Time is money. Time is an asset.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
I know it’s valuable, yet I’m still NOT MANAGING IT EFFECTIVELY.
Until recently, that is.

There are numerous books, cd’s and workshops out there suggesting ways in
which we can manage our time.
Perhaps I needed a time system, a schedule, a planner.
Or perhaps I needed to focus, get my goals in order, make lists, prioritize.
Or perhaps I needed to enlist a third party–
like get a buddy or join a mastermind group to be accountable to.

Actually, I was and am still doing all of that.
But then why am I not getting more of what I want done?
I now know!
I call it Factor X—simply eXpect the uneXpected.

After many long months of trying to get to the real crux of the matter, I came to this epiphany while fielding multiple simultaneous requests from clients and kin—for everything from a last minute contractual change, meeting a proposal deadline, getting my head shot and one-sheet to a prospective client, to listening to my mother via telephone as she grappled with the recent deaths of her husband and father, my friend who is dealing with a child’s illness, and my teen son’s bitter realization that all friends actually don’t have your back.

And that was not including anything from my goal oriented and prioritized Daily-List-of-Things-To-Do.

As a home-based business owner, mother of a teen and basically someone that is involved in her life (much like yourself, I’d presume), those uneXpected Factors come on swiftly and suddenly, seemingly seeking to sabotage.

I’ve discovered there is a certain and very definite, but highly unpredicatable amount of interruptions that occur throughout my days. And due to the completely unexpected nature of these events, I would often find myself staring glassy eyed at 1:30 in the morning wondering where the day went.

As a result of this grandest of a-ha moments, I have given myself a precious gift.
It is truly the gift that keeps on giving. And it’s not a book.
It is TIME.
Yes, that is correct. Humans throughout the ages have tried to discover the secret and I have gone and done it. I am able to give myself more time!
How’s that, Holly, pray tell? You sardonically ask. 
It is so simple, so straitforward–I have slapped myself upside the head wondering why I hadn’t thought of it sooner.

I now pad my big Daily-List-of-Things-To-Do with more time. I factor in the unexpected and the inevitable. I factor in those distractions, shocking ambushes and attacks; those emergencies, surprises and fires.

By allowing myself more time to accomplish my tasks, I found I am really managing my time more effectively. Try it. Pencil in more time to account for Factor X and you will see the results firsthand.