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highly successful people don’t think about time much at all. Instead, they think about values, priorities, and consistent habits.
“only 1440 minutes” as they prioritized tasks or turned down invitations to irrelevant meetings.
Yet, the single most important thing when it comes to time and productivity isn’t a tactic or a trick—it’s a shift in mindset.
Before I decide to take on a new project, I analyze it…How much of my time will this take, and what is my financial upside potential. I create a “dollar per minute” analysis, hopefully a million dollar per week upside. –Kevin Harrington is
Highly successful people have a similar list—but they rank time as the most important item of all.
But time… You can never lose time and get it back again.
You can’t spend time and go earn more of it. You can’t buy it, rent it, or borrow it.
Time is unique because it’s the one true equalizer. Some people are born rich, others born poor. Some have Ivy League degrees, while others are high school dropouts. Some are genetically gifted athletes, others physically challenged. But we all have the same minutes in a day. Time is the lowest common denominator.
Think about how much attention you give to your money. Working hard to make money, tracking your money in your bank account, researching the best ways to invest your money, reading about ways to make more money, worrying that somebody might steal your money.
You would never leave your wallet sitting out in the open. You’d never give your ATM card and password to a bunch of strangers.
And yet we typically think little about our time. We routinely let people steal our time, even though it’...
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“1,440” on a piece of paper and tape it on your office door, under your TV, next to your computer monitor—wherever it will best serve as a constant reminder of the very limited and oh so precious time you have each day.
Highly successful people feel the passage of time. They know the potential that every minute holds.
Time is your most valuable and scarcest resource.
The Power of Proper Priorities
What’s Your One Thing?
“It is those who concentrate on but one thing at a time who advance in this world.” –Og Mandino
“Efficiency is doing the thing right. Effectiveness is doing the right thing.” –Peter Drucker
Identify Your Most Important Task (MIT)
the most important things are to know what to focus on and how you are going to get it done. I call this always knowing your most important task, or MIT.
In addition to increased productivity, having a daily MIT correlates to higher levels of happiness and energy.
but it all comes down to understanding what is most important to you and what activity right now will provide the greatest leverage to getting there.
Most people set goals for health, wealth, and relationships.
After identifying your most important goal, you need to identify which activities will lead to goal achievement and which activity is most important right now.
Don’t get sidetracked by the goal setting if you don’t already have identified goals. In fact, other experts, like CEO coach Peter Bregman, suggest that there is a downside to goals. Instead, Bregman suggests picking focus areas.
If you want to build great products, devote more than 50 percent of your work hours to product. Don't accept speaking opportunities if you can't justify them as benefitting your users or your company. –Mark Pincus is the co-founder and CEO of Zynga.
Two Awesome Hours in the Morning
After identifying your MIT, you need to turn it into a calendar item and book it as early in your day as possible.
Why do we do this? Why do we spend our best hours on our least important tasks?
Not only are most people at their cognitive best earlier in the day, but it’s less likely that unexpected items will jump onto the calendar or require urgent attention.
SECRET #2 Identify your Most Important Task (MIT) and work on it each day before doing anything else.
Stop Making To-Do Lists—Do This Instead
To-do lists should be called nagging wish-lists. A series of tasks you hope to accomplish,
Live Life from Your Calendar
One of the most consistent messages I got from all the interviews and research I did for this book was that no matter what it is, if you truly want to get it done, schedule time for it.
Surprisingly, the simple act of scheduling tasks on your calendar—instead of writing them on a to-do list—will free your mind, reduce stress, and increase cognitive performance.
First, schedule a chunk of time for everything that is important to you; this is called “time blocking” or “time boxing.” If you truly value being healthy and have decided that a 30-minute daily workout is your enabling goal, then don’t put it on your to-do list—put it on your calendar. Schedule it as a recurring appointment.
Second, important items should be scheduled as early in the day as possible.
Third, don’t cancel goals; reschedule them if necessary.
Fourth, treat your time-blocked calendar entries as if they were appointments with your doctor; they are that important.
Most of us cave in on our self-scheduled appointments too easily.
Would you still agree to give away that time and show up for your doctor 15 minutes late? Of course not.
If it's not in my calendar, it won't get done. But if it is in my calendar, it will get done. I schedule out every 15 minutes of every day to conduct meetings, review materials, write, and do any activities I need to get done.
“I have an important appointment on my calendar from 4:00 to 5:00. Is there any chance we can talk after 5:00, or can it wait until the morning?” You’ll be surprised at how frequently the unanticipated item can then be scheduled in an open block.
