Technology, business and change
Less time, get more done
A common misconception is that if you had more time available, you would achieve so much more. From personal experience (because of school, internships and holidays), I can tell you that more time often mean less things done.
When you have 8 hours in front of you to do what you want, you have plenty of time. Or at least, you think you have. For a lot of people, and this includes me, it’s easy to spend an hour on twitter, an hour on skype, an hour on MSN and an hour on forums when you have a full day in front of you. It is not all wasted time, because during those four hours you might have built connections or your brand a bit more, but let’s admit it: you’re probably procrastinating.
On the opposite, when you come home after a day of work or school and that you know you’ll have to spend some time with the family and eventually will only have three hours to do what you want to do, things go much faster and there are good chances you’ll be a lot more productive.
In those three hours, you can achieve what a lot of people achieve in 8 hours simply because you focus on what you have to do and on what brings you real results.
Time is no excuse
I am writing this just because time is often an excuse for not getting things done. From personal experience, I achieve more when I’m full time that’s for sure, but I can’t say that I do a lot more. When I’m full time, you’ll see me on twitter, skype and on blogs a lot. It’s not wasted time but in the end twitter doesn’t pay the bills. So, when I’m “part time”, I’m less active in the community (which is the case right now…), but that’s because I focus a lot more on things that make the business go forward. Don’t take me wrong here, commenting on blogs and being active in the community is extremely important, but it depends on the kind of business you build.
In the end, time is good to have, but it’s not the solution to every problem.
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Less is more. We will perform to a higher level when we know time is limited. It’s also true that most of our productivity comes from a small portion of the work day. At least in terms of the most important work getting done.
Gennaros last blog post..Things To Do In NYC (For Free)
When your time is limited, you get to do more because you try to balance everything. When you have so much free time, the tendency is that there will be more idle times.
Bryan Karls last blog post..Top Reasons Why Subscribers Unsubscribe
I have to agree with that! The more things I have on my plate, the busier I am.
Reason I decided to enroll in 4 courses this quarter, be President of an organization, and have a job!
Sounds stressing, but in reality I get more stuff done! There is always something to do.
Talk Binarys last blog post..Insertion Sort Implementation in C++ [Sorting Algorithms]
So true ben! I have found that the more time I have the more distracted I get because I know I have more time to get my jobs done.
Tom – StandOutBlogger.coms last blog post..What Was The Last Time You ‘Blogged Just For Fun’?
I agree completely on this. As a full time working mom whose husband travels all of the time fitting everything in can sometimes be difficult. But I find the more pressed for time I am the more I get done and it usually turns out better.
Good luck with your full plate.
Being pressed for time usually means I will try to solve issue by ignoring it. Has astonishing success per effort balance.
Rarsts last blog post..What makes good software portal
yes! i agree with this. You have a limited time,you will be more active but if you have more time then you will start procrastinate
things.
@Gennaro: Yes I think you are right, when time is limited focusing is usually a lot easier!
@Bryan: Absolutely. It is normal to have some idle time for your brain to take a break, but having too much time in front of you might not have the desired effect hehe
@Talk Binary: I like that buddy!
Good luck with all your projects!
@Tom: haha exactly, I totally know that feeling!
@Jen: Thanks you and good luck to you too!
@Rarst: Yeah, I guess that gives you a higher “success” rate…But it doesn’t make things go forward!
Well said. At the end of the day, “twitter doesn’t pay the bill.” Or whatever social network you’re engrossed with. I could have written this myself as note to this gallivanting blogger.
jans last blog post..The Man Behind The Blog
hehe thanks for your comment buddy!
Social networks are a tool and can make you money eventually…but it's still just a tool.
You Go Pond Dweller!
I’m all about scheduled time slots and shutting down messenger now. lol.
Besides distractions like that taking up your time, even stopping to do something “else” for 5-10 minutes can throw you off when you try to come back to it. It might take you another 10-15 to get “back into the swing of things”, and there’s 25 minutes out the window without realizing it.
Gotta go man….can’t spend too much time commenting!
Cheers!
Jay
SuiteJs last blog post..Day 11: Are You Still On Track?
lol @ pond dweller, another nice find
Exactly, it's hard to get back to work after stopping what you were doing, which mean you lose way more time. I have to work more on that…
Thanks for the comment!
If you truly want to get things done.
1. Plan your day and work your plan.
2. No play till the end of your day
If you get into the habit of finishing your daily task before you allow yourself to waist any of your time you will see that things get done rather quickly.
You are so right about this. Planning your day is probably the best technique to get things done, it gives you a clear vision of what you have to achieve through the day.
This artlcie is a home run, pure and simple!
Man.. You are very correct. On a leisurely day with 8 hours to kill at office, I just browse through lots of nonsense on the web which doesn’t make any sense. opposed to that if I am having a couple of hours to spare, the work is done fast with efficiency..
But not to deny that the lazy hours will get you prepared for the busy job
hehe I feel you with that one!
I just concluded this yesterday! I woke up real late and just FOCUSED – got a ton done by dinner…much more then usual.
Dennis Edells last blog post..Blogroll Effectiveness – What Do You Think?
lol, I had to laugh when reading this. I work best when there’s a deadline coming up or I’m running out of time. Thats when I stop browsing, site hopping and generally doing everything that doesn’t make me money. When the chips get put down I too do all the productive things I should have being doing. Wierd how a bit of pressure focuses our minds.
hehe so right, I think most people also work better when there's a deadline. Probably because you know what you can achieve in a certain period of time and when you feel squeezed, you really have to focus and get the work done!
Surplus encourages waste, right?
I think you’re right about this. Many of us function better when we’re under the gun. Desperation compels time management.
When you’re swimming in time, it’s easy to be lazy. Too easy!
more work to done more…
hehe, I'm the same when I wake up late, I so get focused because I feel like I wasted too much time!
So right, too much time in front of you is the worst thing that can happen if you want to get things done…
That pretty much explains why you ain't see me often here lately. Gotta to focus one that brings the real results in less time.
Yan
Yan@Review's Recent post…Get Paid to Blog – Make Money Online Writing Reviews in 2009
That's cool Yan, I haven't been very active on your blog lately for similar reasons. Good luck with your projects!
I love the threaded comments here. Does it come with the package?
It's all built in!
So this is what you are talking about in twitter. I can now see Intense Debate in your comment area.
Hussein's Recent post…Goal Setting For My New Tech Blog
Yep, the one and only IntenseDebate!
I think if you stay focused on what you are working on and have a well thought out plan, you can make the most out of your time and really get a lot of work done.
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A limited time will help things to be done better planned and more fruitful
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Good point — I think the more time you have on your hands sometimes means the more time you'll end up wasting. I always get more accomplished when I'm pressed for time.
Custom Software Development's Recent post…null
I totally agree…I spend much less time and get a lot more done since I started planning my day the night before. I find that when you don't plan your day, you tend to forget something everytime…Great post
This is SO true and I point that your commenters seem to get. When I was in college and grad school I also worked 30 hours a week. You would think that I had no time to get things done but being so busy made me schedule my time efficiently and be productive. I find the same thing still happens – the busier I am the more that I accomplish. Thanks for the article.
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I absolutely agree the idea that to be more productive and efficient one need a plan,in the planned space one can easily and quickly fulfil what he had in his mind.The work done in thoghts and in imagination becomes reality without great efforts,time and energy wastes.That is why I think work must be planned before being done.
nice topic, its true less time is more because u can do in less time like u do in an long time u just need the right organsisation
That’s very true! When we have too much time, we tend to take it for granted. It’s like I still have time, why don’t I just check on my email, or maybe just chat with a friend or two..etc. At the end we realised that we have not completed what we are supposed to do in the first place.
know how is the magical word, i does things in like 5-1 minutes what others do in maybe 1 hour so dont waste your time and use it useful
I think doing things depends on the habits of a person,it is already his second nature being slow or quick in doing things.
I have just read the post written by Chow.Time+money=freedom.John is spreading his legs on the bench and reading something. And after that I began to read this post about limited time and people so busy.And the idea struck me that people experienced both situations.And so did I.I thought I was happy many years ago when I was soooo busy and now I am happy to lie like Chow.But it won't last for long.Might be I will be as busy as a bee tomorrow.We must live the life we have at the present moment and let it be blessed !
I love it's title thanks for sharing.
Yup, I agree with you dude awesome motivation.
it depends on productivity of your work…my level is too low
Yes, you are right and i have also aggre on this. Every people have so many things to do but the time is short. Everybody want to be big and bigger. But times doesn't allow them to do so. So its true less time and more effort.
That's right, time is no question on doing all our tasks. It is the determination to get the job done that matters.
Very true, when I have a project to do I usually schedule 4 hours of my day to work on the project. Then Spend the next 4 hours trying to get work from the day before finished. I find it keeps me working all day, without interuption.
Stanley