worked for The Boss. She could set her own schedule. She could decide her days off. She was no longer chained to someone else’s desk.
But she’d lost every freedom she’d dreamed of and wanted. She was chained to her desk (and phone and computer). She never took a day off. She didn’t spend more time with her friends or family. In fact, during the fleeting moments she was with them, they gave her guilt trips for not being around. She had become The Boss, that entity she had been trying to escape in the first place. She was burned out from constantly working and wondered why she’d gotten into this crazy soap business in the first place. Her passion, relationships, and entire mental state had bitten the dust.
If you relate to any of the three examples above, this book is for you! Each of them shows the price paid when our work and personal lives fall out of balance. I’m not suggesting that being a stellar employee or owning a business can be a piece of cake and that you can skip work on a whim multiple times per week. That’s why the subtitle of this book contains the words “Working Smarter, Not Longer” instead of the more commonly used phrase “Working Smarter, Not Harder.” We’re go-getters, and we do work hard, so it’s a lie to promise you that you’ll never have to. However, what I am saying is that intentional work, combined with planning and efficient processes — along with some dashes of fun! — will yield you the same or more accomplishments and revenue in less time, which will give you the time for the freedom and balance you desire — working smarter, not longer.
Why limit Happy to an hour?
— Attributed to W. C. Fields
Hopefully, by this point you realize that you need productivity and order in your day so that your blood pressure and stress levels don’t cause a stroke or heart attack or divorce or breakdown. I use the word hopefully because some of my consulting and coaching clients — like Tricia — seek me out after they have crashed and burned. They now need to pick up the pieces and put themselves and their lives back together. I am so thankful that they are turning things around, but my dream is to help more go-getting professionals create the time they need to live a fulfilling life before something tragic happens.
And I don’t want you to miss special moments in life, like the terrible experience Julie had when she didn’t get to see her son’s first home run. So many times, we find ourselves chasing what we think will help our career dreams to come true, and we end up missing the highlights in life. To paraphrase attorney Arnold Zack, when folks are on their deathbed, no one ever says, “I wish I’d worked more.” In fact, on many occasions, the regret is the opposite.
Whether we work in a small or large company, telecommute, or own our own business, we are all warriors and super agents in some form or fashion. We are on a crusade in constant pursuit of our target: success. We gather whatever weapons and tools we can find to bust out of containment and forge ahead. We go undercover to find out how to get a leg up on the competition. We tend not to rest until each of the cases on our lengthy list is solved. We get knocked down and bounce back. But whether we’re male or female, parents or sans kids, single or married (or your Facebook relationship status is “It’s complicated”), we also desire some calm in between adrenaline rushes.
Science is organized knowledge; wisdom is organized life.
— Will Durant
If you want peace and some semblance of balance in both your work life and personal life, then no matter what stage of your career you’re in — your fifth month, your fifth year, or your fifth decade — it’s critical to understand organization and productivity.
At this point, you might be asking yourself, “What exactly does ‘being organized’ or ‘being productive’ even mean?”
When I write about or discuss organization and productivity, I focus on these meanings:
• Arranging or planning in a particular way
• Doing or achieving a lot: working efficiently and getting good results
• Having time to do what you want to do
The first two are right out of Webster’s dictionary. I threw that third definition in there because it’s what busy professionals like you crave.
As much as I would love to tell you that I can wave a magic wand and your life will change for the better overnight, I’m sure you know by now that that just isn’t the case. Otherwise, the last time you stressed out, you would have bought said magic wand instead of another box of chocolates or that bottle of wine.
It will be critical for you to sift through the facts of the case and determine which strategies and tactics to use to make your mission successful. Some of you may try to revolutionize everything at once, and that will work for you. Others might try implementing just one change per week or month because that’s more at your comfort level.
No matter how you proceed, please realize that nothing will change if you don’t do something different.
Are you tired of feeling overwhelmed from having so much to do?
Do you want to never miss another special moment?
Do you wish you had more time in the day?
Do you want to learn how to improve productivity, so that you can increase success and decrease stress levels?
If you answered yes to any of these questions, you’re in the right place.
Welcome aboard! It’s time to go on a mission…
BECOME YOUR OWN HERO
Chip is a friend of mine who works for an incredibly fast-growing tech company. He’s built a bit like a linebacker, about six feet tall and almost 300 pounds. You wouldn’t want to meet him in a dark alley, but he’s a blast to spend time with.
This guy is such a hard worker. He is always working, from the time he arrives at the office (which is usually early) until the time he leaves (which is usually late). He rarely stops for lunch. He normally eats something out of a box or can at his desk.
He’s super-nice. He never says no to a request. He always drops anything he’s working on in order to help a coworker or client. He never asks for help. He’s a big, tough guy, so he feels like he needs to carry the entire load by himself at all times.
Or he did … until one day in the middle of a meeting, he experienced excruciating chest pains. He turned shades of white and green, grabbed his chest, and sputtered, “Someone call 911!” At the hospital, the doctor said to him, “Your blood pressure is through the roof! I can’t understand how you’re still alive!”
Talk about an awakening!
Chip almost became a member of the “Coronary Club.” Right then and there he quit his bad habits cold turkey. He was only 48 years old and had a lot more living to do. Eventually, his stress levels and blood pressure went down without surgery or medications. He worked fewer hours yet completed more work and at a higher level of quality. He even took an extended break for a long weekend getaway. How did he turn his habits around? By doing what we’ll be doing here — creating a Time Management Revolution and becoming his own hero.
In any book, television show, or movie involving agents or detectives, the hero has
