Excuses or Opportunities?

by Carl Pullein, #1 Time Management Guru

I’ve always had a problem with excuses. Excuses are a way to delegate challenges you face to an external source, meaning you miss the opportunity to develop your problem-solving skills.

I would not suggest that all excuses are invalid; some excuses are valid. The birth of a child can cause tremendous disruption to your sleep schedule and necessitate a change in your lifestyle (but it’s worth it). A close family member experiencing a serious medical issue will need your attention, and having a boss who micromanages every little thing you do can prevent you from getting on with your important work.

Yet, the danger with excuses is that we stop experimenting and looking for solutions. We cling to the excuse to justify not doing something.

Every issue you face has a solution. Whatever difficulty you are going through, the chances are that someone somewhere has gone through the same or a similar experience and developed a solution.

When the pandemic arrived in 2020, I lost half of my work overnight. My English language business was effectively shut down. Initially, I panicked, worried, and wondered what would happen. Then I thought about it and realized this was an opportunity to move away from the business model I had been following for the previous eleven years and adopt a 100% online model, one not affected by the world shutting down.

The excuse I often hear in time management and productivity circles is that bosses expect immediate answers to their demands and must be available to their customers instantly.

Yet, whether working in law in the UK or with demanding HR managers in Korea, I have never encountered anybody who isn’t respectful of another person’s time.

For instance, if your boss prevents you from doing an hour or two of focus time each day, talk to your boss. Ask them what they expect of you and explain that to produce the desired results, you need some quiet focus time each day.

Similarly, when dealing with demanding customers, explain that there will be times during the day when you are not available.

I remember telling my law firm’s most important client that I was unavailable between 9:00 am and 10:30 am because I was in the law library working on my cases. Once told, the client never called or contacted me during those times.

I remember telling HR managers in Korea that I could not answer my phone in the morning as I was teaching. After that, these famously demanding managers never called or messaged me in the mornings.

These are difficult conversations, but if you are serious about controlling your time and becoming more productive so you can spend more time with your family and friends, then drop the excuses and find the solutions.

This week, look for something you have an excuse for, and ask yourself what you could do to change the situation.

==========================================

YOUR TIME, YOUR WAY: Time Well Managed, Life Well Lived, by Carl Pullein

==========================================

#carlpullein #timemanagement #timemanagementguru

Please leave this field empty

Stay in touch with Our Updates

We don’t spam!

Check your inbox or spam folder to confirm your subscription. You can also read some of our recent <a href="https://www.rothstein.com/news/business-survival-blog" target="_blank">Updates</a>.