The vulgarity of busyness destroys effectiveness.

Life is a burning ant hill in many organizations. But crazy schedules reflect people, not time management skills.

Life is manageable only when you manage your calendar.

Time:

The second-hand ignores you. It never negotiates.

The best you can do – in a world galloping through constant interruption – is manage a few blocks in your schedule. When the boss calls, for example, you pick up.

Biggest mistake:

The biggest mistake we make with time is frantically cramming more into it. Chaos is ineffective. Pandemonium eventually becomes apathy.

Second biggest mistake:

The second is under-estimating how long tasks take. Inexperience or lack of humility explain why people over-schedule themselves.

Arrogance ignores limitations, over-estimates abilities, and misjudges realities.

Arrogance:

1. Sets unrealistic goals.
2. Rejects personal limitation and weakness.
3. Assumes things will go well.
4. Needs to please.
5. Scoffs at self-care.
6. Won’t set priorities. Arrogance believes you can have it all.
7. Lives for today. When your identity is tied to performance, everything thing has to be perfect.

The secret:

The secret to managing your schedule concerns you, not your calendar. Arrogance overbooks and overcommits.

1. Humility has a few strengths. It can’t succeed at everything.
2. Humility knows its limitations.
3. Arrogance wears rose-colored glasses. Humility is realistic about itself and others.
4. Humility delivers on its promises.
5. Arrogance says yes to gain favor but overcommits and makes excuses.

What shifts in your approach when you look at your calendar through the lens of humility?

What’s your best tip for gaining control of your schedule?

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This post was previously published on Leadership Freak with a Creative Commons License.

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