Just 3 time-management mistakes are holding back many online marketers. All the time you’ve wasted will make you weep! Get your critical projects done 5 times faster by wiping out these goofs. These are your 3 enemies, along with their cures:
Overwhelmed Gal courtesy of Canva.
- Eliminate AIMLESSNESS with PRIORITIZATION.
- Replace MULTITASKING with FOCUS.
- Defeat OVERWHELM with MICROPRODUCTIVITY.
“Time isn’t the main thing. It’s the only thing.”
– Miles Davis, jazz legend
Time is precious, but here’s a quick story illustrating time management. Picture the heart of Paris, France, just past midnight. It’s a cool winter’s Monday morning. The streets and sidewalks are empty. It seems quiet for “The City of Lights.” Then comes the sound of running footsteps, grunts, and sporadic, short-of-breath cursing. It’s a crazy American running through the streets!
That crazy American was me! So how did I end up there? A month earlier, I planned an entire month-long trip to Egypt and Europe. I wanted to squeeze every possible minute out of this adventure. Then, just four days before my trip began, my team made it to Super Bowl XL! The Steelers beat the odds and won three straight road games to get to the Super Bowl.
I had to find a way to watch them no matter what. So I looked the date up on my planner and added an entry: “Super Bowl XL. Midnight. Paris, France.”
But I made three critical errors that caused my midnight run through Paris.
My 3 mistakes:
- I was aimless in failing to prioritize all my trip activities.
- I was multitasking everything in my life. First, I’d work a little on one task. Then I’d jump to another without completing much of either.
- Overwhelm kept increasing as tasks piled up.
These three errors led me to forget about the Super Bowl. My plane landed in Paris the evening of Super Bowl Sunday. I then realized I was in trouble. The first sign was my little hotel room having no TV. They had a little dining area with a tiny 17-inch TV. Three other Americans were watching the Super Bowl pregame on that TV.
Three new troubles emerged:
- The TV commentary was in French. I don’t know French.
- The mini TV used an antenna with static issues.
- Two TV watchers were a 10-year-old girl and her dad. I enjoy screaming unsavory words at the TV when watching my sports teams. Behaving for the whole 4 hours of the Super Bowl wasn’t happening. I’d cause a situation with the dad and daughter.
I thought to myself, “I need to get out of here!” I started looking up nearby sports bars on my smartphone. I found one and ran out of the hotel. It was a 25-minute walk. I turned it into a 10-minute sprint across the Seine River and Notre Dame. Finally, I got to the bar! But the doors won’t open. The lights were out. This is bad! I looked up a nearby Canadian sports bar on the web. They might save me. But the Super Bowl was 20 minutes old! Ugh!
I sprinted 4 more minutes before bending over, out of breath. I looked up and saw some bright lights way off. People were milling around outside. I found the energy for one last sprint, just in case I found my goal. As I got closer, I could see more people packed inside. It was the Canadian sports bar! They WERE showing the Super Bowl! A painful lesson in time management at least ended well. (And the Steelers won!)
“Why should I listen to this guy about time management?” I’ve learned from dozens of billionaire and millionaire interviews. They all discussed their mastery of time management. Likewise, I’ve spent plenty of time on coaching from high-performance experts. Managing time was critical to all of these pros.
I’ve spent 15 years looking for ways to manage my time better. I’ve studied and applied insights from numerous books, courses, and more. From all this, I’ve pulled out 3 of the best-kept secrets in time management. Time Management is extra essential to online marketing. Apply these 3 secrets and see immediate results in your copy. You’ll get things done 5 times faster.
Secret #1: Set priorities to eliminate aimlessness. Failing to prioritize the Super Bowl was my first blunder. Lay out your most important projects and figure out which one is most critical. As online marketers, we have many projects going on at the same time. The first step to knock them out is to prioritize.
You might be juggling multiple client jobs, completing an online marketing course, creating a website, and more. So put time into being honest about what is most vital.
Secret #2: Replace multitasking with focus. My multitasking distracted me from my biggest priority. Instead, pour 100% of your energy into completing your most important project. Then repeat Secret #1.
Think about a piece of paper on a freezing, sunny day. You’re cold and want a warming fire, but that paper won’t burn by itself. A magnifying glass will focus sunlight and start a fire in seconds. Of course, necessary busywork will take some of your time. Meetings, checking email, and accounting can bog down online marketers. So during your core work hours, direct your energy on that vital project.
Do only one task at a time, as well, until done. That current task is your universe. Complete it, move on to the next task, and repeat until project completion. Writing projects are usually an online marketer’s vital projects – the best way to get better as an online marketer is to write. You get paid by writing.
Secret #3: Defeat overwhelm with “microproductivity.” Overwhelm is another way to waste time. It seems that most suffer from this. Fix this by breaking down your #1 project into manageable chunks. They can’t take more than 60 minutes each. See your goal and walk through how you’ll get there. Then, split your tasks down further into smaller and smaller “microtasks.” Just tinker with this process and see what works best.
By creating these tasks and microtasks, you become “microproductive.” You get wins by doing each microtask. You gain momentum. Block chunks of time on your calendar with these tasks’ names. Then, make that time non-negotiable to change (barring a crazy emergency).
I should’ve asked, “How will I watch the Super Bowl?” Then, I would’ve worked out all the steps. Then, I could’ve set a reminder on my phone for the right time.
By learning these 3 simple secrets, I wouldn’t have missed 25% of the Super Bowl. There’d been no mad dash through Paris.
These are 3 simple actions for getting more out of your precious, daily 24 hours:
- PRIORITIZATION: List your 3 to 5 most critical projects. Choose the most important one.
- FOCUS: Devote 100% to this project beyond any necessary busywork. When done, repeat action #1.
- MICROPRODUCTIVITY: Slice this top project into hour-or-less tasks. Chop them further into smaller microtasks based on feel – block time for them on your calendar.
Think of all the time you’ve wasted by making just three time-management blunders. Follow these 3 simple actions, and you’ll get essentials done five times faster! As an online marketer, think about how much more work you could do. Think about the extra time you could spend with friends and loved ones?
To recap one last time:
- Eliminate aimlessness with PRIORITIZATION.
- Replace multitasking with FOCUS.
- Defeat overwhelm with MICROPRODUCTIVITY.
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About Charles Polanski: I help people prosper through online marketing. Click this link to unlock a world of possibilities with online marketing.
