 |
| Search |
|
|
Observer Classifieds
Archives / Search 2003
Send a Letter to
the Editor
Send a Press Release
Staff Directory
|
|
Positive Talk
 The 40-hour week is dead. According to several studies, we are now working longer and harder hours that we were 10 years ago. Leisure time is shrinking at an alarming pace. It is amazing that this can be happening in a time when modern equipment has taken over many of the drudgery jobs of past years. We have a choice – continue to work these hours or look for ways to get our jobs done in less time. We can work smarter, not harder, but we must organize in order to do it. Here are several suggestions for achieving peak performance.
1. Over a two-week period, keep a record of the time of day you feel you are most effective. Then begin scheduling your most difficult problems for that time. This will allow you to bring your full abilities to bear in solving the problem. Save your off-peak hours to work on things that are less complicated and/or more interesting. Remember that you do not have to be very productive to have fun.
2. British poet Edward Young said, “Procrastination is the thief of time.” Pick a project and then get started. Time spent trying to decide what to do, beyond a reasonable amount of planning, is unproductive. As the Nike commercials say, “Just do it.”
3. Set aside sufficient time to complete a project. It is counterproductive to start and stop a project and will add hours that produce no tangible results.
4. If it is possible, divide a large project into separate tasks that, when completed, do not have to be handled again. You will then be able to complete the project in sections over a period of time without loss of efficiency.
5.Remove distractions whenever possible and be wary of diversions. Simply turning your chair so you are not facing a traffic pattern and being distracted by people walking past you can save you hours during a year’s time. Since you are not making eye contact with them, they are less likely to stop and talk with you. You may also wish to take the desktop icons off your computer for the games of solitaire and hearts. If you are not addicted to these games, this piece of advice will not be understood; but I suspect many of you will know what I mean. These games can divert many hours from useful projects.
6. In the immortal words of early film star Greta Garbo, do not hesitate to tell people, “I need to be alone.” Within the bounds of courtesy, be assertive enough to ask those people who sit at your desk and waste your time to leave. On the other hand, be sure that you are not one of those people who wastes the time of others.
7. Last but not least, be sure that you are doing what you do best, and that you have delegated the things that should be done by others. It is difficult for many people to let others complete a part of a task. However, if you are ever to be really successful, you must learn to let go and trust others to work with you to a common goal.
Working up to your potential can help to recover some of the hours you may now be wasting, and it may allow you more time for the things you really enjoy. These are just a few ideas about how to increase efficiency. Try them in your office or in your home this week; see what a difference they can make in your performance.
Hodges Hosts Television Program
Bill Hodges also hosts an interview-format television program, East Shore Today, which airs Mondays at 8 p.m., Bright House cable channel 20 and Verizon cable channel 30. Appearing on December 3 will be Frank Hamilton, Hillsborough County Animal Advisory Committee member and Sherry Silk, Humane Society Director. They will be discussing the advantages of the trap, neuter and release program for free-roaming cats being carried out by compassionate people in this county and especially in the Sun City Center area.
Bill Hodges is a nationally recognized speaker, trainer, and
syndicated columnist. Hodges may be reached at Hodges Seminars
International, P.O. Box 89033, Tampa, FL 33689-0400. Phone 813/641-0816.
Web site: http://www.BillHodges.com
Copyright 2008 Hodges Seminars International
© Copyright 2008 by The
Observer
News Publications and M&M Printing Company, Inc.
Top of Page
|
|
|
Positive Talk
Latest Headlines
|
|
