Get a Mentor!

Mentors are quite possibly the greatest time-saving technique ever created. So why don't we hear about them more often? It's just one of those hidden secrets of time management that very few people are aware of, apparently even the people that write the time management books! If you only take one technique from this book - make it getting yourself a strong and wise mentor. It's just that important.
Mentors can be powerful in your life for many reasons. The first of which is that they can take years off the learning curve. Things that would take you 10, 20, 30, 50 years to learn they can teach you in a matter of hours, days or weeks. Clearly, this makes mentoring the ultimate time management skill. I can't think of anything that will save you more time, money and aggravation (with the possible exception of choosing the right spouse. I'm just kidding … sort of).
Mentors also typically bring with them a huge network of individuals and resources that they have gathered over the years. People and resources that it would take a lifetime (if ever) to get access to, they can share with you today. Many people who obtain a mentor failed to recognize this great resource and therefore don't take advantage of it. Don't let this be you! Make sure to explore and utilize these resources to their full and natural benefit.
A person can also have more than one mentor, and I highly recommend that you try to obtain two to five good mentors that each bring something different to the table. In all likelihood, these people will be your greatest resource and account for the vast majority of your success in life. This is provided they utilize them properly and take the bulk of their suggestions. I am always surprised how many people get access to a fantastic mentor and then fail to take their recommendations. Knowledge means you know something, but wisdom is utilizing that knowledge for positive gain. Therefore it's much better to be wise then knowledgeable.
Mentors are also a great source of support and give you someone you trust that you can talk to about your future plans, hopes and fears. Mentors will often become your best friends. My definition of a best friend is "the one who brings out the best in me." Typically this person is going to be a mentor of some kind.
Remember that your mentor(s) does a lot for you, so be sure to show appreciation, speak well of them to others, and be of service to them in any way shape or form that you can. All good relationships are based on reciprocity, liking, support and trust.
Start today to search out possible mentors around you and be bold and specific and asking them to become your mentor and exactly what you are seeking in a mentoring relationship. They will want to know what it will look like and what your expectations are. I always tell them that I will take up a minimum of their time, and then I try to keep that promise.
Sometimes when you're first starting out it seems very difficult to find mentors. But remember that while you are looking you can have many what I call "Remote Mentors." These take the form of books, audio CDs or MP3s, videos or Internet contacts that you can get access to relatively quickly. You are still getting the benefit of years of experience, it's just indirect, and in most cases, you can't ask questions. But it's a great place to start building your knowledge and wisdom while you wait to secure a direct and permanent mentor.

Try the "Walk & Talk" Technique

"Walk and Talk" Technique

I have been famous for this technique at virtually every place of business I've ever worked at. People think they have to stop moving to talk - these are the same people who can't walk and chew gum at the same time. Now that may sound funny, but notice how many people have to sit down to have a conversation or totally stop in their tracks when someone starts to talk to them. You will see this all the time.

I love this technique because it cost me know extra time to have the conversation indicates the conversation short because I have a ready excuse at my place of destination to cut the conversation short. People also understand intuitively that if they are "walking and talking" they had better get to the point quick because very likely it's a short walk. This technique has saved me gobs of time and has taught my staff to take my time very seriously, to be brief and succinct, and to think through what they're going to say thoroughly before approaching me.

Using the Pareto Principle:

Make use of the Pareto Principle:

The principle takes its name from Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto (1848 – 1923), who noted that 80% of the property in Italy was owned by only 20% of the residents. This later became the Pareto Principle – most commonly know as “The 80/20 rule” - that states 80% of outcomes are derived from 20% of the causes. For example 20% of your customers may equal 80% of your sales. Furthermore, 20% of your customers may account for 80% of the complaints! This principle can be applied to life as well, for example, 20% of your friends may account for 80% of the fun you have. And 20% of what you learned in school may equal 80% of all the value you derived from the teachings. It is the principles ability to be so universally applied that makes it so powerful and useful.

Hold in mind that this is just a theory, and the theory is not firm on these numbers. Pareto himself would tell you that some times the formula is, for example, 90/10 or 70/30. But the fact remains that the vast majority of the time, the value is heavily weighted. We can use this idea/model to great advantage in time management by focusing on our highest gain tasks. By focusing on our highest gain tasks we can increase our gains and efficiency greatly. Using this model we will better understand which tasks we need to eliminate, delegate or outsource.

Using the Pareto Principle for Time Management:

How do we best used the Pareto Principle for time management? I like to start by looking at my long-term goals and evaluating my current plan. Within my current plan what are the 20% of activities that are likely to reap 80% of the results? Begin work on the 20% and reevaluate the remainder of your plan to see where it can be improved.

Then look at your daily goals and ask yourself, "What is the 20% of everything that I need to get done, that will yield me 80 percent of the benefits?" Then make a plan to intensely focus on the 20% and try to work on this area single-mindedly until the 20% is complete. Try not to be distracted by the 80%, and wherever possible, eliminate, delegate or outsource these tasks.

Networking – Few people fully realize that a good network of contacts can take years off meeting your financial/career goals and can bring benefits you haven’t even thought of yet, but will be glad you have when the time comes. There is a huge population of people out there who have made their fortunes from networking effectively.
Examine your own life, I’ll bet you owe the bulk of everything you have, and everything you are, to a small number of influential people that you can easily count on one hand. Although everyone likes to think they can do it on their own – we can’t. The reality is that we are not Independent – we are Interdependent. It is our interdependence that makes us strong, and good people help us to grow and build our strengths. I would not want to be independent if I could. Why would I want to cut that many good people out of my life?
In actuality, most people are successful in direct one to one proportion to how many people know them, and like them. Likeability is huge!. We like to do business with people we like, we help people we like, we hire people we like, promote people we like and give breaks to people we like. Get the idea? The list goes on and on.
Networking helps us to realize what opportunities are out there and gives us the opportunity to help people and advance in ways we would never have thought of. Being good isn’t enough when your network is limited. Think of a limited network, as limited options. Get good at networking, or get good at going through life trying to live off the scraps instead of living in abundance.
Nobody teaches us how to network – but it is a key life skill. This is a case where others are not excluding you – you are! Get in their and just be yourself, draw on what is best in you, come to serve, and you will do great!
Look, you could write an entire book on how to network, but my goal is simply to give you a sense of how important this area is and point you in the right direction. Get out there and get some books on networking and the time spent studying them will come back to you a thousand fold.

That's it for now!

Paul J. Cline - Advanced Training Seminars
http://www.advancedtrainingseminars.com/
(More Time Management Tips and other Business/Psychology Articles here!)

Your First Time Management Tip!

Learn to Speed Read -

I wish I had learned this tip before I finished the bulk of my college education. This one tip might have given me back a year or so of my life. In today’s competitive society it is hard to keep up with all the information pouring in unless we can speed read. People are also very impressed with speed readers and see them as more intelligent (simply because they can’t do it). I used a software program called “Eye-Q” - it currently sells for around $200, and is well worth the price. You can buy a Deluxe Edition for about $250 with 10 licenses. This entire course is 12 sessions of 7-minutes each! Do the math, you’ll be speed-reading in under an hour and a half worth of training. With this amount of training, it’s typical to double your reading speed, some people do significantly better. The other course to try is the classic Evelyn Woods program, but it’s slower (and I hate that!) You can attend a class either in person or online, or you can buy a DVD and video set, but it is very expensive (I hate that too!) (approximately $700).

That's it for now!

Paul J. Cline - Advanced Training Seminars

http://www.advancedtrainingseminars.com/
(More Time Management Tips and other Business Articles here!)