[Time-Management] 100 Days Improvement Plan!

 

Day 100

9th November 2011

`No problem can withstand the assault of sustained thinking'. 

Voltaire

 

Thinking Time Portfolio…

 

Do you have `thinking time'? Sounds very odd? But isn't it true that we are so busy that we have no time to think? Successful people spend a lot of their time in thinking. Your thinking quality will decide the quality of your planning and execution. Thinking is a mind function and not a physical activity. Like you allocate specific time for activities such as exercising, bathing, eating and writing, you should also allot specific time for the `portfolio of thinking'.

Choose a time when you will not be disturbed at all. Reflect on the following: 

  • What are my long term goals?
  • How am I progressing on my goals?
  • What are my five most important priorities and am I adequately working on them?
  • Do I have all the resources I need to complete the immediate task on hand?
  • Am I effective and efficient? Can I improve the same?

You can go on adding to the above list. Start with minimum thirty minutes and gradually go up to at least two hours of thinking time per day.

You will notice your productivity substantially shooting up.

N C Sridharan

www.thetimefoundation.com

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[Time-Management] 100 Days Improvement Plan!

 

Day 99

8th November 2011

`The effectiveness of work increases according to geometric progression if there are no interruptions'

Andre Maurois

 

Have Private Time

 

We need to have personal time to think and plan. Planning and scheduling private time is required to be effective and focussed on our most critical issues. Interruptions are natural. But we should plan intelligently to get away from interruptions.

Do the following exercise for the next forty eight days.

For the next thirty minutes:

  • Switch off your mobile and resolve not to break this rule.
  • Don't speak to anyone.
  • Move away from any sound or visual distractions such as TV and radio.
  • Tell all concerned that you are not available for them.
  • Arrest your body, don't move; sit straight and don't lie down, else you will fall asleep.
  • Concentrate on the job on hand, whether writing, reading, thinking or any other work.

Gradually increase the duration of this exercise to two hours per day. This is the way to create `quality time'. The productivity of your time is directly proportionate to the care you take to avoid interruptions by careful planning.

Do this exercise from today and notice your personal productivity shooting up and building your self confidence.

N C Sridharan

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[Time-Management] 100 Days Improvement Plan!

 

Day 98

7th November 2011

`If we take care of the moments, the years will take care of themselves'.

Maria Edgeworth

 

Know the Value of Time.

 

In order to effectively use any resource, we should be conscious of its value. If this consciousness is missing, we will not be careful with the use of that resource. Time is a valuable resource, but we are not conscious of its passing since we don't see this resource through our eyes. We are able to see other resources such as money, petrol and water to know what the balance is. But we can only feel the time passing, if we choose to do.

Do this exercise to understand how unconscious we are about the passing time.

Close your eyes and resolve not to open your eyes for two minutes. Stop reading this page and actually do this exercise. Most of you would have opened your eyes before two minutes! You would have felt restless and anxious to know if two minutes are over. Do this exercise every day, gradually increasing the duration up to ten minutes. Over a period of time, you will become accurate in noticing time passing. This consciousness will make you to value your time as a scarce resource.

N C Sridharan

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[Time-Management] 100 Days Improvement Plan!

 

Day 97

4th November 2011

`The human voice is the organ of the soul'.
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

 

Improve the Quality of Your Voice

 

A pot is tested by the sound it makes and so also a person. Have you ever thought about your voice quality? The quality of your voice is an important criterion which will add to your image. Some people have an attractive voice by nature and others can develop or improve it. Voice pathology is an important field of consultancy. A good voice can open up a career in the media industry.

Record your voice and check for the following characteristics:

  • Nasal: you may not know, but your voice may be nasal. Nasal speakers don't open their jaws sufficiently.
  • Non authoritative: your voice does not exude confidence, and lack projection, inflection and intonation.
  • Low voice level: your voice is too low or too high; it could damage vocal cords.
  • Voice speed: voice could be very fast reflecting nervousness.

Your voice will decide the quality and effectiveness of your communication. The purpose of communication is to produce an outcome in the mind of the person receiving the message.

For the next three months, take efforts to improve your voice quality. Seek professional help if needed.

N C Sridharan

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[Time-Management] 100 Days Improvement Plan!

 

Day 96 

3rd November 2011

 

Promise Yourself:

To be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind.

To talk health, happiness, and prosperity to every person you meet.

To make all your friends feel that there is something in them

To look at the sunny side of everything and make your optimism come true.

To think only the best, to work only for the best, and to expect only the best.

To be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as you are about your own.

To forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future.

To wear a cheerful countenance at all times and give every living creature you meet a smile.

To give so much time to the improvement of yourself that you have no time to criticize others.

To be too large for worry, too noble for anger, too strong for fear, and too happy to permit the presence of trouble.

To think well of yourself and to proclaim this fact to the world, not in loud words but great deeds.

To live in faith that the whole world is on your side so long as you are true to the best that is in you.

Christian D. Larson

N C Sridharan

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[Time-Management] 100 Days Improvement Plan!

 

Day 95

2nd November 2011

`They always say time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself'.

                                                              Andy Warhol

 

Change What You can Change.

 

Change is permanent and we cannot stop it, but we need to adapt ourselves to the changes. It is not easy to change. We should be intelligent enough to know what to change and what not to change.

Read the following five different types of change:

  1. Things which you think you cannot change and you cannot change;
  2. Things which you think you cannot change, but you can change;
  3. Things which you think can change but you cannot;
  4. Things which you think you can change, but you don't;
  5. Things which you think you can change and you change.

Your opportunity lies in areas which you can change, but you don't want to change. Great people have succeeded in this area only.

Identify and work on at least five things under your control to change but you are not taking efforts. For example: I can reduce my excess weight, but, I don't want to exercise; I can learn a new language, but I don't want to cut down my TV watching and study every day thirty minutes.

Do this exercise and notice what happens to your life!

N C Sridharan

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[Time-Management] 100 Days Improvement Plan!

 

Day 94

1st November 2011

`An expert is someone who has succeeded in making decisions and judgements simpler through knowing what to pay attention to and what to ignore'.

Edward de Bono

 

Seek Experts' Opinion.

Do you seek second opinion? Many times we are influenced by one view, one opinion, one judgment, one decision etc, which are either our own or that of others whom we trust one hundred percent. Because of our faith on us or on the person whom we trust, we may not seek a second opinion.

Seeking second opinion is all the more important when the issue involved is very critical. You should have a data bank of people who can give their views and nurture their friendship so that they are available to you.

Over this weekend, take one very important project you are currently handling. List all the decisions you have taken and the assumptions on which you have based your decisions. Discuss that project with an expert who has not been involved in that project at all. Encourage him to be as critical as possible. After you have completely listened to him, revisit your assumptions and decisions and check if you need to change any of them.

Do this exercise sincerely and notice the power of seeking second opinion!

N C Sridharan

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[Time-Management] 100 Days Improvement Plan!

 

Day 93

31st October 2011

  `I hated every minute of training, but I said, `Don't quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.'
Muhammad Ali

 

Sponsor Your Own Training and Development.

 

Do you invest on your own training? We live in world of exciting opportunities and unless we are the best, we cannot remain competitive. For this we need to hone our knowledge and skill.

 

Normally people wait for their organisation to sponsor them for training. But achievers are proactive and design their own training calendar. They are clear where they are going and what they are lacking. They are focussed on their long, medium and short term goals. They plan to equip themselves with the type of knowledge and training they need to reach their goals.

 

Do the following exercise:

  • Review your list of goals and identify the gaps in your `skill set'.
  • Identify your training requirement - technical and non-technical.
  • Evolve a monthly budget in terms money and training hours and nominate yourself for appropriate training programmes.

In short, you should become your own Human Resources and Training Manager! You can surrender anything to others, but not your future. The quality of your life depends on what you can deliver, which in turn depends on your training and personal development.

N C Sridharan

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[Time-Management] 100 Days Improvement Plan!

 

Day 92

28th October 2011

`A word of encouragement during a failure is worth more than an hour of praise after success'.

Anonymous

 

Encourage Others.

 

Do you generally encourage or discourage others? Encouraging others is an important quality of a leader. We all need encouragements to achieve in life. Encouragement is the emotional tonic you give to others to build self confidence. This is the mutual help we give each other. We need a lot of help from others, but the important one is their encouraging words.   

 

Great achievers were lucky that they received encouragement at the right time which made all the difference. But for the encouragement of Helen Keller's mother Kate Adams Keller and her teacher Anne Sullivan, she would have remained deaf and dumb forever.

 

Read the following:

  • Do you encourage people or discourage them?
  • Are people comfortable to come to you to say what they are trying to achieve? Or, do they shy away from you for fear of discouragement?
  • Would you have achieved whatever you've achieved if you had not been encouraged by someone?

Over the next one week, identify at least ten persons who are trying to achieve something in their life and think how you can encourage them.

N C Sridharan

www.thetimefoundation.com

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[Time-Management] 100 Days Improvement Plan!

 

Day 91

27th October 2011

`Do you wish men to speak well of you? Then never speak well of yourself'.

Blaise Pascal

 

Don't Brag!

 

Do you brag too much? We may not know, but others notice it! Bragging means to speak boastfully. There is nothing wrong in talking about your achievements. But, if you do it out of context, it's bragging and others may not like it and it may also irritate others.

 

There may be specific contexts when you have to talk about your achievements. But, if you are talking about your achievements on every occasion and to every person you meet, then it is bragging.

 

Be conscious about the following:

  • Do you talk about yourself in every meeting?
  • When you are supposed to be speaking about someone's achievements, are you actually speaking about your own achievements?
  • How do people perceive you with reference to this important trait?
  • When someone talks about his achievements, do you belittle the same by giving an example of how you did better than him?

Building a positive image is an important factor in life. Let it not be spoilt by your bragging. Behave in such a way that others talk about your achievement and you remain humble.

N C Sridharan

www.thetimefoundation.com

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