth and speed advantage. Mike had grey hair, a pot belly, and an old worn out Karate belt around his waist. I watched him warm up and my confidence increased because of his slow and awkward movements.

In spite of all of my confidence, I lost the match! Mike used his experience against me by anticipating my moves and responding with the appropriate counter. It appeared that he knew what I was going to do before I did. This experience taught me that anticipation and preparation can give you a competitive advantage over superior talent. The best way to achieve this advantage is to become "high maintenance". 

Becoming "high maintenance" means that you are focused on the maintenance activities that will keep you in a position of anticipation and preparation. A maintenance activity is easy to ignore because it's a priority, but it's NOT pressing. There is no deadline for completion and you don't experience an immediate negative consequence for ignoring it. This lulls you into thinking that everything is fine. The long-term consequence of neglecting maintenance is that you end up in the "mandatory zone". In this undesirable place, the activity is now a priority AND it's pressing. How do you know if you are high maintenance, or in the mandatory zone? The following scenarios will help you decide. 

• Changing your oil at the recommended intervals is high maintenance. Once you have a blown engine, you are in the mandatory zone

• Exercising three times a week makes you high maintenance. Getting the high blood pressure report from the doctor puts you in the mandatory zone.

• Scheduling regular date nights with your spouse is high maintenance. Having your spouse move out puts you in the mandatory zone.

When you are in the mandatory zone you lose precious time that you never get back. The time that you would normally focus on your goal is now spent on damage control.

Take the time today to reflect on your TO DO list. If the majority of your tasks are maintenance activities, you will be like Mike and have a competitive edge.

Use the Magic Word

"The more you say yes, the more you'll have stress." 
Eric M. Twiggs

Have you ever been so actively involved in everything that you didn't accomplish anything? I had a young lady named Lisa approach me wanting my advice on how to better manage her time. She admitted that she was feeling stressed out, and that there were not enough hours in the day to get things done. I offered to schedule a meeting with her for Thursday of that week to discuss the matter. Here is how the rest of our dialog went:

"Eric, Thursdays no good for me, I am the President of my Home owners association and we have a meeting. Ok Lisa, What about next Tuesday evening at 6:30pm? No Eric, that will not work either, I am the vice president of the PTA and we have a meeting scheduled. No problem Lisa, lets schedule for the following Saturday at 3:00pm. No Eric, that time is not good because I am chairing a special committee at work and we are planning a summer social."

Lisa was so overbooked, that she did not have time to address her time management issue! How did she get into this predicament? 

Lisa failed to use the magic word. If you fail to use this powerful word, you will be in the same situation. The magic word is NO. I suggest that you anticipate the requests that may come your way and create a "NO list" to record those offers that you know in advance to decline. Noted author Gary Ryan Blair is quoted as saying "Your success in life depends on having a short yes list and a LONG NO list." The question becomes, how do you know what requests belong on the list? Below are two areas to consider when compiling your NO list:

YOUR PASSIONS
If you do not have a passion for the request, that is a sign that It belongs on your NO list. You will be more productive by focusing your efforts in a few areas that line up with your passions, then by focusing on many areas out of obligation. Everyone has a specific calling and purpose in life. When I am involved in activities that are tied to purpose, I am more productive because passion and purpose are linked. This passion allows me to apply the energy that is needed to produce an excellent result. If you do not have a passion for the activity, you will just go through the motions. The following "snooze button test" will help you to measure your levels of passion: In the morning, if you hit the snooze button two or more times, this is a sign that you have committed yourself to activities that you are not passionate about. If you really love what you are doing, you can't wait to get your day started. Remember this formula: Passion + Purpose = Productivity. 

YOUR PRIORITIES 
Any request that does not line up with your short or long term priorities belongs on your NO list. Ask yourself the following three questions to help clarify your priorities: First, what do you want the obituary that will be written about your life to say? Answering this question will help you to gain clarity on your vision. Secondly, what are your goals for the next ninety days that will move you in the direction of your vision? Lastly, what do you need to do each day to accomplish your ninety day goals? Having your vision and goals in writing makes it easier to say NO to requests that don't line up. Any request that takes you away from your priorities is a distraction. Every time you say NO to a distraction, you are saying YES to your destiny.

In summary, considering your passions and priorities will help you to proactively create your NO list.