4 Ways to Take Your Time Seriously
Consider these three scenarios:
- You’ve had a busy day at work and you decide to take a breather. After a one minute of sitting down with a cup of coffee, your boss calls your name and says, “Hey, do you have a minute?”
- You are ready to spend a moment with your favorite book when all of a sudden you get distracted by a phone: someone is trying to sell you a magazine subscription.
- You are about to make finishing touches to a project at work, but you get interrupted by the constant noise in the cubicle.
These
scenarios are very common and very annoying.
You
are tired of distraction and of the fact that others are defining
your rhythm and productivity. With constant distractions and requests, you are
not getting enough time for recovery or for getting things done.
Your time usage is dictated by
others. It’s no wonder that you want to change the situation and get your
stolen time back!
Are
you too accessible and helpful?
The main reason why people let
others dictate their productivity and steal their time is being too helpful.
For instance, when someone comes to
you and makes a request, you want to be help. Also, you don’t want to let down
their expectations by saying “no” to them.
Another thing that “helps” time
thieves to steal your time is being too accessible. You want to be reachable
and open towards others as much as possible. This gives you the reputation of
being a nice and trustworthy person.
However, both of these traits have
their downsides too.
In a work environment, you get
bombarded with requests whenever possible, thus interrupting your productive
time.
At home, you might have a problem
with focusing on your own personal projects or finding time to relax in a
middle of a hectic work week.
Obviously, there is one crucial
thing that is missing in this picture. Do you know what it is?
The
negative effects of missing boundaries
Boundaries can be set as physical or
non-physical ones and they define the rules you operate by and the way that
others should operate as well.
If you haven’t defined boundaries,
you are potentially jeopardizing your productivity and it makes easier for
others to steal your time.
First, boundaries define how to
handle the situation when something unexpected comes up. For instance, this
could be the case when your boss comes to you and gives you an extra
assignment.
Second, boundaries help you to
protect your time. However, when the boundaries are missing, then people think
it’s OK to interrupt you with their requests. They expect that you are
accessible whenever they wish.
Third, the lack of using the word
“no.” Now, it’s not always easy to say “no,” but it can be done firmly, while
still leaving the other person with a good impression of you.
Fourth, an important part of the
boundaries is communication. This can be divided into either verbal or written
communication and depending on its clearness, that’s how strong or weak your
boundaries are.
With proper communication, you are
able to block requests that would otherwise make your already busy schedule
busier.
Finally, understand that the word
“no” is essential too when it comes to defending your personal boundaries.
Instead, saying the word “yes” is an open request for time thieves to grab the
piece of your time.
Although the word “no” is part of
the communication point #4, I wanted to mention it separately, as I think it’s
the cornerstone setting your boundaries on a daily basis
Sorry
thieves, the police is here!
To catch the time thieves and give
you back the stolen time, follow this plan:
First and foremost, it’s important
to set your expectations straight – whether it’s at work or at your home. When
people know that you are working on something important, it helps them to
respect your time too.
For instance, when someone comes to you at the cubicle, let
the person know that you are working on something important and cannot be disturbed. Also, let people know about your
phone and e-mail answering policies.
At home, communication is the key as
well. For instance, I’m building my online business on the side (on top
of my day job), so I’ll let my family know when I work and when I shouldn’t be
interrupted.
When everyone is on the line, no
false expectations are set and everyone knows the rules to follow.
It’s a good idea to “isolate”
yourself too. By isolation, I’m not talking about disappearing for hours
without telling anyone where you are. Instead, I’m talking about controlled
isolation, which doesn’t make everyone else concerned.
At work, this isolation could be
done by booking a meeting room and working there, at home this could be done by
going to work outside (nature, coffee shop, and library) and communicating to
your spouse that you’ll be away for a certain amount of time.
There is one thing to note: You
should take a phone with you, so that your spouse can contact you in case of a
family emergency. Naturally, you want to be with your family if something
notable happens.
Finally, reduce your commitments
that aren’t necessary. The more commitments you have, the more probable it is
that you will have to give up your time for something you don’t like.
For instance, I belonged to a local
computer club in my town and I was asked to be a board member for the club. At
first I said yes, but eventually I gave up on the position even though others
wanted me to stay.
Eventually I stopped participating
in the club’s activities, because I wanted to focus on other things in my life
instead. This eliminated some of my commitments and my personal schedules
became simpler.
Let’s
define your anti-theft alarm system
Follow these four steps to defend
yourself from time thieves:
- Set your communication policies.If you are at work and feel that you get interrupted a lot, set the auto-responder message telling others when you process your e-mails. This way others are not expecting you to get back to them as soon as possible.It’s also a good idea to mute your phone when you work and also let others know about this too (and also, when you do answer the phone).
- Isolate yourself.Book a meeting room at the office if you want to get work done. If possible, you can also work remotely from home if it’s quiet and peaceful there (for instance when kids are at school).At home, if you feel interrupted constantly, try to find a spot in the nature, a coffee shop or a library to do the work. Let your spouse know where you are, how long you are going to be away and at which number he/she can call you in the case of emergency.
- Communicate clearly.Make sure other people truly understand your rules and that they don’t assume anything.Also, have a mutual understanding with your boss when it comes to work assignments. Let him/her know that sudden assignments are weakening your working productivity.The same clear communication works with your family too. You can even create a document showing your working schedule and put it in your refrigerator door, so that it’s easily available and other family members can see it.
- Learn to say no. Finally, learn to say no. Although it can be challenging, it’s doable. What matters the most is how you do it.
Conclusion
Time thieves are everywhere and in
most of the cases they are not even aware that they are taking your time away.
That’s why it’s important to define
boundaries and let everyone know about them. This way, you can focus on your
work or for recharging your batteries
http://www.lifehack.org/articles/productivity/4-ways-of-keeping-time-thieves-at-bay.html
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