Find Some Time
People have often asked me how I find the time to do stuff. My answer is always the same: I micro-segment time. Often this is down to 5 minute slots that are ideal for thinking about that thing that you said you would think about when you got “a chance”.
To get to micro-segmenting the first step is to analyse the main blocks of time needed throughout the week. Below I have mapped this out based on two assumptions. The first is that the weekends are kept free and the second is allowing 6 hours of sleep per day.
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I have core work for my contract client(s). This is around 40 hours per working week.
I blog often. I am also writing a book so all told, I write for about an hour a day in intervals. This is around 5 hours per working week.
I go kickboxing or swimming almost every day if facilities allow. this is usually for an hour. This is around 5 hours per working week.
I spend around 2 hours per day researching and learning. This could be about other companies, people, technologies, trends or analysis. The material can be in print or digital depending on where the information is and where I am. This is around 10 hours per working week.
I work my network fairly heavily using LinkedIn and other tools – keeping up with contacts on a regular basis. If I am not speaking on client business, I am speaking by myself. This happens several times a month but all told, this whole block of networking/connecting/influencing takes up about an hour a day. This is around 10 hours per working week.
If I am in the UK I like to spend at least 4 awake hours with my wife and children between Monday to Friday. If I am lucky this is around 20 hours per working week.
When it all adds up there is around 90 hours between Monday to Friday.
Assuming my day starts at 6am and ends at midnight, there are 18 hours per day so theoretically I have enough time in the working week to do what I need/like to do.
Obviously we don’t operate in series blocks of time – the day starts and you may well do 3 emails on the train and some research prior to arriving at work (called ‘client’ in my case).
I believe in (and apply) two rules of time efficiency:
- Technology (tools that enable me to be more time efficient)
- Technique (ways of doing things that enable me to be more time efficient)
One of the main reasons I switched to Mac was that once I had seen how quick operations were, I realised I could save time.
The same applies for:
My phone handset (iPhone/Blackberry)
The blog publishing tool I use (Ecto)
The FTP tool I use (Cyberduck)
The mind-mapping tool I use (PersonalBrain)
The browser I use (Firefox)
The image capture tool I use (Skitch).
Actually…..I pretty much choose technology that allows time to stretch.
As for technique – this is where micro-segmenting comes into play.
I am a down-time junkie.
Any down-time in my life I will fit in bits and pieces to do that carve into the blocks of time I commit to things.
For instance. I will use waiting at a train station to dedicate to one concept and one concept alone. I will not allow anything else to creep into my thoughts unless it is directly relevant.
I find that the train and plane is ideal for blogging. Why wait until you have a connection – thats for publishing not for writing. Right?
I watch busy people spending enviable blocks of 1, 5 and 10 minutes doing nothing but later complain about being ‘up to their ears’. This is a time management FAIL.
I believe there are plenty of minutes in a week. It is more than possible to have a lid-down weekend (my term for closing the laptop) but lets be realistic – sometimes it doesn’t happen.
Actually – some parts of the blocks are ‘hobbies’ that add to the other hobbies I do on weekends. For instance – music for me is listening during the week and creating on the weekend. Fitness for me is something I do during the week because the benefit I get has more relation to work rather than leisure. So I shifted it.
For me, blogging is something that shouldn’t take up client time – same as twitter, facebook and other time drains. Sure, Yammer may have feasibly found a work application of twitter but for me, if I am getting paid by someone, every single minute they pay me for I am trying to add value.
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That doesn’t mean being tied to a desk and yes, sometimes other blocks can add value to the client work.
Most Friday’s I have meetings in Soho. Always have – always will.
This is because my professional network is often around that area – in media – and I rarely can’t find a way of benefitting a client by utilising my existing network of people.
It is rarely, if ever, realised or appreciated but leveraging my connections is a huge percentage of the value I bring.
I am increasingly keen on a business model (for myself) that is based on this type of time spent. Connecting, motivating, educating and building commercial and emotional concepts.
This type of business model is not consultancy. This is a type of open-source business model that (in the words of Peggy from MSearch Groove) connects the skills of many with the needs of few.
The reason I am musing on this is because the main benefit I seem to bring is from the 11% I spend networking/speaking/connecting.influencing.
This isn’t just benefit to my client but also often to the people I interact with.
I question whether it is responsible for me to limit the % time to one in ten hours or whether I should readdress the balance.
Then – the issue isn’t about time, its about sustainable and scalable revenue.
I see a few challenges:
- There is no assured, ongoing demand for my speaking/connecting/influencing
- There is only one of me
- I need regular income
However, the reality is:
- I want to have a profound positive affect on as many people and businesses as possible
- I know several people who could help this cause
- I believe we should concentrate on the product and profit will follow
You see…..for me its not about finding the time, its more about the benefit ratio of time spent. The benefit to others versus the time I spend facilitating the benefit.
Also – I don’t use the word ‘can’t’ and I believe anything is possible…so there will be a way, I just gotta find some time to work it out….
