Round-up: A New 168 Hours Challenge

It’s been a great week! I gave a speech last night to the Healthcare Businesswomen’s Association Mid-Atlantic chapter in Wilmington, DE. Several women logged their time as part of the workshop, and called the experience eye-opening.

It reminded me that it has been a while since I’ve posted any time logs here. In addition, a number of BNET readers have volunteered to keep time logs over the next week or so as part of a time makeover series I’ll be running there. So I’ve decided to log my time next week (Mon-Sun) and I hope many blog readers will join me. Feel free to post full or partial schedules in the comments, or on your own blogs, Facebook or anywhere else. We’ll learn where the time really goes, and if we’re making space for what matters to us.

In the meantime… Over at BNET this week, my post on “What The Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast” has gotten quite a bit of attention. I’ve seen hundreds of time logs now, and I’m always amazed to see gaps of 90-120 minutes or more between when people wake up and when they leave for work or school car pools. That’s great if the time is used intentionally, but often it isn’t. I suggest that people think through how they could devote 30-60 minutes to something meaningful in the AMs, rather than rushing around. We’re up to around 60 comments and going strong so feel free to jump in on that discussion.

I’m intrigued by the topic of the next day’s post “Are You In the Right Job? Ask The $1 Million Question.” Say you were fired from your job and given an amazing severance package: $1 million a year for 20 years! The catch is that there is a huge non-compete agreement. You can’t do the “stuff” of your job on your own or for anyone else during that time. The question is not whether you’d take it. Most (almost all?) people would. The question is how you’d feel about it. Would your joy at the $1 million be tinged with regret? If so, that suggests that you are darn close to the perfect job, and any annoyances should be changed around the edges. I’ll write more next week about whether the “right job” exists for people.

In other news, Lenore Skenazy (Free Range Kids) picked up on Wednesday’s essay here. The Miami Herald quotes me on how to make time for great things in your summer. If you pick up a copy of Prevention this month (June issue) my story on making the most of your weekend made the front cover with a line on conquering the Sunday night blues. I’m looking forward to logging my time next week and I hope you’ll join me!

2 thoughts on “Round-up: A New 168 Hours Challenge

  1. This couldn’t come at a more opportune time. I just know I’m sliding into rabbit holes all day long. I’ll join you–

    1. @KJ: Me too. I’ll post today’s log later today but I can see that I find it much more easy to focus in the AM than I do in the PM. Good to know. Means I should remind myself to schedule what has to get done in the AM and the more relaxed stuff in the PM…

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