Protecting Your Resources

"A moment of time is like a piece of gold, but a piece of gold won't buy a moment of time."

The first line of defense in protecting your time is to identify precisely how it is eroded and then learn effective means of managing your time.
Over the next several weeks, we will offer proactive strategies for such time management issues as, "firefighting," failure to delegate, procrastination, delays, plus many others.

1. PROACTIVE STRATEGIES FOR DELEGATING
- In order to use time effectively, you should never do anything that can be accomplished by others.
• Determine what is to be delegated, then assign responsibility and give authority to others.
• Set deadlines and make sure that they are met.
• Give increased responsibility to assistants that is commensurate with their abilities.
• Provide thorough training and instructions to your assistant. This aspect is often overlooked!

2. PROACTIVE STRATEGIES FOR HANDLING DELAYS
- Delays are sometimes the result of your procrastination or failure to anticipate a situation.
• Set up a schedule for following up on details or projects within a specific time period.
• When planning a project, anticipate delays. They are inevitable, so don't let them bother you. Do what you can and go on to something else if the delay can't be helped. Every agent must continually juggle several balls in the air at the same time.
• Communicate delays. When delays are caused by the actions of others, there may be a sense of anticipation or lack of control. For example, if the medical history of an applicant requires more information, the delay can't be eliminated, but calling and informing the client will make them aware of it. This reduces frustration for everyone concerned.

(Adapted from the article, "Protecting Your Resources: Time Management" by William L. Moore, Senior Consultant with Kinder Brothers International.)

Jack and Garry Kinder
The KBI Group