The power of flexibility

I still have anxiety that things won’t get done. But by being more focused on the tasks I want to complete rather than on the exact second I complete them, I find, perhaps ironically, that I’m not pushing things to the last possible second as often. More often than not, I reach the end of the day feeling like I got enough done and my day was productive. Even better, I'm not stoking the flames of my neuroses by managing myself down to the minute.”

Doug Phares, managing director, Silverwind Enterprises

Isn’t it always about time? The reality is that everyone in the workforce measures their time. You’re either clocking in and paid by the minute or being paid in bulk and tracking your time to ensure you can carve out a good career and a personal life.

All this to say, time is important no matter who you are. I got my first lesson about this at one of the sales training sessions I attended when the trainer asked us, “Why is time like money?” The answer, of course, is that you can spend it, save it, invest it, etc.

Of course, I, as a rookie salesman, wrote it down in my notes, eager to absorb all the wisdom from this oracle. But over a long career, it’s occurred to me that this approach to time management may have shaped my relationship with my schedule more than I’d realized. Specifically, I had this revelation during a car ride recently.

One of my colleagues, Troy, was coming to pick me up for an event. And while I’m a proud early riser, I’m a “walk the dog, read the paper, check my email” kind of early riser, not a “ready to be seen by the public” type. This particular day, I was up at 6 a.m. to be ready for Troy to pick me up an hour later.

At quarter to 7, I called to my wife that Troy was picking me up today at 7:00. Then I said, “You know what? Troy is an early person. I bet he’s sitting out front at 12 ‘till, and I’ll still be here in my underwear.” To which the woman of my dreams responded, with no small amount of skepticism, “You’ll be lucky if you’re in your underwear.”

What can I say? She knows me.

Sure enough, I got a text from Troy at 6:49 that he was here and waiting but that I didn’t have to rush. Just because I saw this situation coming didn’t mean I liked it. I was indignant. “Eleven minutes!” I groused to myself. If I had to wait for 11 minutes and do nothing but sit in my car, I’d blow a gasket. In that time, I could get three emails returned or formulate an idea and get people to start working on it. Eleven minutes is an eternity!

At 7:02, I walked out, and, as promised, Troy was very patiently waiting out front. I shared my perspective on his earliness, and we had a good laugh about it. He explained that he’d decided he didn’t like being late long ago, so now he’s always exceptionally early. I asked how he justifies the loss of time, and he said he’d spend his time waiting to talk to people or work on an idea, but he couldn’t stand being the last person in a meeting.

I can’t be anything but the last person in a meeting. If you ever have an appointment with me and I’m two minutes early, it means that my world is on fire.

We laughed about our peculiarities and enjoyed an excellent time at the event. Later, as I reflected on the conversation, my brain kept circling around how we could both be successful professionals with such widely different approaches to time management. If his system worked, I reasoned, then maybe it was worth trying.

My old system used a series of color blocks for my schedule. While helpful, this system was extremely rigid and stressful because once I put down a color block on my calendar, I was obligated by the business gods and my anxieties to work on that exact project at that precise time. If a time block opened, I filled it — and fast.

The new approach is a lot looser. Now, I list A, B and C priorities I want to work on, with special notes for tasks with impending deadlines that can’t be pushed back. I’m six weeks into my experiment, which I call “fluid time management.” Note to the reader: Google doesn’t think anyone else is using this, so you heard it here first! Regardless of the name, my new approach has really reduced my stress.

Of course, I still have anxiety that things won’t get done. But by being more focused on the tasks I want to complete rather than on the exact second I complete them, I find, perhaps ironically, that I’m not pushing things to the last possible second as often. More often than not, I reach the end of the day feeling like I got enough done and my day was productive. Even better, I'm not stoking the flames of my neuroses by managing myself down to the minute.

So, my question, as always, is, what do you think of going from a highly structured time management system to something less hands-on? I'll check in again in a month or two (or three if my stress levels are still lower). In the meantime, I'd love to hear your thoughts on this experiment or your own time management approach!

Doug Phares is the former CEO of the Sandusky News Group. He currently serves as managing director of Silverwind Enterprises, which owns and provides management services to small businesses. He can be reached at doug@silverwind.biz.