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Time is the one resource we can get more of. Thank you for taking the time to read these tips, I do hope they are a valuable use of your time. If we lose money, we can always make more, but if we waste time we cannot get it back.

Targeting our time effectively is the key to maximizing our productivity. Most of our time is broken down into 4 zones – one of which is where we want to be:

Distraction – doing things that are not urgent and not important. How much time do you spend here? Cleaning your desk, surfing the net, watching TV, etc.

Delusion – doing things that we think are urgent and not important. What time are you spending answering email that could wait, answering the phone in the middle of more urgent tasks?

Demand – doing things that are urgent and important. On April 14 taxes that haven’t been done are urgent and important, when did you file yours?

The Zone – doing things that are not urgent and important. This is where planning and time management comes in. If you had done those taxes on March 1 they would have been important and not urgent.

Challenge yourselves to manage your time and spend as much time in The Zone as you can.
Have a great week.

Time Management is something I get asked about .  How can i get more done with less time?  How can I get everything done I know I need to do?  How can I possibly squeeze more hours into the day?  These are questions I hear all the time.  It sometimes seems everyone is looking for the secret to time management.  Here are some secrets, tips and ideas I would like to share with you.

Secret #1 – You can’t manage time.  Time marches on no matter what you do and, try as you might, you can’t manage it.  Changing your thinking here can have a dramatic result.   Accept that there is no such thing as time management, only SELF management.  You can’t manage time, but you can manage yourself.

Secret #2 – There is no magic bullet and what works for one person, does not always work for another.  There are many books out there offering systems and advice.  Read them, try them, modify them, find what works for you and stick to it. A system only works if it is followed religiously.

New Idea – Many people have heard about the concept of a default calendar.  That is where you set up a schedule that includes all the activities that you need to do and then fill the slots with the appropriate appointments and activities.  Great idea, problem is I have found very few people who can actually make this work.  Here is a compromise.  When you do your quarterly planning, (you do plan quarterly right?), set up a weekly default calendar.  Use it as a guide not your actual calendar.  Print it out, keep it handy and then, when you start to schedule appointments and activities you can check off what you have actually scheduled.  This way you control calendar instead of it controlling you.

Try it and let me know how it turns out.

Ready or not, the new year is here – are you ready?  The secrets to success in the upcoming year are not really secrets, they just take discipline.

Secret #1 – Set Goals and write them down.  It’s the beginning of the year so now is the time to reflect and choose some 5 year goals.  What does your business and your life look like in 5 years?  Once, you’ve set your 5 year goals, set some 1 year goals.  These should be related to your longer term goals.  Write them down and put them someplace where you will see them every day.

 Secret #2 – Break your 1 year goals down into quarterly objectives.  What do you need to achieve each quarter to reach your goals.  A quarter is 13 weeks and I will remind you every 13 weeks to update your goals and objectives for the upcoming quarter. 

Secret #3 – Create an action plan.  What are the activities you need to do each week to accomplish your objectives?  If you wait until the end of the quarter it will be quite difficult.  But, if you take action every week, reaching your goals is a snap. 

Secret #4 – Schedule the action items in your calendar.  If you treat your activities like appointments, they are far more likely to actually get done.  Check them off as you complete them.  Reschedule any that didn’t get done into the next week. 

Secret #5 – Have some accountability.  Share your goals and action plan with someone and ask them to hold you accountable.  It’s much easier to let yourself off the hook than explain to someone else why you aren’t working your plan. 

That’s 5 simple secrets to success.  I’ll be sending helpful tips every week, but 13 weeks from now, I will be checking in and reminding you to set your 2nd quarter goals.  The 1st week’s already begun so get cracking on those goals and plans.

  Strategic Alliances are a great way to effectively build your business and much buzz currently surrounds this concept.  What is a strategic alliance and how is this different than what you are doing now?

1. Strategic alliances are generally formed between complimentary but not competing businesses.  Examples would be bankers and accountants, landscapers and housekeepers, graphic designers and printers.
2. Good alliance partners target the same customer and the same decision maker within a company.
3. Alliance partners work together to market each others businesses.  They actively introduce their partners to their prospects and clients.
4. Strong strategic alliances work together to develop new ideas and means of cross marketing with each other.
5. Good partners be sure it is a win-win for all partners involved.

How do you create a strong Strategic Alliance?

1. Determine who good partners would be. 
2. Approach prospective partners with a plan that shows the benefits of working together.
3. Develop concrete cross-marketing initiatives.
4. Keep in touch on a regular basis.
5. Evaluate which activities work the best to create business and move forward with those ideas.

Do you need help getting your strategic alliances off the ground?  Visit www.businessresourcecommunity.com to learn about a membership organization that can do just that for you.

The 10 important words to say:
I apologize for our mistake. Let me put it right.

The 9 important words to say:
Thank you for your business. Please come back again.

The 8 important words to say:
I’m not sure, but I will find out.

The 7 important words to say:
What else can I do for you?

The 6 important words to say:
What is most convenient for you?

The 5 important words to say:
How may I serve you?

The 4 important words to say:
How did we do?

The 3 important words to say:
Glad you’re here!

The 2 important words to say:
Thank you.

The 1 important word to say:
Yes.

This is the only Tip of the Week that I have not written myself.  It came from another ActionCOACH over in England named Neale Lewis and I felt it was too good not pass along.  Thanks Neale!  I know that Neale found it on the internet and I have researched to find the original author.  Unfortunately, every place I find it credits someone else.  If you know the origin, let me know!