Time Management, Email is the Bane of Your Existence, The Value of Criticism, My 2 “Sense”
"In times of change, learners inherit the earth, while the learned find themselves beautifully equipped to deal with a world that no longer exists."
Another day, another sunrise viewed from the top of a mountain. 5:57 a.m., we slept in on purpose, we’ve got a big day today, we need to be on our game.
My Queen is in bed; she’s awake; we’ve shared a couple of kisses this morning. We have a routine; I make the coffee, she checks social media to make sure she doesn’t miss anything and, in a few moments, she will come down the stairs and grace me with her presence. I still get butterflies when she waltzes into the room.
I was in my monthly board meeting yesterday, and the topic of time management came up. One of our members was struggling with her team’s email management. I asked how many emails they got; she stated she got about 250 a day, her next level managers got about 150 and her lower level folks got about 50.
Before I continue, I’ll ask you the same, how many emails do you get on an average day. You should know this number. My next question is, how effective are you at managing this constant onslaught of information and requests?
Here is my two “sense” when it comes to email. Email does not work, its communication, people, think they are working when dealing with email, but that does not work, it’s simple communication. I manage email two times a day; I manage it in the morning and the evening. That’s it; it does not come to my phone; it does not control me; I control my email.
My daily routine is to get up, make my coffee for my Queen, get a little bit for myself, and then write about 750 words to cleanse my mind. I then open outlook, send said words to a few hundred folks and then I dive into my email. It takes me about an hour to respond, clean up, and delegate tasks to my team, and then I’m done. I move on; I don’t wait for my inbox to swell, I do other things.
Most people are slaves to their email. I read a book, the Four-Hour Work Week a few years ago if you have not read this, read this book. I got the idea of setting up an autoresponder that states “to be more efficient with my time, I only check email in the morning, and at night, if this is an emergency, please call me. My cell is X.
No one calls me, and if they do, I respond accordingly. If you think about it, there are no emergencies. But if something is going down, clients will call me. The problem with most folks is they have trained their clients to know that they are monitoring their email 24/7 if they send an email, they expect a response. My clients, friends, lovers, and others know my life, they know if they need me, they can call me. I’d rather talk than type.
If you are struggling with time management, change how you manage your email. Follow my path or create your own, but don’t be a slave to messages sent by other folks; life is much bigger than those 200-word messages you get every minute of every day.
Another topic I made a note to address is the topic of feedback. I taught a class a couple of weeks ago, I did a proof of concept trial of my content and learned how effective my “stuff” could be to others. One of my friends attended a class and asked me if I would accept his feedback, he asked how thick my skin and I said: “bring it on.”
He then went on to give me his honest feedback that was not meant to hurt my feelings but gives honest, helpful feedback to help me improve my training. I was not offended; in fact, I was appreciative of his honesty and took his words to heart. I reviewed his feedback with my business coach and will take his advice and modify my program.
True honest feedback is key to self-improvement. I’m not one that cares what others think if you know me, you know I could give two fucks what others think, but if someone is willing to offer suggestions, I’ll listen and not be offended. I’m on this planet to learn, grow, and be the best me I can be. I don’t live in a vacuum; I need the input of others to move from where I am to where I want to be.
There you have it, time management, feedback all in one little “ditty.” I hope this message finds you well. I’m living on top of a mountain and believe that life from this moment on will only improve. I’m a father to three amazing kids, a lover to the most beautiful woman in the world, I get to share my thoughts daily with the world, train others to be better humans beings and have a job that offers me the freedom to help others protect their asses and assets. I live a charmed life, and I hope you feel the same.
"In times of change, learners inherit the earth, while the learned find themselves beautifully equipped to deal with a world that no longer exists."