Successful Time Management FOR DUMmIES ‰ by Dirk Zeller Successful Time Management FOR DUMmIES ‰ by Dirk Zeller Successful Time Management For Dummies® Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc. 111 River St. Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774 www.wiley.com Copyright © 2009 by Dirk Zeller Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana Published simultaneously in Canada No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise, except as permitted under Sections 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written permission of the Publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, 978-750-8400, fax 978-646-8600. Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Legal Department, Wiley Publishing, Inc., 10475 Crosspoint Blvd., Indianapolis, IN 46256, 317-572-3447, fax 317-572-4355, or online at http:// www.wiley.com/go/permissions. Trademarks: Wiley, the Wiley Publishing logo, For Dummies, the Dummies Man logo, A Reference for the Rest of Us!, The Dummies Way, Dummies Daily, The Fun and Easy Way, Dummies.com, Making Everything Easier, and related trade dress are trademarks or registered trademarks of John Wiley & Sons, Inc. and/ or its affi liates in the United States and other countries, and may not be used without written permission. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Wiley Publishing, Inc., is not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book. LIMIT OF LIABILITY/DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY: THE PUBLISHER AND THE AUTHOR MAKE NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES WITH RESPECT TO THE ACCURACY OR COMPLETENESS OF THE CONTENTS OF THIS WORK AND SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, INCLUDING WITH- OUT LIMITATION WARRANTIES OF FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. NO WARRANTY MAY BE CREATED OR EXTENDED BY SALES OR PROMOTIONAL MATERIALS. THE ADVICE AND STRATEGIES CONTAINED HEREIN MAY NOT BE SUITABLE FOR EVERY SITUATION. THIS WORK IS SOLD WITH THE UNDERSTANDING THAT THE PUBLISHER IS NOT ENGAGED IN RENDERING LEGAL, ACCOUNTING, OR OTHER PROFESSIONAL SERVICES. IF PROFESSIONAL ASSISTANCE IS REQUIRED, THE SERVICES OF A COMPETENT PROFESSIONAL PERSON SHOULD BE SOUGHT. NEITHER THE PUBLISHER NOR THE AUTHOR SHALL BE LIABLE FOR DAMAGES ARISING HEREFROM. THE FACT THAT AN ORGANIZA- TION OR WEBSITE IS REFERRED TO IN THIS WORK AS A CITATION AND/OR A POTENTIAL SOURCE OF FURTHER INFORMATION DOES NOT MEAN THAT THE AUTHOR OR THE PUBLISHER ENDORSES THE INFORMATION THE ORGANIZATION OR WEBSITE MAY PROVIDE OR RECOMMENDATIONS IT MAY MAKE. FURTHER, READERS SHOULD BE AWARE THAT INTERNET WEBSITES LISTED IN THIS WORK MAY HAVE CHANGED OR DISAPPEARED BETWEEN WHEN THIS WORK WAS WRITTEN AND WHEN IT IS READ. For general information on our other products and services, please contact our Customer Care Department within the U.S. at 800-762-2974, outside the U.S. at 317-572-3993, or fax 317-572-4002. For technical support, please visit www.wiley.com/techsupport. Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats. Some content that appears in print may not be available in electronic books. Library of Congress Control Number: 2008938869 ISBN: 978-0-470-29034-7 Manufactured in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 About the Author Dirk Zeller started his entrepreneurial business career almost 40 years ago through lemonade stands. He has been recognized as an effi cient time manager and top sales performer in every fi eld he’s entered, from profes- sional racquetball to business sales of advertising, marketing, and event sponsorship to consumer-direct sales fi elds such as real estate. His time management skills were legendary in the real estate fi eld, where he sold over 150 homes a year while working Monday through Thursday, taking Friday, Saturday, and Sunday off. Dirk has been teaching, coaching, and training success, sales, and time man- agement strategies to executives, managers, and salespeople since 1998, when he founded Sales Champions and Real Estate Champions. He is one of the most sought-after speakers in time management, peak performance, and sales. He has spoken on fi ve different continents to hundreds of thousands of people. Dirk is one of the world’s most published authors on success, time manage- ment, productivity, sales, and life balance. He is the author of fi ve top-selling books, including Telephone Sales For Dummies and Success as a Real Estate Agent For Dummies. He has more than 400 published articles to his credit, and over 350,000 people read his weekly newsletter. The time that’s most valuable to Dirk is the time enjoyed with his wife of 19 years, Joan, his 6-year-old son, Wesley, and his 3-year-old daughter, Annabelle. He and his family reside in Bend, Oregon. You can reach Dirk at Sales Champions 5 NW Hawthorne Ave., Suite 100 Bend, OR 97701 Phone 541-383-0505 E-mail [email protected] E-mail [email protected] Web site www.saleschampions.com Dedication Nothing refl ects the passing of time more than growth and changes in our children. It seems like just yesterday that Joan and I received the call that changed our lives as we exited my 96-year-old grandmother’s funeral. The call was from our pastor’s wife, Linda Johnson. She said a baby boy had been born that morning in Hood River, Oregon, and asked if we wanted him. The next day, Joan and I walked out of the Hood River Memorial Hospital with our son, Wesley. In the last six years since that moment, the time has passed like a blink of an eye. We have added another blessing in Annabelle, who also has a divine and miraculous story. In those years, which seem like mere moments in time, it seems like seconds ago we got our fi rst smile, giggle, crawl, and walk out of each of them. We had joyous celebrating recently when we realized we had changed our last diaper for probably the next 20 years! I dedicate this book to my two precious time clocks of life, Annabelle and Wesley. The time with you two moves too quickly. I, as all parents, fi ght to stay in the moment, enjoy every moment, and relive those moments before they are gone. You two have taught me more about time’s value, joy, and its ever-marching-on characteristics than anyone else in my years on Earth. I love you both deeply and praise God for the honor he bestowed on me to be your dad. Author’s Acknowledgments I always have to thank my team at Sales Champions and Real Estate Champions. It is truly an honor to be surrounded by so many talented people. I must especially thank my Senior Management Team; Don Cunningham, the President of both companies; and Julie Porfi rio, Senior Vice President of Operations. You both have worked hard to insulate me so I could take on another For Dummies book. To Jody McBride, my Assistant, who labored over my handwritten words to type, organize, revise, and edit the whole manuscript — thanks. This book would not have existed without your fi ne work. To Tracy Boggier, my Acquisitions Editor at Wiley; Kristin DeMint, Project Editor; and Erin Calligan Mooney, Editorial Program Coordinator, who stepped in to help lend a hand. To Betsy Sheldon, who did another masterful job of taking my writing and morphing it into the wonderful For Dummies format. To my wife, Joan, my son, Wesley, and my daughter, Annabelle. Thank you for your patience and grace. There is a sacrifi ce of time that we all make when I am writing a book! Publisher’s Acknowledgments We’re proud of this book; please send us your comments through our Dummies online registration form located at www.dummies.com/register/. Some of the people who helped bring this book to market include the following: Acquisitions, Editorial, and Composition Services Media Development Project Coordinator: Katherine Key Ghostwriter: Betsy Sheldon Layout and Graphics: Reuben W. Davis, Project Editor: Kristin DeMint Nikki Gately, Sarah E. Philippart, Christine Williams Acquisitions Editor: Tracy Boggier Proofreaders: ConText Editorial Services, Inc., Senior Copy Editor: Danielle Voirol Amanda Steiner Assistant Editor: Erin Calligan Mooney Indexer: Broccoli Information Management Technical Editor: Adam Hayes Editorial Manager: Michelle Hacker Editorial Assistants: Jennette ElNaggar, Joe Niesen Cover Photo: ©Graphistock Cartoons: Rich Tennant (www.the5thwave.com) Publishing and Editorial for Consumer Dummies Diane Graves Steele, Vice President and Publisher, Consumer Dummies Kristin Ferguson-Wagstaffe, Product Development Director, Consumer Dummies Ensley Eikenburg, Associate Publisher, Travel Kelly Regan, Editorial Director, Travel Publishing for Technology Dummies Andy Cummings, Vice President and Publisher, Dummies Technology/General User Composition Services Gerry Fahey, Vice President of Production Services Debbie Stailey, Director of Composition Services Contents at a Glance Introduction ................................................................ 1 Part I: Beginning the Revolution: Simple Steps to Start With ........................................... 7 Chapter 1: Setting Yourself Up for Success ....................................................................9 Chapter 2: Linking Time Management to Life Goals ...................................................21 Chapter 3: Putting a Value on Your Time .....................................................................35 Part II: Establishing a Good System ............................ 43 Chapter 4: Focusing Your Efforts, Prioritizing Tasks, and Blocking Your Time......45 Chapter 5: Setting Up and Maintaining a Productive Workspace ..............................65 Chapter 6: Fine-Tuning Organization Skills with Technology ....................................81 Chapter 7: Taking Time Management on the Road ...................................................101 Part III: Confronting Challenges to Time Management ................................................ 121 Chapter 8: Communicating Strategically to Get Results — Fast .............................123 Chapter 9: Defending Your Day from Interruptions ..................................................143 Chapter 10: Overcoming Procrastination, a Notorious Time Thief.........................159 Chapter 11: Making Wise Yet Quick Decisions ..........................................................175 Part IV: Maintaining Efficiency When Working with Others ....................................... 189 Chapter 12: Coping with a Time-Wasting Boss ..........................................................191 Chapter 13: Mastering Meetings with Co-Workers ....................................................203 Chapter 14: Optimizing Collaboration with Business Associates ...........................219 Part V: Advanced Time Management for Specific Folks ..................................................... 247 Chapter 15: Time Management for Administrative Staff ...........................................249 Chapter 16: Time Management for Salespeople ........................................................261 Chapter 17: Time Management for Business Owners and Executives ....................281 Chapter 18: Coaching Others to Manage Time Effectively .......................................295 Part VI: The Part of Tens .......................................... 309 Chapter 19: Ten Time-Wasting Behaviors ..................................................................311 Chapter 20: Ten Time-Effi cient Habits ........................................................................319 Chapter 21: Ten Time Savers for Your Personal Life ................................................327 Chapter 22: Ten Great Time-Saving Technologies.....................................................333 Chapter 23: Ten Ways to Fine-Tune Your Focus on the Job ....................................339 Index ...................................................................... 345