Time Management: If it’s not on your calendar, it doesn’t exist.
The working atmosphere of an ad agency is chaotic. It is an environment that is in a perpetual state of distraction.
Have you often reached the end of a day with nothing to show for it? I know exactly how you feel. An entire day can be disrupted by just one phone call or email.
One of our biggest challenges for new business is knowing what to work on each day. It’s also the key to lessening the distractions and increasing our productivity. So, the use of your calendar needs to be a priority.
I recommend setting a regular time to do your scheduling. Spend an hour to plan and calendar your entire work week. That’s not a lot of time when you understand how much an hour of planning makes your time so much more focused and productive.
Time management is an essential element of new business. You must get control of your calendar.
If I were to look at your calendar, would I be able to tell what you want to accomplish on any given day of the week? The biggest benefit of planning your week is knowing what to do every day.
I use my calendar to schedule everything. Instead of maintaining tasks lists I calendar them.
“Don’t focus on being busy; focus on being productive. Allow what matters most to drive your day” – Gary Keller.
My calendar allows me to keep focused on the things that are most important. It makes me much more efficient and productive in both my work life and personal life.
If you are charged with business development for your agency, you are like the rudder of a ship. It’s your job to keep consistently focused on business development. In the midst of all of the chaos of the agency environment, you are the one that maintains the focus on new business.
Remember, a new business plan is just a plan until it’s implemented. The real battle is in the execution more so than the planning that determines your success or failure. A calendar is an essential tool for implementing your agency’s new business plan.
Here are a some brief tips to simplify the use of your calendar and stay organized:
- Choose the calendar that works for you. I prefer my iCloud Calendar because of how it syncs with all of my Apple devices. I love using Siri to add or revise appointments and set alerts. Google Calendar is also a good option for an online calendar.
- Use only 1 calendar to make the planning process easier to maintain.
- Schedule a regular time to plan out your week. Plan you priorities so that you have time to actually get the most important work done.
- Consistency is key. Review your calendar often to be sure that you keep focused. I usually begin each morning with a review of my calendar.
- Prepare to make changes. As Mike Tyson said, a plan is just a plan until you get hit in the mouth. So, review and revise your schedule as needed to maintain your priorities.
- Color code your calendar. You will be able to easily assess how you’re spending your time and eliminate the non-essentials.
- Create routines and processes. Use blocks of time for specific activities.
- Be sure to schedule your FUN TIME. Once you’ve scheduled your work week you’ll probably discover that you actually have more free time than you thought.
If you don’t put it on the calendar, it won’t get done. Take ownership of your calendar. Planning out your days and weeks will keep you from feeling overwhelmed. It will help you to have more new business success.
What tips and insights have helped you to improve your use of a calendar as a time management tool? Share your experiences or any feedback that you may have below.
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