Do the task or play in traffic?
The pic shows a small sampling of the planners/calendars/systems I have tried over the years.
I can't even tell you how much time I spent learning how to manage my time over the last 10+ years. I have always geeked out on productivity, creating systems, planning, and so forth.
Is it best to use a calendar or a list? Digital or paper? Which paper version is the best? I even had two custom planners created for myself. I even upgraded one to the highest quality of paper, and it ended up weighing about 17 pounds, lol.
It's not that I wanted to work less. It's that I wanted to have more to show for the work I was doing. And I think it's fun because I'm exciting like that. I live on the edge like that. But seriously, time is the only thing we cannot create more of, and I wanted to make sure that I was using mine the best way possible.
I tried all the systems that are out there. I created my own, several versions of my own. I created insanely complicated, and ironically, time-consuming systems. I had one system that took about 5 hours to get it up and going each week.
I even created a random system that seemed super fun at the time. I would create a list of everything I could or should do, and I would have Siri pick a random number, and I would do the task associated with that number. People always got super excited about this one, and I still use it for household stuff from time-to-time, but I do not use this for anything important.
I ended up with a solid system that worked well (I developed it after 10+ years of trial and error), but I still felt like something was missing.
And then, I went through the certification process to become a life coach. And I found the missing piece during that process. Managing time is 50% math (how-to, logistics, framework, action steps, the "plan"), and 50% managing your mind.
I had the math part down like a profesh. But, not so much on the mind part.
It is managing your mind so you can set a "scary" goal and follow-through on the actions it will take to hit that goal even when it feels super uncomfortable.
It's learning the skill to follow-through when convinced that you're going to fail.
It's learning how to do the tedious, mundane tasks that are the last thing you want to do at the moment. It's learning what to do when you get to Tuesday at 10 AM and would rather play in traffic than do what you have scheduled.
I struggled with the mind management part for many years (and had no idea that was the problem).
If you feel frustrated and exhausted most of the time, you're probably trying to use willpower, and that is not sustainable.
If you feel like you are always busy and working your ass off but have very little to show for it, I can help you.
If you dread Monday mornings because you're super busy and don't have enough time to do it all, I can help you.
If you feel like you are "white-knuckling" your way to accomplishing your big goal, I can help you.
You cannot effectively manage your time without also managing your mind, and I can teach you how to do both.
Click here to book your free consultation to find out if my program is a good fit for you.
Machele Galloway is a Certified Life Coach through The Life Coach School. She's based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and specializes in helping her clients manage their time and their minds. She firmly believes that you can't manage one without managing the other. She virtually coaches women nationwide. If she isn't coaching clients, she is studying concepts and techniques. And if she isn't doing that, she's probably playing with a dog somewhere. If you are interested in working with Machele, click here to schedule your free consultation to find out if it’s a good fit for you.
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