| I pride myself on being busy and hard working but | | | | good break time. Then leave emails until late in the |
| often I feel unsatisfied. If you have ever felt that | | | | day, say 4 pm. This way you will not be distracted |
| way then perhaps you have been guilty of my bad | | | | my messages as they come in enabling you to focus |
| habit which is procrastination - also known as wasting | | | | on the most important tasks to be accomplished. |
| my own time. | | | | 4. Rewards. |
| Sitting at my computer checking the latest celebrity | | | | It is a good practice to treat yourself after you have |
| gossip or the latest football results and news is not | | | | finished a set task. This helps you work harder |
| counted as work and will not make you wealthy or | | | | knowing a reward is there at the end. There is no |
| rich. | | | | point in working hard if you do not enjoy your |
| Fortunately I have developed a system of rules and | | | | successes. I set small goals such as a cup of tea |
| strategies which have massively improved my work | | | | once I'm finished. |
| rate and really helped me in my pursuit of my goal of | | | | 5. Break Tasks Down. |
| earning a full-time living from working on the Internet. | | | | Procrastination often happens because a task is |
| I will truthfully say that the temptation to | | | | overwhelming and it is easier to put it off rather than |
| procrastinate is always there but I now find it much | | | | face it. Breaking a task or project into smaller tasks |
| easier to resist. Here are my time management | | | | often helps you see the small steps you need to |
| secrets which I use to great effect. | | | | take which often makes a job seem a lot easier to |
| 1. Never sit down at your computer without knowing | | | | start. Often once a job is started momentum takes |
| what you will do. | | | | over and you steam into the job with ease. |
| When you sit down without purpose your mind will | | | | 6. Overload. |
| naturally seek small often meaningless tasks to fill the | | | | The human mind can only concentrate for fairly short |
| void. These small tasks which can often involve | | | | periods. About 50 minutes is about right so sitting for |
| checking stats lead into tangents and before you | | | | longer tends to mean you slow down mentally and |
| know it, time has flown by without much of | | | | are not as productive. It is best to stop for ten |
| substance being achieved. When you sit down on | | | | minutes, have your reward and then start again all |
| your computer with a work task firmly in mind you | | | | fresh. |
| will just flow into the job at hand. | | | | 7. Rest. |
| 2. Plan your work. | | | | I'm a workaholic myself but when I'm tired I produce |
| Sitting down at your desk in the morning and working | | | | little of note and I have trained myself to recognise |
| out what you are going to do is not productive but is | | | | this and take time off. There are just some days |
| reactive. Instead at the end of your day make a list | | | | when you seem able to tackle anything the world |
| of what objectives and tasks you wish to accomplish | | | | throws at you and other days when you can barely |
| the next day. This will help your mind be clear and | | | | manage to get out of bed. Like the wind in your sail |
| focused and you will find yourself sitting down and | | | | go with the momentum when you feel you can |
| starting work immediately. | | | | change the world and when you feel lacklustre just |
| 3. Schedule work time and play time. | | | | take it easy and recharge. |
| Starting the day checking emails or reading the latest | | | | Following these simple but very hard to follow |
| news is a recipe for time management disaster. Make | | | | strategies have helped me achieve great financial |
| a point of reading your emails at a scheduled time, | | | | success as I have built a number of successful |
| perhaps around 11 am is a good as it makes for a | | | | wealth-building websites. |
