Road Map
Ave-A-News
Road Improvements
So that's where that came from
One for the road
Watch "The Road" buddy
The Boulevard
The Wire's Conduit
Mark's Highway
Hi Folks, I'm Mark Matteson. I've been traveling the country helping myself to your friendships and I want to thank you. You've all been so nice to let me into your lives and thank you for sharing your time with me.
AVE-A-NEWS
"LA LA LA" - Jerry
"Giddy up" - Kramer
"I'm having sooo much fun!" - Mark
Road Improvements
What Do You Make Time For?
by Mark Matteson
One of my favorite movies of all time is a little-known epic titled El Cid, starring Charlton Heston. It was one of the 1960s’ last great epics with, literally, a cast of thousands for the extraordinary battle scenes. Now Hollywood uses computer-generated imagery (CGI), and even the best-made films like Star Wars: Attack of the Clones seem phony and artificial by comparison.
Until recently, controversy surrounded the facts of El Cid’s life. He was born Rodrigo Diaz de Bivar about 1043. Later, he made his reputation as a fierce opponent on the battlefields of eleventh-century Spain, where he earned the nickname el Cid, from the Arabic el-sayyid , meaning “the lord”. His legend was sealed when Song of the Cid, a twelfth-century epic poem describing his exploits, was published. The poem made him a national hero in the centuries-long fight against Muslim control of Spain. What strikes me about Heston’s portrayal of El Cid is that of a great man with clear values. He made all his decisions with integrity and forgave his enemies time and time again. Over time, his able example and courage made him the most influential man of his time.
What are your values? What do you make time for? If we looked at your PDA or Outlook calendar and your credit card monthly statement, what would they tell us about your values? How we invest our time and money tells the world what WE think is important. Socrates said near the end of his life, “I stopped listening to what men SAY and I now watch what they DO!” Emerson said, “Who you are speaks so loudly I cannot hear what you are saying.”
In my book, Freedom from Fear FOREVER , I ask the question: What are your top five values?
One of the pioneers of time management was Merrill E. Douglass. In 1980, he wrote what is perhaps the definitive book on the subject, Manage Your Time, Manage Your Work, Manage Yourself . It influenced time management experts from Homer Smyth to Ed Bliss to Steven Covey. In the back of the book, he lists 20 steps to successful time management:
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Clarify your objectives. Put them in writing. Then set your priorities. Make sure you are getting what you want out of life.
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Focus on objectives, not on activities. Your most important activities are those that help you accomplish your objectives.
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Set at least one major objective each day and achieve it.
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Record a time log periodically to analyze how you use your time and keep bad habits out of your life. (One of the most enlightening exercises I ever did.)
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Analyze everything you do in terms of your objectives. Find out what you do and when you do it and why you do it. Ask yourself what would happen if you stopped doing it. If the answer is nothing, then stop doing it.
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Eliminate at least one time waster from your life each week. (Just being of aware of what they are is huge!)
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Plan your time. Write out a plan for each week. Ask yourself what you hope to accomplish by the end of the week.
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Make a To-Do List every day. Be sure it includes your daily objectives. (I like six tasks; they are a manageable number.)
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Schedule your time to do the most important things first. Leave room for interruptions. (They will occur, so you may as well plan for them and decrease your stress.)
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Make the first hour of your day the most productive. (All my writing is done from 4:30 to 9:30 each morning.)
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Set time limits for every task you undertake. (I usually underestimate the actual time it takes to complete a task!)
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Take the time to do it right the first time. You won’t have to waste time doing it over.
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Eliminate recurring crises from your life. Find out why things keep going wrong. Learn to pro-act instead of react . (I wonder if that was the first time this phrase was written?)
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Institute a quiet hour in your day, a block of uninterrupted time, for your most important tasks. (Are you a morning person or an afternoon person?)
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Learn to conquer procrastination and do it now! (I have that on my list for next week…)
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Develop the habit of finishing what you start. Avoid jumping from one thing to another, leaving a string of unfinished tasks. (It lowers your self-worth and increases stress and frustration.)
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Make better time management a daily habit. Set your objectives, clarify your priorities, and plan and schedule your time.
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Never spend time on less important things when you could be investing it on vital things.
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Take time for yourself: time to dream, to relax, and to live.
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Develop a personal philosophy of time —what time means to you and how time relates to your life.
(Click here for a PDF of the list)
This list seems like a pretty tall order. It is. But even an elephant can be eaten if you carve it up and eat it one bite at a time. What if you put them on three-by-five cards and focused on one a week for 20 weeks?
Time is a paradox. We never seem to have enough time, yet we each have all the time there is. The solution: clarify your values, prioritize your objectives, and invest the time you have in alignment with those things you have written down as important to you.
The French philosopher, Voltaire, posed an interesting question in his book, Zadig: A Mystery of Fate . The Grand Magi asks Zadig, “What, of all things in the world, is the longest and the shortest, the swiftest and the slowest, the most divisible and the most extended, the most neglected and the most regretted, without which nothing can be done, which devours all that is little and enlivens all that is great?” Without hesitation, Zadig answers, “Time.”
I need to surf Netflix and put El Cid on my list. I think it’s the only movie where Heston didn’t have a gun!
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Fun Facts
Did you know that the "kings" in a deck of cards represent great kings of history?
Spades - King David
Hearts – Charlemagne
Clubs - Alexander the Great
Diamonds – Julius Caesar
More cool facts here.
One for the road
This months One for the Road is Manage Your Time, Your Work, Yourself by Merrill Douglass.
You'll find it here: click here .
Watch "The Road" Buddy!
The Site Map page will help you find resources.
The new goals this year will keep you moving forward.
The Girl Scout Cookie Story asks the right questions.
The laughs are here
The reading lists are here
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FFFF is here.
The Boulevard
PLANNING TO KEEP YOUR NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTIONS? According to Purdue University, and most experts, it’s not only important to have written goals, but you must have a plan to reach your goals.
Goals 2006 is the complete program to help you "create a life on purpose". Will 2006 be just another ho-hum year that started with good intentions? Or will it be YOUR Year to lose that weight you're tired of carrying, start that business you've been talking about, or get out of debt for good. Are you tired of being stuck in the same gear?
Go see why one program graduate, Lucy O. said, "Breaking through, or at least finally recognizing, what my barrier is with writing goals, is a MAJOR accomplishment - one I've been trying to find for over 15 years! And I finally got it - I GOT IT!" Click Here
The Wire's Conduit
This month’s Wire tips are missing for some odd reason. I think Kevin is out feeding alpacas.
Questions? E-mail Kevin at kevin@mattesonavenue.com Have a Web site? Need a Web site? Need an update? Need an e-zine? Ask about our package plans. Ask about my free analysis for your site.
End Construction
Thank You again for your valuable time. We appreciate you!
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