Every one of us has the same 1,440 minutes in our day, right?
So why is it that some people seem to get so much more done?
They have found the secret to finding more time!
"GROAN! Denise, you aren't going to tell me that I have to wake up at 4 in the morning, are you? If so, I am out!"
NO! This article isn't going to delve into surviving on less sleep or getting up at 4:00 in the morning; instead, we are going to focus on time mindfulness as a way that you can find more minutes in your day.
Sounds like a buzzword, right? Everyone is into being "mindful" and "present" these days. Bear with me as we are going to talk about developing mindfulness on how you spend your 1,440 minutes per day in order to increase your efficiency and to help you find you more time to do the things you really want.
In fact, I would be surprised if you weren't able to find at least 60 full minutes every day using my time mindfulness techniques outlined below. Let's dive in!
#1 Morning Mindfulness
Unless you are one of those people who wakes up and heads to the gym immediately, most mornings can be prime time to waste time. The first step is to determine how much time you really need to get out the door every morning if you put your mind to it. I mean really - from waking up, taking a shower, getting dressed, hair, breakfast, how much time do you really need? Let's say if push came to shove, you could be up and out the door in 45 minutes. If most mornings you give yourself an hour-and-a-half, then where is that extra 45 minutes going? That is 3% of your minutes right there spent on what: checking your phone, taking extra time with the cup of coffee, standing under the hot water? Arguably, these things that might take your stress level down, but maybe there are things you could do on your drive instead to accomplish the same thing.
#2 Morning Treat Mindfulness
Uh oh. It's 10:30 AM. Do you have a hankering for a coffee pick-me-up or a mid-morning snack? If you grab the keys and head out the door, think twice! Even if your favorite spot is just down the street, then by the time you get in line, pay, and get back to work, you have likely just spent 15 minutes! Is there a way to tighten that up by bringing something comparable from home or using an electric kettle? It may not be what you really want, but maybe your daily habit can move to a weekly habit and a substitute is found for the other days. Your wallet will thank you too!
#3 Lunch Mindfulness
The same practice applies as the previous section. If you are going out and foraging for lunch every day, that is a big time waster! I plan my lunches for the week each weekend and pre-make them so I don't waste time visiting the store multiple times. Then, in the morning, it is grab-and-go! Super simple. I probably save an hour-and-a-half every week by pre-planning and it is way healthier than anything that can be ordered in a drive-through.
#4 Distraction Mindfulness
Do you find yourself checking the news, social media, your personal email, or watching videos throughout the day? For the next week, allow your natural habits to occur, but take note of how many minutes you are distracted. Five minutes every hour for an 8-hour day can add up to a whopping 40-minutes of time that could be better-spent as focused time.
You can still give yourself a break now and then - even twice a day for 10 minutes beats five minutes an hour!
#5 TV/Streaming Mindfulness
Where or where does the time go? It used to be that there were a few shows we watched, we got around 25 new episodes per year, and we would wait at least a week but often more in-between. Now, with streaming, you can easily consume multiple episodes per night and even stream a whole season within a matter of days. That equates to massive time wasting!
For this category, I do suggest giving yourself a TV/Streaming time budget-per-week and then tracking to make sure you are on track. It is easy to spend three hours per night in front of the TV or your computer streaming. Three hours per night = 12.5% of your total available minutes every day. Whoa! At the end of your life, would you be proud of the fact that you utilized 12.5% of your time watching TV in exchange for:
Every choice you make in terms of your time gets you closer or further away from your -personal, business, and life goals. Are you spending your time in a goal-oriented way?
Now that we have gotten general personal habits out of the way, it is time to focus on the way you work to see if you can gain some more minutes there!
#6 Task Efficiency Mindfulness
If you have to do a CMA, are you better to do it in the morning, afternoon, or evening? If you are going to make phone calls to past clients, are you better to do that at your brokerage, at home, or in the car? Have you ever started a project and stared at the computer screen, not knowing where to begin, but the next morning you woke up and knew exactly what you had to do? Have to deal with an email that might turn into a legal nightmare?
Knowing the ideal time of day and conditions to take on certain activities is key in learning how to be more efficient with your time. For the next week, pay attention to your attitude and the way you adapt to taking on certain tasks. You should be able to immediately tell if you are in the headspace to do something or not. Evaluate each task as hard, neutral, or easy. By the end of the week, what did you learn about how you are naturally-inclined to handle tasks?
#7 Productivity Mindfulness
While you are keeping your task efficiency top of mind, also note your overall productivity level. Your overall productivity level is affected by your sleep, how you are feeling, emotional things that are going on in your life, your pain level or how uncomfortable you are, hormones, etcetera. During the day, rate your productivity level in the morning, after lunch, around 5:00, and before bed for a week on a scale of 1-10, 10 being the most productive you have ever been and 1 being almost asleep. Are there any consistencies in your days? Are mornings great for you or do they lag behind your evenings? Understanding how you operate is also important to finding when you are most efficient and can save time.
Remember, if you are working at only 50% capacity, a task that would take you an hour if you are feeling super-productive will likely take you at least 30 additional minutes. Therefore, if you want to do things in less time, you need to think of yourself like an athlete and make sure you are working as close to 100% as possible by getting quality sleep, hydrating, not eating things that make you sleepy, working in an ideal environment in terms of energy, light, and noise, and minimizing your distractions.
No, you don't need to wake up at 4:00 in the morning to be more productive and gain more minutes. The first step is being more productive and mindful of how you are spending the time you already have.
Spend the next week being mindful and I would love for you to share what you learned and how many minutes you gained with these exercises!
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By Denise Lones CSP, M.I.R.M., CDEI - The founding partner of The Lones Group, Denise Lones, brings nearly three decades of experience in the real estate industry. With agent/broker coaching, expertise in branding, lead generation, strategic marketing, business analysis, new home project planning, product development, Denise is nationally recognized as the source for all things real estate. With a passion for improvement, Denise has helped thousands of real estate agents, brokers, and managers build their business to unprecedented levels of success, while helping them maintain balance and quality of life.