The 90-minute Rule
Most people will agree that writing something on a "To Do" list is better than trying to remember that it has to be done. And going one step further and actually scheduling time in your planner to do it, is better. But even that is no guarantee that it will get done.
John Maxwell, in his book Make Today Count, mentioned that a Day-Timers Inc. study found that only one third of American workers planned their daily schedules. And only 9% follow through and complete what they planned. People don't need help knowing their priorities; they need help living their priorities.
There are several reasons for this, including a lack of motivation, inability to focus, incessant interruptions, low self-discipline, and just plain boredom with the job.
One thing I find helps is to limit my focus time to 90 minutes. We seldom have a problem completing a 10-minute or 20-minute task; but we do have a problem concentrating on a three or four-hour task for some of the reasons indicated above. And many important projects could take days or weeks to complete.
By breaking the projects into 90-minute chunks, we are able to work on our projects during the day while still fulfilling our other responsibilities, including responding to e-mail, returning phone calls and interacting with co-workers. 90 minutes seems to be the maximum focus time for most people. If we try to work longer than this, not only do external interruptions increase, we start interrupting ourselves. We also start experiencing mental fatigue and our efficiency plummets.
Most people can be unavailable to others for 90 minutes without the world collapsing. They can ignore e-mail, engage voice mail, maintain privacy, and continue to concentrate for 90 minutes. Then they can respond to others, dispense with the two-minute tasks that have accumulated, and take a break before engaging in another 90 minute focus hour. Usually the next 90 minutes would be spent working on an entirely different project to provide variety for the mind while making progress on all our commitments.
Marathon work-sessions on any project, whether it is a book, a speech, or a major proposal for a client, are usually inefficient and ineffective. There are too many interruptions (either external or self induced), rush jobs, and crises vying for our attention during a typical workday.
Perhaps 90 minutes is not the ideal time for you. If not, choose a focus time that works best for you. But I find I can write books, design training programs, develop products and complete home and volunteer projects quite easily in ongoing 90-minute chunks of time.
And each time that I emerge from my 90-minute focus time, I find the world -- and my business -- still running smoothly.
© 2010, Harold Taylor Time Consultants Ltd.
About the Author
Harold Taylor's website https://www.taylorintime.com Harold Taylor has been speaking, writing and conducting training programs on the topic of effective time management for over 30 years. He has written 16 books, including the Canadian bestseller, Making Time Work For You. He has developed over 50 time management products that have sold in 38 countries around the world.
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