Confessions of a Time Management Failure
By Dave Saunders

Okay I'll admit it. In my pursuit to get more done, save time, be more efficient and all of that, I've made horrible mistakes when it comes to effective time management. But really, who hasn't? Life is for living and living sometimes involves making mistakes. Personal development is about recognizing those mistakes and improving upon them.

A more empowering way of looking at this is that mistakes really aren't mistakes at all. As long as you are willing to learn, what some people might call mistakes are really just confirmations of what not to do in the future. Laboratory workers at Edison's lab tried nearly 10,000 combinations of materials to create a filament for the modern-day light bulb. When interviewed, Thomas Edison did not view these iterations as mistakes. Instead he viewed it as important scientific data that led to a high quality product.

Some of the homerun kings, in the sport of baseball, are also the strikeout kings. Some basketball stars have a low percentage of baskets, but they're still the top point earners. By not focusing on individual failures but instead moving forward to better achievements, these sports stars set a great example for perseverance.

What does any of this have to do with time management?

All too often the biggest challenge in getting more done in using the time that we have more wisely comes down to honesty.

Honesty with ourselves.

When I feel like I'm in a slump something that is helpful is to get out a blank day planner sheet and log everything I did during the day in 15-minute increments. Sometimes I'm not proud of myself when I see an hour or two of completely wasted time staring me in the face. But this information is very important because it gives me a realistic look at where I'm spending my time.

With that awareness comes the opportunity for improvement.

Every day I also write in my journal. This gives me an opportunity to reflect on my day. I describe my perception of events and I also painted a picture of how I would've liked to have seen certain events transpire.

To keep a journal, you can write passages as a letter to yourself or as a report to a person that you wish was your mentor; like Albert Einstein. At the end of each entry describe your intent for your next day or the rest of the week.

Time management is an interesting phrase because it implies that we can manage time, but of course we can't. What we really learn is how to manage ourselves. As we strive to become more effective the time we have seems more fruitful. It's because of this learning that I no longer call myself a time management failure.