Confessions of a Time Management Loser
I’m a loser when it comes to traditional time management.
My desk is often cluttered (it is even now as I type), my email inbox is often overflowing (I started the day with 137 emails needing a response), and I'm horribly slow at returning phone calls (the phone just rang and I kept on typing—it went to voicemail—I'll get to it later).
If I were a traditional time management man, I would be ashamed to speak so honestly with you like this.
But here’s another confession.
I think the focus of traditional time management is way wrong for the age in which we live.
Let me explain.
Traditional time management is about doing things right. Clean desks. Zero emails in your inbox. No dandelions in your yard. No phone calls left unreturned. No sentences left un….
But are those things really the most important things in life?
I think not.
You could get all of those things right and miss life.
I contend that healthy time management is not about doing things right—as much as it is doing the right things.
I'm not against doing things right... if I have the time. But who does? So—with my limited time—I choose to focus on doing the right things for this particular season of my life.
I'm usually able to eat evening meals with my family. I enjoy regular walks and jogs with my wife. And I'm reading the Bible completely through again this year.
Don't get me wrong. My life is far from perfect—and I have lots of areas that need attention. But because I have a sense of God's priorities for my life at this season, that which is most important is usually getting my time, energy, and attention.
However, it's a trade off.
My garage needs to be cleaned and organized. My desk needs cleaned off. My email inbox is packed. And my phone has voicemail messages waiting for me. I’ll eventually give these things some time and attention—but not at the expense of God's most important priorities for this season of my life.
I'm learning to live with the tension of lesser things left undone.
But think about this with me.
What's worse than a cluttered desk, not answering email, and letting your calls go to voicemail? In my opinion, being busy cleaning your desk, emailing, and talking on the phone while God's most important priorities for this season of your life get neglected.
A house with toys strewn all over is not necessarily an indication that a person is unorganized and a poor manager of time. It could be a sign of a person who understands the difference between doing things right and doing the right things.
Are you doing things right? Or are you doing the right things?
Want More?
Check out Time Management for Painfully Pooped-Out People book and audio download.
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