By Kristen Gielow

We all fall victim to mismanaging our priorities. Mostly because we don't really know what our priorities are. Oh, we know what we need to do right now. That is until something more important comes up, and we stop that "right now" activity to do the "really right now" activity. And then we look up and it is 5:00 pm and all we did all day was jump from one "right now" activity to the next. Of course we get things done. We worked hard all day, things got checked off of our to-do list. But did we really do what we should have done?

Priority Management has been a buzz word in the coaching world for years. And there are a hundred thousand different ways to do it. And there are so many great books that will help you manage your priorities. I have read them. I have believed in them. I use many of the principles to this day. They share great systems, best practices and techniques that are timeless (excuse the pun). But no book will teach you how to be disciplined with priority management. No book will be there at 5:00 am when the alarm clock goes off and it is time to head to the gym. A book won't correct you when you stop an important task to deal with a less important but louder task. Only you can do that. Only you can force yourself to get up and stick to your time block. And until you understand that you deserve to be disciplined, that you deserve to honor your time and that you deserve to tell people no, that day will never come.

So today, and for the next five days, track where you spend your time. Write down every task you do as you are doing it. Then go back and review and label your tasks into four categories. I call them the 4 D's: Do, Delay, Delete and Delegate.

We really only need to live in the world of Do. These are the tasks only you have the expertise and authority to do. In my career this is being on a coaching call. While my boss, assistant and teammates are all great at their own job functions, my clients expect me to be on that phone when they call in.

Delay. These are the items that only you can do but that don't need to be done right now. These items don't need to disrupt your current activity. They can wait for later. Whether it's later today, later this week or later this month, pull out your calendar and schedule the activity for a future time.  

Delete. Do I really need to explain this? Get rid of it. The activity is useless and doesn't honor you or your time. It is okay to say no.

Delegate. There is someone more qualified than you to do certain tasks. I find that cleaning my own house is a waste of my time. I appreciate our housekeeper because if it weren't for her, I would be up all night cleaning my house after a busy day doing my Do's. I don't have time for it. She does.  

So there it is. The 4 D's to priority management. Simple, easy and executable. Now all you need is the discipline to execute and stick to it. Good luck!

Check out Kristen's Bio for more info.

 

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