In my forthcoming Time Management workshops, I can safely predict that participants will express a desire to:

· 'make more time'

· 'find more time' and

· 'get more time'

I used to make the mistake of correcting these as what I saw as misunderstanding of the nature of Time. I'd gently tease, "What, are you a Wizard? Can you create or make Time?" – in a good-humoured way, of course!

Then I'd look under the tables and chairs and explain that I was trying to find more time. On a good day, the attendees would laugh.

I suppose I could have opened my prop – a Pirate's Chest – and pretended to get more time out of it too – for Time really is one of the greatest treasures.

My point, even though it was in error, is that we could only 'Take Time' – by planning in advance and 'taking time aside' dedicated to what we wanted to achieve.

As with so many matters, I now have to eat humble pie and admit I'm wrong. You can make more time, you can find more time, and you can get more time – if you become a Wizard.

Today's blog is about sharing magic and becoming magicians and wizards together because I know that I know that I know that you have a ton of time-saving tips you've learned the hard way over the years. This is my invitation to share them!

Time is this wonderfully fair resource. The richest person on Earth has 168 hours a week to enjoy and the poorest person on Earth equally has 168 hours to invest. Time is no respecter of persons. The difference that makes a difference is our choices.

Wendy Cope captured this in her wonderfully perceptive poem: "Bloody Men!"

[http://bit.ly/2tXYm8K]

This means that making time, finding time, and getting more time comes down to decisions on what to do with our time – how to spend it – which bus to catch.

To open the time of sharing, these are the time-saving techniques I've applied over the years – techniques that have given me more time to spend on other activities.

1) Develop memory skills – so that I don't waste time looking for stuff, or letting people down forgetting things.

2) Learn to touch-type – this has changed the speed at which I can capture, edit, and the disseminate my thoughts with my friends like you!

3) Master Mind Mapping – those strange spider diagrams invented by Tony Buzan. I found that learning to structure my thinking with a Mind Map saved me so much time and stress that I almost bought the company (I became one of their trainers).

4) Get comfortable with saying, "No!" because saying, "Yes!" to anything really means saying, "No!" to something else – simply because there isn't enough time to do everything.

Would you share your tips and techniques too? I'd like to find, save, make, and get more time, and I hope you'll help!

Lex

A Moodscope member.