Time is the great equalizer. Everyone gets the same amount of time: 24 hours in each day. No matter how rich you are, you cannot buy more time. No matter how many people you know, they cannot give you more time. So the most important question you can ask daily is, “How can I and everyone on the team use time more wisely?”
One of the essential keys to maximizing success as an individual or an organization is to effectively determine where your time should go now and into the future. Where you used time in the past only serves as a guide and learning mechanism for your decisions as to where time should go. If one person in your group does not focus on congruent goals it can cause everyone’s time to be misused. If many people are not using their time wisely it can be a huge barrier to your potential.
I find the most effective executives are very intentional and disciplined about the use of time and have a well-structured set of policies, systems and procedures for keeping their teams aligned and focused on the right sets of activities. You have most likely found that people can spend a whole day’s worth of time trying to figure out why someone assigned a task that could be completed by the right person in 20 minutes has spent 3 weeks on it and is not yet finished.
The following are some opportunities so achieve better use of time:
- Clarifying the specific expectations from each person’s role in terms of project, position, department, process, and organization
- Understanding the strengths and weaknesses of everyone in the organization and directing efforts toward utilizing each person’s strength
- Identifying and narrowing focus around the fewest goals and priorities possible
- Planning and preparing for obstacles
- Understanding who is going to do what and when
- Identifying, measuring and managing around the proper leading key performance indicators toward achieving short and longer goals
- Knowing and making sure that progress is made on the most important priority daily
- Developing and implementing an effective meeting and communication regimen throughout the organization.
We have found that the concepts from Mastering the Rockefeller Habits 2.0 – Scaling Up, by Verne Harnish, can provide a simple and effective means for capitalizing on the above opportunities. The tools and process identified in this book along with the assistance of a certified Gazelles coach in helping you make the right decisions around strategy, people, process and cash can help you better execute your decisions through the disciplines of priorities, data/metrics, and meeting rhythms.
As a Certified Gazelles and executive leadership coach and founder of Activate Group Inc., based in Miami, Florida, Howard Shore can help you and your leadership team to become more effective. To learn more about the Mastering the Rockefeller Habits, please visit contact Howard at 305.722.7213 or email him at shoreh@activategroupinc.com.