Welcome back to AwildaRivera.com for the third installment of the Time Ninja Series. In Part 2 we unpacked the difference between urgent & important. Part 2 also shared 3 questions you should always ask yourself when creating your task chronology.  Interested in Catching up? Click Here to check out the Infographic,  as well as Part 1 & Part 2 of this series.
 
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PLAN – SCHEDULE - EXECUTE.
 
Now that you know how to Identify the important component tasks associated with your Goal, and how to attack them chronologically, it is IMPERATIVE that you understand how to get them DONE. The trick to becoming a Time Ninja is SCHEDULING.   I know some of you are out there thinking, “I heard of plan and execute, but how did schedule make it into the mix?”
 
Scheduling is your secret weapon! A plan that fails to be scheduled cannot be efficiently executed. An attempt to execute with out a schedule fails to maximize the plan.
 
The great news is that by this point in the series you have: (1) a plan, (2) you know the tasks you need to execute, and (3) and you know the order you need to execute them in. HOWEVER, you may have no idea how long a task will take to complete.  GUESS WHAT? That’s perfectly fine! As you become more familiar with the types of tasks you need to undertake in your business these activities will either become easier, you will outsource them, or you will develop another approach.
 
Here are 5 Tips to help you Schedule Your plan so that you can Successfully accomplish your Tasks:

1. Decide how long each task will take

• Give yourself a honest estimation of how much time it might take you to complete the task
• Once you have determined how long it will take you to complete the task, break the length of time into smaller chunks (i.e. 15 or 30 min blocks)

2. Plan you week in advance and look at the time you have available to work on your goal related activities

• Look at how many chunks of time you need to complete a specific tasks now that you have broken them up into 15 or 30 minute blocks
• Examine the time you have available in your week to attack the project chunks in a chronological and practical way
  
  

3. Schedule the time to work on these tasks into your electronic or paper planner with 5-10 minute buffers book-ending each period of time

• WRITE IT DOWN!! The point is to create a system that becomes second nature and maximizes your efficiency. DON’T TRY TO KEEP IT ALL IN YOUR HEAD.

4. Review your planner each night and review what you have in the day ahead

• You can not be prepared if you don’t have any idea what the next day holds.
• ALWAYS review your planner the night before for schedule changes and important meetings.

5. COMMIT TO EXECUTING WHILE BEING FLEXIBLE

• Focus on getting it done
• Be realistic about how much time you have allotted and allow yourself the room to lengthen or shorten the time
• Follow the plan you created with a little variation as possible.

In a Nut Shell --

Plan to be prepared or be prepared to fail. Things are always going to come up, you must have a strong  foundation with the systems and routines in place that will continue to encourage your growth.  If you are struggling with getting things done, give this new system a try. Remember that once you Identify what needs to be done, you can prioritize the tasks and create a chronology of activity. You can then use that chronology to Plan - Schedule - Execute on the completion of the tasks.


Until next time guys..... Keep your eyes peeled for Part 4 of this series! 

 
Missed Part ONE of the "How to Become  a Time Ninja" Series? Read it Here!  

Missed Part Two? Read it Here! 

 Ready to schedule your 100% FREE Success Coaching Consultation? Click here!
 

IMPORTANCE  IS THE KEY.
 
 
Welcome back to AwildaRivera.com!! I am super stocked to share Part 2 of the TIME NINJA series with you. In part one we covered how to create Goals and identify the relevant tasks or projects associated therewith. Part 2 will address how to prioritize those tasks in a strategic way so that their completion creates momentum.
 
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We have all had the thought “I know what to do, but I have absolutely no idea where to start”, this thought can be paralyzing.  However, if the way to achieve Success is through constant intentional action, then one can not afford to become paralyzed and take no action. 
 
GOOD NEWS – I have a few questions you can ask yourself that can help you to not only prioritize your tasks, but also facilitate the completion of those tasks in a logically progressive manner.
 
BUT FIRST – You need to Understand the difference between Urgent & Important.
 
Putting out fires, thinking on your feet and getting things done in a bind are all apart of the cost of doing Business in 2017. The issue is that those things all fall into the urgent category. Humans are really good at understanding when things are urgent and taking corrective action, for example:
 

• going to the Doctor when you wake up with a Fever, 
• Getting Gas when the like is blinking in your car,
• Filing your taxes the day before the deadline to avoid a penalty,
• Fixing a Email Marketing glitch that just sent all your subscribers the same email 3 times.

 
Unfortunately Humans are also really good at putting things off that are not Urgent. Now of course there are things that should be put off until later like catching up on House of Cards, Cleaning your Sneakers, or finishing that book your Father recommended because they are neither important nor relevant to accomplishing your Goal.  HOWEVER, when examining the importance of tasks related to the accomplishment of your Goal you should ask yourself these 3 questions:
 
1.  Does the completion of this activity help me make material progress towards
     my goal?

• Be honest with yourself here! You need to be clear about what is going to help you make the progress you desire. When you are clear about what you need to do then you are more likely to avoid wasting a ton of time on tasks that are not going to move the needle forward.  If the task is not going to help you move towards your Goal then table it for a later date.
  
  
• Your brain will also begin to narrow down the list of tasks you generated through the exercises in part one of this series to a leaner group of activities. The tasks that remain have been determined by you to be the most likely to help you make tangible & immediate progress towards your goal.

2.    Does this activity have the potential to become urgent?

• We have already established that when Things become Urgent Humans pay attention. However it’s the tasks that we have determined to be Important but have very little prospect of ever becoming Urgent that we have to make a special effort to prioritize. If  we fail to make the important items a priority then we run the risk of making very little to no progress towards our Goal  because we are focused on urgent or irrelevant matters.
  
  

3. Does this activity require that I complete other tasks prior to getting started?
 

• ALWAYS ASK YOURSELF THIS 3rd Question!! The answer you generate will help to start to create a logical order of operations for the narrowed list of tasks.
  
  
• Creating a task accomplishment order  will help you to build momentum from one task to the next, as the prior task is necessary for the execution of the present activity.
  
  

 
In a NUT SHELL --
Any task that causes you to answer “Yes” to question 1 is DEFINITELY IMPORTANT. You must be proactive!  Its imperative to address any tasks that have the potential to become Urgent in a timely fashion so that you can avoid having to spend time putting out unnecessary fires.  Lastly, having a clear understanding of the nature of the task is essential to creating an effective strategic plan for the chronology of activity. 

Until next time guys..... Keep your eyes peeled for Part 3 of this series! 

 
Missed Part ONE of the "How to Become  a Time Ninja" Series? Read it Here!    

Want to grow with the support of a Growth Squad? Check out the Professional Excellence Mastermind – Registration ends May 20th! Interested in signing up? Register Here.
 
Ready to schedule your 100% FREE Success Coaching Consultation? Click here!