Getting More Done in Less Time Through Spirit Management

This is not a lesson in religion... It is a lesson in managing the "spirit" in how you and others in your organization perform daily tasks. While calling lots of people every day, the way they answer the phone forms a strong, immediate image in my mind.

I have talked with people who sounded like they just woke up, in fact, like I disturbed them from being sound asleep! I have talked with people who sounded irritated that I called at all. Some secretaries want to interrogate me before allowing me to talk with their bosses. By the time I finish explaining something that they cannot possibly understand, I seldom feel like talking to the person I am trying to reach.

As you can see, the spirit with which one answers the phone cannot only affect your mental image of them, but your own spirit as well. (This works in both directions, by the way)

Ken Blanchard (One Minute Manager) illustrated this in a workshop I attended. He first had everyone in the audience greet each other like they didn't care and weren't really interested in meeting one another. He then had the audience greet each other like they were long lost friends.

The difference was amazing! Expressions changed from blank stares to bright smiles, cold handshakes to warm hugs. The "spirit" of exchange made all the difference in the world.

Try it yourself. Experience the difference. Have your staff do the same.

Manage the spirit...Don't let the spirit manage you!

Running out of time before you run out of daylight?

Look, folks, here's the real skinny: You have 86,400 seconds to use each day...no more and no less. At the stroke of midnight, you have none left. If you didn't use them wisely, you lost them forever. You can't save them up, you can only spend them. And, by midnight, you have spent them all. 

So, then, how do you decide what is important, urgent, and necessary?  Check this out:

The hardest part of deciding how to best "spend" your 86,400, is to decide what goes in quadrants three and four. Most small business owners have the most difficulty with quadrant four, because they either do not have someone to whom they can delegate work, or believe that "if you want it done right, you have to do it yourself." 

So, if you are new at your business, begin your day with items that are urgent and important. If an activity is deemed important, but not urgent...it's okay to put it off until it becomes urgent. If you can not delegate it, but it is urgent...schedule it, and stick to your schedule. 

Here is a good way to reduce time "pressure": Think of your 86,400 like this: 

1. Do I work 8 hours a day?
2. Do I sleep 8 hours a day?

If so, I have 8 more hours left to do what I want to do. At the end of the month, if you are working a 5 day week, and there are 4.5 weeks in the month, you have 180 hours to play with. That's 7.5 days worth of free, use it as you wish time. Bet you didn't realize that there is that much time that is just being thrown away. Thrown away? You have a lot more time to do important things than you think.