Week 23

WEEK TWENTY-THREE Welcome to Week Twenty-Three of the Jim Rohn One-Year Success Plan. We hope you are having a great week and are ready for this week's journey. This week Jim and Chris talk about inventorying, budgeting and scheduling the use of your time based on your priority and values. When reviewing this week's lesson, I'm reminded of my all-time favorite movie, Groundhog Day. I've noticed over the years when I mention Groundhog Day, I get a variety of reactions. Some saw the movie and thought it was either cute or maybe even silly; many comment that they enjoyed it, but I've also found several (about a dozen) kindred souls out there, who share my utmost appreciation for this movie. Although I find the movie funny and clever, I most appreciate the over-riding premise. The story of a self-centered and self-serving person, who tries to take advantage of a glitch in time (he repeats the same day over and over again), by getting what he thinks will satisfy himself primarily through manipulation and pretending to be somebody he isn't. In the short-term he seems to succeed, the gaining of the temporal without the gaining of the more meaningful, eventually leaves him in complete despair. It is through coming to the end of himself and then making a decision to both work on himself and to begin serving others, versus merely taking from others - that he not only finds happiness and fulfillment, he also attracts and achieves all his goals (including the girl and love). The turning point in the movie is when the main character (Bill Murray) is sharing his despair and circumstances with the lady he has fallen in love with (Andie MacDowell), telling her he has to relive the same day over and over again. And no matter what happens today, that tomorrow she will not remember any of their conversation or time together and will think he is a jerk again (which he is). Then her question is "Is it such a curse to be able to replay each day over and over again - think of all the opportunities and things you could do?" The light begins to break through and from that point on, Bill Murray's character begins the process of personal development and helping other people. He learns to play the piano, learns to ice sculpt, reads the great literary classics, learns medical techniques to help a dying man, becomes a captivating reporter that attracts a whole city to gather around his Groundhog's Day report, and yes, he does get the girl (and she gets him). But, it was only while in the pursuit of his own personal development and service to others. We don't get to relive each day over and over in the literal sense of the word, but in fact every day is a new opportunity to take yesterday's mistakes, shortcomings, as well as victories and then create a new today. Initially, Bill's character had 24 hours a day that he saw only as an opportunity for self-gratification and to just get through the day. But the Copyright Jim Rohn International 2002-2004

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new enlightened character now saw those same 24 hours as an opportunity to become a person of great skill and knowledge, as well as an opportunity to truly make a difference in the everyday lives of others. No matter how implausible the concept of reliving the same day over and over is, the power we posses to become someone great and to make a daily difference is not just a fantasy or feel good idea, it is one of the most real concepts and principles we have the opportunity to embrace, and is the heart of the time management battle. What are we investing our time in? What will it make of us and how will it affect others? Make it a powerful and meaningful week! Kyle P.S. If you haven't ever seen Groundhog Day or it's been a while, rent the movie and let me know what you think.

“No matter what you have done to this moment, you get 24 brand-new hours to spend every single day.” -- Brian Tracy

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T TIIM MEE M MA AN NA AG GEEM MEEN NT T Jim Rohn's Sixth Pillar of Success: Time Management, Part Two – Creating a Proactive Schedule Hi, Jim Rohn here. Hello, Jim Rohn here and welcome to week two of Pillar Six - Time Management. I hope in the past week you were able to begin clarifying what your core priorities and values are and the exact reasons why you want to be diligent in managing your time. Here is what we are covering this month under the topic of Time Management: 1. Developing a Philosophy of Time Management - Establishing your priorities and values. As important as the "how's" are, the "why's" are first and foremost. Because here's what's interesting, the "why's" are the force that pull us towards our dreams and that in turn determines the "how's". So first we will take a look at the philosophy of time management, and then how to determine our priorities based on the values that we believe in and hold in the highest place. We discussed these things in last week's edition. 2. Creating a Proactive Schedule - Allocating time based on your unique priorities and values. Once you know why you are managing your time and know the priorities and values you strive for, then it is important to understand where you currently spend your time and how to strategically budget for maximum performance. You see, something will always master and something will always serve. Either you run the day or it runs you. So this week we will look deeper into this aspect of time management. 3. Breaking Through Barriers - Eliminating time wasters and overcoming procrastination. Many folks know what to do, but it is often the things we shouldn't spend our time on that get us off track. And here's what we need to be watchful of: don't mistake movement for achievement. It's easy to get faked out by being busy, but the key question is: Busy doing what? Next week we will look at how to overcome procrastination and eliminate time wasters. 4. How to Gain More Time - We'll talk about time management pointers on how to add 1-2 hours a day through delegating, skill improvement, multi-tasking and improved focus. These are things that anyone can do to add more time to their day. Yes, there are only 24 hours in each day, but we can maximize those hours by working "smarter" rather than longer, and employing other skills along with our time management. We will look at these ideas in two weeks. This week I want to get down to some basic nuts and bolts of time management. I want to discuss how to proactively schedule your time and allocate it based on your priorities and values.

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Once you have determined what your priorities are and what your values are - essentially what is most important to you - you will want to get right down to looking at where you actually spend your time. This comes down to two basic processes. First, we want to take a look at where our time is currently being spent--an "inventory" if you like. You see, it is wisdom to start from wherever we are and with whatever we've got. Then secondly, we want to begin setting our schedule from this point forward, according to our priorities. This could be called "budgeting." A financial model may be best for us to review so as to help us understand how to go about this. Most of us are familiar with taking a look at our finances. The first thing we do is track where our current spending is. Then we write and begin adhering to a budget. This is extremely effective if you are disciplined enough to do it, and it works quite well when we are looking at our time management. The process is so very simple, yet very powerful. Time Inventory Have you ever truly looked at where you are spending your time? I mean virtually minute by minute? This is the first order of business because I am sure you will be surprised. A time inventory is done by taking a small journal, calendar or notebook and writing down everything that you do during the day. This can be done for three or four days but really shows itself to be most effective when you can do it for a week or two, since there are many things that we only do one time per week. Begin to track what you spend your time on. Write down everything. If you spend ten minutes on the phone, write it down. If you sleep for eight hours write it down. If you eat lunch for 45 minutes, write it down. If you commute 35 minutes each way, write it down. If you watch television for 3 hours, write it down. Certainly even one day will begin to reveal some of your patterns. Even a basic day may show that you sleep for eight hours, eat for two and half hours, work for eight hours, drive for one and a half hours, talk on the phone for three hours, and watch television for three and a half hours, among other things of course! What you will begin to realize is that you are spending the right amount of time on some things and it appropriately fits your priorities. Other things you may realize you are neglecting. And certainly you will see that there are things you are spending an inordinate amount of time on that are opposed to your priorities. After a few days or so of doing this, sit down and total up your "spending." What does it look like? Where did it all go? Are you happy with how you spent it? These things will Copyright Jim Rohn International 2002-2004

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become clear, because if you track it moment by moment, the numbers will not lie. Because here's what's important to understand, time is more valuable than money. You can get more money, but you can't get more time. Once it's spent, it's gone. And assessing our time expenditures is the first step, because it will show us that often our memory of how we spent our time can often be a little "foggy." Because it's powerful when we understand, grasp and apply the principle of wisely budgeting our time. Now we move into time budgeting. Just as a person may realize that they have been spending $250 a month eating out when they really only want to spend $100 month, you can begin to set a "time budget" for yourself. Now, I would suggest that budgeting be done once or twice a week but some of you may need to do so every day, especially at the beginning of this process. Let's assume, for a moment, that you work a typical Monday through Friday workweek. You may want to sit down on Sunday evening and spend a half hour going through your schedule for the upcoming week. Use this time to group your activities together as much as you can to maximize your time. For example, you may want to assign one hour a day to answering phone calls or emails. Often times our days are interrupted and we work inefficiently because as we work on something, the phone rings and we answer it, and then we have to try and pick our task back up (often right in the middle) and go back to work. This is very inefficient. It is better to set times when you can make and return your calls. Perhaps you need to schedule four half hour slots a day. This is where knowing your own business comes into play, but the principle is to schedule your tasks so that you do them when it is best for you and for your management of time. You may budget five forty-five minute lunches during the week. Well, if by Friday you have spent your "budget" on lunches perhaps you will have to skip one to keep yourself on budget. Just as you would stop spending money when you reach your financial budget, this same principle will help you with your time. Now apply this to all of your activities throughout the week. Again, you may have to do this every morning for your day, and that is okay. Tailor it to whatever works best for you. The key is to set these time budgets according to your priorities. By putting actual time frames into your calendar, you are setting your priorities before you to carry out your activities, instead of just doing whatever urgent matter is at hand. This takes discipline because you will see that you have three hours scheduled for some important project and something else will be screaming for your attention. Often it will seem to either be more "urgent" or more fun. Either way, you will need to have the inner fortitude to say no and follow your time budget. So the key here is to not allow the "winds" of the urgent to blow you off course and prevent you from accomplishing your Copyright Jim Rohn International 2002-2004

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established priorities. Use your schedule--or time budget-- as a rudder to guide you through your day and help you reach your goals. The idea here is to be proactive in the use of your time. Too many people take what comes to them rather than proactively pursuing what they decided their priorities were. Budgeting your time will help you immensely in achieving the success that you desire! In the next section, Chris is going to give you some thoughts on a powerful time management equation as well as give you some questions for reflection and actions points to follow through on. Until next week, let's do something remarkable! Jim Rohn

“Don’t mistake movement for achievement. It’s easy to get faked out by being busy. The questions is: Busy doing what?” -– Jim Rohn

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Hi there, Chris Widener here. When I think of accomplishment and success, I think of people who manage their time well. They are people who do what it takes to achieve their dreams. All accomplishment is the fruit of what we do, and what we do is how we decide to spend our time. In researching my own life as well as the lives of highly successful people, I identified what made most people successful was that they followed a simple time management equation. Basically, they do the right things in the short term, over and over again, so that when the long-term comes, those short-term actions have brought them to success. To explain this a little further, here is a short article I wrote called, "A Little Equation that Creates Big Results." A Little Equation that Creates Big Results “The purpose of man is in action, not thought.” -- Thomas Carlyle Often people will ask me how I get so much done in my life. They wonder at how I am able to accomplish so many things. The answer is found not in what a great person I am, but in an equation I defined a few years ago and remind myself of on almost a daily basis. And when I live this equation out, it produces big results. What people don't seem to grasp is that this equation will work for anybody! Anyone can see results in their life if they will live it out! This little equation, when it is understood, and acted upon, is perhaps the most powerful equation there is in regards to long-term achievement and accomplishment. Yet, this is not a complex equation. In fact, it is rather simple. So what is it? Your short-term actions multiplied by time equals your long-term accomplishments. If you want to see change in your life--big results--the first thing you must do is change your current actions. Otherwise the old saying becomes a reality: "If you always do what you've always done, you'll always get what you've always got!" But if we change our actions, we will see different results! Most people want to accomplish a lot in their lives. Yet very few actually do. Why is this? It is because the things they believe will equal their long-term accomplishments are wrong. Here are some of the things that people believe will create great accomplishments for them: • • • • • • •

Beliefs Vision Big dreams Ideas Ideals Values Desire

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The truth is that while these things are very important, they are not enough in and of themselves. These things should underlie and create a foundation of all that we do, but we need to actually do something! And this is where most people stop. We need to take action on our dreams and beliefs every day. Here are some examples of how this works. Who loses weight? The one who knows all about the benefits of exercise, or the one who walks 3 miles a day? Is your priority to lose weight? Then schedule an hour each day to walk three miles. Who retires early? The one who dreams of a house on the beach, or the one who invests $300 a month? Is your priority to retire early? Then budget to save $300 a month (or whatever you can) and do it. Who writes books? The one who desires to become a best-selling author, or the one who gets up early and writes for half an hour a day? Is your priority to write a book? Then schedule 30 minutes a day until you are done. Who has the best marital relationship? The one who knows how much spending time with their spouse can improve their relationship, or the one who sits down and talks with their spouse every night? Is your priority to have a great relationship? Then schedule the time you need each week to reconnect and make it great. Who makes the most sales? The one who believes they can become a great salesperson, or the one who makes 10 sales calls a day? Is it your priority to make more sales? Then schedule more time on the phones or out in the field. I think you get the point. When it all comes down to it, we must act upon our priorities, vision, beliefs, and ideals or we won't see them come to fruition. I see too many people who know what is right, but don't ever do anything about it. Imagine what a difference we could make in our own lives and the lives of others if we would simply begin to act upon our beliefs! When I get to the end of my life, I want to know that I have done all that I can to make this world a better place and to enhance the lives of those around me. I want to know that I gave it my best shot. And I am sure that you do too. I remember reading an interview with an author who has written numerous books that have sold tens of millions of copies. They asked him how he did it. His answer was that he got up every morning before anyone else in his family and wrote, long hand, with a pencil, for an hour. Then he quit and went about his day. But his short-term actions piled up. 7 hours a week. 30 hours a month. 365 hours a year. After a while, he had lots of books!

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Some final questions: What long-term accomplishments do you want to see come to pass? What short-term actions will you need to do over time to see them come to pass? What will you do today to begin seeing your dreams come true? What will you do this week to see them come true? You can have an awesome future, filled with great achievements and results if you begin today to take action and make it a reality! One more time, so you can plug it in, memorize it, and live it: Your Short-Term Actions Multiplied by Time Equals Your Long-Term Accomplishments. Now, as you can see from this article, combined with what Jim taught us about budgeting our time, what we want to do in order to bring about the desired results in our lives is to budget into our schedules the short-term tasks that will bring us long-term achievement great food for thought this week. Chris Widener Review of CD 16 •

Lessons from your parents - Lots of great lessons here.

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Think through some of the best lessons you have learned from your parents!

“Time is one of those things that can slip past you quietly and easily... or you can squeeze everything you can out of it and it kicks and screams all the way to Success.” -- Doug Firebaugh

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Q Qu ueessttiioon nss ffoorr R Reefflleeccttiioon n:: Q. Before you take an inventory of your time, in what areas do you think you do well? In what areas do you think you spend too much time?

Q. What amounts of time do you think are appropriate for you in each major area of life so that you can live from your priorities and achieve what you desire?

Q. After you have inventoried your time for a day or two, how did you rate? What areas surprised you in that you spent too much time? In what areas did you spend too little time?

Q. As you think about writing a budget of time, when would work best for you to write it? Sunday night? Monday morning? Two times a week, or each day?

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A Accttiioon n SStteep pss T Th hiiss W Weeeekk:: 1. Take an inventory of your time for a day and take some time analyzing it. How did it match your priorities?

2. Take an inventory for three days and take some time analyzing it. How did it match your priorities?

3. Take an inventory of your time for a week and take some time analyzing it. How did it match your priorities?

4. Decide when you will sit down and budget your time so as to maximize that time for living out your priorities.

5. Commit each day, every day, to living out your short-term tasks according to your priorities so that they eventually add up over time and equal your desired long-term results. Write comments here.

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A A LLooookk FFoorrw waarrd d:: This week we will be listening to CD 17 of the New Millennium series.

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How did you bounce?

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Game Plan for Action

See you next week, Chris Widener

N Nootteess ffoorr C mR Rooh hn nN Neew CD w D SSeevveen ntteeeen n ffrroom m tth hee JJiim M Miilllleen nn niiu um m sseerriieess:: ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ Copyright Jim Rohn International 2002-2004

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