On January 8th, 2009 the University of Florida Gators squared off against the University of Oklahoma Sooners for the BCS National Championship to determine who was the top college football team in the land. Over 78,000 fans packed into Dolphin Stadium in Miami, Florida, to see two storied programs lock horns. Having gone an impressive 13-1 in the 2008 season with six wins against Top 25 opponents - the Florida Gators held a ten point lead as the final seconds ticked off, giving the Gators their second national championship in three years under head coach, Urban Meyer.
Having arrived at the University of Florida in 2005 under high expectations, Coach Meyer was able to lead the Gators to unprecedented success in his first few years. The success came at a steep cost to those involved in the program both professionally and personally as Meyer created a driven culture, obsessed with doing the work needed to succeed. The pursuit of greatness was all-consuming for Meyer, reorganizing his time and life to ensure he did everything possible to put his organization on track for their ultimate goal - winning championships.
In his tenure at the University of Florida the high expectations placed on Meyer by media, fans, donors, and administrators never outweighed the expectations he placed on himself. As success came, instead of relieving the expectations it only enhanced them. Instead of quenching the thirst for success, it only added to the thirst. In time, Meyer became completely consumed in obtaining more success - giving all of his time to the pursuit of greatness.
Restless and unable to turn his mind off, he would routinely work days on just two or three hours of sleep at night. Unable to take a break from the work day, he would get in the habit of skipping meals in order to stay in the office, focused on the endless tasks in front of his organization. He budgeted zero time to exercise daily, afraid of wasting even fifteen minutes on the treadmill that could be spent on work related tasks. The cycle became consuming and led to health concerns noticed by his family and staff. But Meyer continued to give more time to the pursuits of his program.
On the night of the 2009 National Championship game. As the Gators student athletes and coaching staff celebrated in the locker room the culmination of all their hard work - Coach Meyer was in a dimly lit office in the lower confines of Dolphin Stadium - alone, shooting emails to top recruits, chasing the next great recruiting class - still locked in on the work of leading the organization and chasing greatness. True to form - Meyer didn’t give any time to resting on his accomplishments - always pushing.
Towards the end of his tenure at the University of Florida. Meyer was prepared to skip the signing day celebration for his daughter’s commitment to play volleyball at Florida Gulf Coast University. Instead of joining his family in honoring and celebrating her accomplishment, Meyer felt he didn't have enough time to spare away from the program. Fortunately his secretary and staff kicked him out of the building for him to attend.
It was clear, at minimum, Meyer had a time management issue.
While it can be easy to critique Urban Meyer on the extremes of his driven, obsessed work/life balance, there are many anonymous, aspiring entrepreneurs who are unable to get their business off the ground due to their inability to trade their social hour for an hour working on a business plan. The list is long of aspiring authors who have not been able to turn off Netflix to work on their manuscript. Right at this moment, there are sales representatives for companies who are not increasing their income due to their inability to “find time” working through a list sales calls of potential leads.
There are extremes on both ends of the time management continuum. For the intense, disciplined, obsessed, extreme leaders like Urban Meyer at Florida, it may take a heart issue or life issue to alter how they spend their time. For the aspiring leader who can’t seem to get any traction, it may take a simple time audit to recognize they are not giving enough time to their craft to get the results they are looking for.
Most leaders operate in a dynamic of balancing many projects. With the constant connectedness in our world to media, social media, and other technology distractions it can be hard to create space for deep work. Most of us feel a nagging sense of a lack of free-time. When presented with opportunities we can feel “I just don’t have enough time.” The reality is we have all been given the same amount of time. We all just have varying levels of time management skills.
One of the most powerful time management strategies for leaders today is the use of Time Blocking. This formula for time blocking can help curve overworking and burnout, while also ensuring tasks are being completed and progress is being made towards measurable objectives. The basic strategy of time blocking is simple: Block off all your time in thirty minute increments.
Here are the fundamentals of time blocking:
Audit how you spend your time
There are 168 hours in every week. It really doesn’t matter if you have kids, a dog, or are busy at work. It doesn’t matter if you are 20 years old or 80 years old. We all have 168 hours a week to distribute. When was the last time you took an audit of how you spend your time? How much sleep you are getting? How much time are you spending with your family? How concentrated are you when you are at work? Leaders who thrive have periodic feedback for their time spending habits.
(Below is an example of a time blocking template from early 2020. Email staythecourseleaders@gmail.com for a blank time audit template)
Block off time each week for the non-negotiables
In any stage of life there are “non-negotiable” habits and rhythms that must be preserved. Things like exercising, reading & praying, or a morning routine, must be protected in our distribution of time. Experienced leaders understand if these important rhythms aren’t automated and built in to the calendar they probably won’t happen. We’ll just get sucked into the tasks of the day or week and fail to take care of these important habits that preserve our motivation and help us stay on track. Instead - we should block these out and plan for them to happen instead of hoping we’ll make time on the fly.
Block for free time so you can enjoy free time
We all need free time, time to recharge and regroup from the demands of work and leadership. There’s nothing more frustrating to a recharge time than having your mind on the very work you need a break from - while you are supposed to be recharging. If not careful, we can fail to create the necessary space to take a break. With time blocking - we are setting time aside that belongs to us, so we don’t need to feel guilty or lazy watching a movie, reading a book, spending time on social media, or just hanging out. We planned for it - it’s built in. It allows us to take a break so that we can lock in to deep work when we are at work.
Block all 168 hours not just 40 hours
Most leaders recognize they put in far more than 40 hours a week, thinking, managing and planning for their organizations. Regardless of what industry whether business, athletics, medical, parenting, or entrepreneurship - It’s foolish to think there is a clean, neat, divide between 9-to-5 “work time” and “free time.” It’s also foolish to fall into the trap of “weekdays and weekends” When it is all said and done - we’re given days and hours. 168 hours a week. Because of this - we must create a plan for every block of time.
Block for consistency
We are creatures of habit and most leaders function well with routine and consistency. On top of that - there has been much research on sleep and body rhythm that would suggest going to bed at the same time and waking up at the same time (even on weekends) helps us perform at a high level. In the flow of the 168 hours, some leaders find it valuable to start each day the same way, everyday. Plan meetings out of the office for the same day each week. Set aside the same night each week for a date night or family time. Set aside an afternoon out of the office to work on the side hustle or book manuscript. Consistency is boring but gets results.
Block off appointment deadlines
Chances are if you scheduled a meeting with a friend for lunch and put it in the calendar in your phone - you will be there. You wouldn’t miss it. Each month, barring crazy circumstances, you pay your mortgage or rent on time. You don’t miss it or forget it’s due. Why? Because you have an appointment or deadline. It’s not just out there in space - there is a specific time or place. “Rent is due on the first of the month.” “I’m going to meet my friend at Panera Bread at 11:30 on Saturday morning.” We are successful in delivering on tasks like these because we have not left it up to chance or how we are feeling to get them done. If applied with personal exercise or the side project you “want to get rolling sometime” we would probably find the same level of execution rate. Instead of leaving these things to chance - block off an appointment deadline. “Friday afternoon from 12:30 - 3:30 p.m. I am going to spend time researching marketing strategies for my side business.” Successful leaders create their own deadlines.
The goal of time blocking is not to create a rigid, boring life. The goal of time blocking is to manage our time resources for the chapter and season of life we are in. It is important to have a system in place to direct us to what is most important. If you are in a chapter of life with young children - time blocking can help you spend more time with them. If you are in a chapter of life where you are hustling to get out of debt - time blocking can help you. If you are in a chapter of life where you are creating a side business - time blocking will be essential.
A leader does not have the luxury of just letting time drift to what they feel like doing. There is too much at stake to be undisciplined with time. Take control of your time. As retired Navy Seal and one of the world’s most elite leaders, Jocko Willink says. “Discipline equals Freedom”
Stay The Course,
JB
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