How to protect your most valuable asset

by Dr. Rick Goodman, CSP

Leaders and entrepreneurs, I’ve got a question for you: What’s the most valuable asset you’ve got? I’ll give you three guesses, but I suspect you won’t need but one. Most of us realize that time is the most precious commodity we have—the only thing we can never get more of.

So naturally, as your most precious asset, time is something you should protect, right? Well, sure … but the question is how.

How can you guard your time—keeping other people from disrespecting, abusing, and wasting it, and keeping yourself from squandering it?

There are a few common-sense solutions I’ve come up with over the years, and I’ll share them with you.

Five Strategies for Safeguarding Your Time

  1. Schedule some appointments with yourself. Get out your calendar and mark off some blocks of time, throughout the week, to just be alone in your office and get stuff done. That means no phone calls or meetings. If people want to get in touch with you, tell them to schedule something for some other These blocks of time are your windows for productivity—so make good use of them!
  2. Don’t be afraid to turn down requests for your time. Just say no. You don’t have to be at every meeting or become involved with every project. It’s not rude to say no to some things in order to protect your time.
  3. Be willing to propose shorter meetings; if someone wants two hours of your time but you think the issues at stake only warrant half an hour, say so. Be willing to work with people, but unwilling to spend more of your time than is truly necessary.
  4. Beware of the people in your professional circles who are constantly scheduling things at the very last minute—and don’t hesitate to tell them that you need more time to plan.
  5. Note, as you set your appointments and schedule time for yourself, that you need to be protective of your time in every facet of your life—including personal. That means scheduling time for family, friends, and physical fitness, to say nothing of vacations and down time.

Remember: You can’t buy more time. So make prudent use of what you’ve got!


 

About the author: Dr. Rick Goodman, CSP, is a thought leader in the world of leadership and is a sought after conference keynote speaker on leadership, engagement and business growth in the United States and internationally. You can contact Dr. Rick at www.rickgoodman.com or call 888-267-6098.

| 3/15/2016 12:00:00 AM | 0 comments
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