“The key question to keep asking is, are you spending your time on the right things? Because time is all you have.”
Unknown
The definition of choosy is overly fastidious in making a choice. And the definition of fastidious is being very attentive to and concerned about accuracy and detail.
If we have time, that means we’re still alive. So, we have a responsibility to manage our focus to make the most of our time every day as we live life to the fullest. Time for family, time for self-care, time for business or work, time for friends and time for charitable acts.
There are five components to life balance. The first one is work and it is like a red, rubber ball. If you drop it, more than likely it will bounce back and you can recover. The next vital four are like glass, if you drop them enough times or hard enough, they can break forever:
- Family
- Health
- Friends
- Integrity
So, let’s bring it back to the definitions I’ve already shared. When we’re making decisions about where to expend our time and energy it’s okay and encouraged to be choosy or “attentive and concerned” about making those choices.
When you’re new in business, you may find yourself being pulled in a lot of different directions and trying to navigate where to spend your time.
It’s very common for networking groups to reach out to new business owners to increase their membership numbers. And when you’re new in business, you’re like a sponge taking everything in, watching the people you come in contact with and meeting as many people as you can. So, when you get invited to visit or join a group, it can be tempting to join them all.
And the longer you’re in business and the more people you meet, you’ll find even more exciting events and opportunities coming your way. At any point you can easily fill your schedule with coffee meetings, networking events, networking meetings, seminars and the list goes on and on… These are all valuable in their own rights, but if you participate in all of them, you’re probably not working with clients and making money because you’ve overfilled your schedule. For some new business owners, it can even be a way to avoid working in their office or contacting people to make the sales.
It’s vital to strike a balance by saying yes sometimes and saying no thank you other times. I encourage you to weigh the benefits of each event, request or opportunity that comes your way.
You can use some filters to really be “attentive and concerned about making those choices.” You can look at each event with “filter glasses” on and ask yourself if the request or interest will help you in your business or personal life:
- Will it help you financially through information or contacts that will help your business grow?
- Will you benefit socially by enjoying an event with an amazing group of people that you love to be around?
- Will you increase your knowledge and learn something valuable that will help you grow in business or grow as a person?
- Is this something that will improve you spiritually by soothing your soul or helping you become a better person?
What if you feel like every event or opportunity seems to work with your filter glasses on? There’s a very good chance that you’re someone who loves to learn and improve yourself and strive to get to the next level. You may be someone who is very social or likes to connect with people on a regular basis to grow your sphere of influence. Or you may feel alone in your office and crave getting out to be around other people!
I still encourage you to make sure you’re striking a balance by using your filter glasses with care. Make sure you aren’t dropping the glass that is family, health, friends and integrity by taking on too much. And I always feel that if we take on too much, we don’t have the time and energy to do all of it well. And usually something has to give which can make one or more of the vital four suffer.
Action Steps:
Make a list of what you want to get out of groups, events and activities that you participate in moving forward.
Examples:
If your focus is go get to know more people, you may be putting on your filter glasses to look for social events like auctions, dinners and networking meetings.
If your focus is on learning, you may be looking through your filter glasses for seminars, webinars and lunch & learns.
Get clear on your goals, put on your filter glasses and put your best foot forward where you choose to spend your time and energy.
“You define what is important to you by what you dedicate your time to.”
Unknown
