Welcome to "More Profit & More Time" that includes your 6th & 7th e-lesson on Simon's Success Strategies - Start 2005 Polished, Planned & Prepared.

In this issue:

Part 1 – Simon’s Success Strategies 2005 - Start 2005 Polished, Planned & Prepared

Time Management - 10 + Simple Steps to Time Management - Part 2 & 3

Part 2 – Resources & Classifieds Section

Resources &  Classifieds Section

A Few Reminders

Tell Your Friends

Part 3 – Coaching Case Studies

Quarterly Review Meetings

Part 4 – Reilly's Reflections & Rants

The Human Side - Behavioral Time Management Assessment and follow up "Behavioral Time Management" Teleclass

Weekly Journal Questions

Questions To Live By

My Personal Blog - Starting March 1st

It’s been a very busy few weeks!

Along with working with our valued clients through one on one coaching, strategic planning, hiring, conflict resolution and workshops on communication, customer service, sales and team building we have been busy with;

• Attending Chris Barrow’s Coaching Business School  Feb 14 – 16
• Launching our first E-Product on “Behavioral Time Management”  Feb 19
• Delivering a one-day Values & Behaviors based Communication & Team Building workshop for the Team at Global TV  Feb 22
• Launching a new Resources Section on our Web site to include a Search Engine and improved Menu of Resources  Feb 23
• Writing the Simon’s Success Strategies and Leading Advisor – More Profit & More Time E-Newsletters  Feb 26
• Producing our Blog to launch in mid-March – Feb 26

So read on for Simon’s Simon Success Strategies – Start 2005 Polished, Planned & Prepared - e-lesson on Time Management - 10 + Simple Steps to Time Management - Part 2 & 3.

May all your dreams come true and may 2005 be your best year ever.

Simon Reilly
sreilly@leadingadvisor.com

10 + Simple Steps to Time Management – Part 2 & 3

Please note that I have changed the title of;

 10 Simple Steps to Time Management

To

 10 + Simple Steps to Time Management

I have added the + (plus) because there are so many things to cover on Time Management so I thought it best to expand it.  In Part 1 we covered the following;

Part 1

1. What are your beliefs about time?
2. Plan Your Day
3. Do Your ABC’s
4. Check in every 15 minutes

Here is Part 2 & 3.

Part 2

5. Form The Habit Of Allowing 5 to 15 Minutes To Review Your Day
6. Use A Week AT A Glance 24/7 Diary To-Do List

Part 3

7. Eliminate Busy Work
8. Schedule Time In Advance and Ask What Is Going To Distract Me?
9. Form Time Boundaries

Part 2

5.   Form The Habit Of Allowing 5 to 15 Minutes To Review Your To-Do List

They say it takes 21 days to break a bad habit.  What if, for the next 21 days, you formed the habit of allowing yourself 5 to 15 minutes at the beginning of your day, every single day, to review your list - add to it, subtract from it, and re-prioritize it.

Dedicate 5 to 15 minutes to;

• Make your to-do list

• Prioritize it into A's, B's, and C's

• Estimate the time to compete each to-do

• Schedule the to-do in your diary

• Complete the to-do.
   

6.   Use A Week At A Glance 24/7 Diary

For me personally, I find that I like to be able to view my schedule for the entire week.  All I have to do is review my to-do list, prioritize it, estimate the time and schedule the time into my Week At A Glance 24/7 Diary.  I have attached an example page for you to look at;  Week At A Glance 24/7 Worksheet

Call to Action 

• Print off your own copy of the Week At A Glance 24/7 Worksheet
• Schedule time at the beginning of your week to sit and review all you have to do for the week.
• Take the Week At A Glance 24/7 Worksheet and schedule in the task and estimate the length of time is required to complete the task or project.

Part 3

 7.   Eliminate Busy Work

People are often too busy with busy work and this creates a huge distraction from paying attention and focusing on goal achieving actions.

Instead of taking action on their specific goal at a specified time they fill their time with what they justify as things that are routine versus what is important.

What they are saying is “I haven't created the discipline of stopping myself periodically throughout the day and asking if this is the most effective way to spend my time."

This is the time to get one of those alarms on your watch or computer to keep you on track when you have made a decision to work on a specific goal at a certain time.

If you get distracted;

• Stop doing it
• Find someone else to do it
• Record it on a list to schedule for future action
• Forget it

8.   Schedule Time In Advance and Ask What Is Going To Distract Me?

It’s that time of the week again and it is coming time to write my newsletter.  In fact the time is scheduled.  Well in advance I ask myself, “Is there anything that I need to do that is going to distract me from writing the e-newsletter?”

A variation of the above is;

• Record it on a list to schedule for future action
• Find someone else to do it
• Stop doing it
• Forget it

You will find that as you get more and more into the habit of focusing on action steps towards your goals, the minor things will not be that important anymore.  I think that it was Tony Robbins that said, “People major in minor things”.

9.  Form Time Boundaries

As a business owner, I am fortunate enough to be in charge of my own time and it is not that often that I must accommodate the schedule of others.

There are many of us that are not totally in charge of our own time and we are accountable to; partners, associates, employers, family members and friends.

We are often interrupted by other people’s priorities.

The next time that you are interrupted by someone making a request for you to do something …

Ask yourself (not them), is this life and death?  If the answer is Yes then take action.  If the answer is No then I suggest the following.

Person Requesting You To Do Something:  I want your help to do _____________.

Your Reply:  I am happy to help you, right now I’m in the middle of a project and need 100% concentration to complete it.  Would you like me to stop what I am doing? What is the deadline that you need your task done by? 

(You may find that by forming a boundary on your time the person that is making a request may realize that you are busy with something that is more important than what it is they are asking you to do.  If the person replies with the deadline, then let’s assume that they still want your help.)

Person Requesting You To Do Something:  I need it by 10 am tomorrow.

Your Reply:  Great I’ll schedule it in for tomorrow morning and I’ll have it ready for you.

(This simple system leaves you with time boundaries and gives you the feeling that you are in charge of your own time versus being a victim.  I will expand on time boundaries in forthcoming issues.)
 

Call To Action

• If you get distracted;
   

• Stop doing it

• Find someone else to do it

• Record it on a list to schedule for future action

• Forget it
   

• Schedule Time In Advance and Ask, "What Is Going To Distract Me?"
   

• Record it on a list to schedule for future action

• Find someone else to do it

• Stop doing it

• Forget it
   

• Form Time Boundaries - when you get interrupted ask;
   

• "I am happy to help you, right now I'm in the middle of a project and need 100% concentration to complete it. Would you like me to stop what I am doing? What is the deadline that you need this done by?"

Part 2 – Resources & Classifieds

Resources & Classifieds Section

I am thinking of adding a Resources & Classifieds Section to the e-newsletter.  Please forward anything that you would like to pass onto the readership to; lreilly@leadingadvisor.com

A Few Reminders

Here are a few reminders to go to;

* the main page of our Leading Advisor website - click or go to;
www.leadingadvisor.com
* past e-newsletters and worksheets click or go to;                    www.leadingadvisor.com/resources/html
* unsubscribe click or go to;                                                      www.leadingadvisor.com/newsletter/html
 

Tell Your Friends

Thank you for taking the time to subscribe.  Many of you have passed on our Web Site and E-Newsletter offer to your friends and we offer you our thanks.

To make it easy for all of you to pass on the Leading Advisor Web Site and the More Profit & More Time E-Newsletter to your friends, we have added a Tell Your Friends Link to our Web Site.

Click here if you want to Tell Your Friends, about Leading Advisor and More Profit & More Time.
 

  Part 3 – Coaching Case Studies

Quarterly Review Meetings

It’s March 1^st and you are 30 days away from doing Quarterly Reviews Meetings with your team – or not.

Step 1

Advise your team members that you are planning to do individual Quarterly Review Meetings with them and you are inviting them to participate. 

Step 2

Schedule the Quarterly Review Meeting with each member of your team.

Step 3

Advise each team member that you would like their input in advance of their Quarterly Review Meeting with you and you would like them to prepare in advance by;

• Reviewing their job description with recommendations of additions and edits
• Answering the questions;
   
• What do they like best about their job?
• What do they like least about their job?
• What changes do they recommend?
• In what area would they appreciate training?

Step 4

Conduct the Quarterly Review Meeting with each member of your team by inviting their input to;

• Reviewing their job description with recommendations of additions and edits
• Answering the questions;
   
• What do they like best about their job?
• What do they like least about their job?
• What changes do they recommend?
• In what area would they appreciate training?

Step 5

After your team member has provided their input, ask permission to offer your feedback by;

• Reviewing their job description with recommendations of additions and edits
• Answering the questions;
   
• What do you like best about their work?
• What do you like least about their work?
• What changes do you recommend?
• In what area would you recommend training?

Step 6

Agree upon specific action steps.

  Part 4 – Reilly's Reflections & Rants

The Human Side - Behavioral Time Management Assessment and follow up "Behavioral Time Management" Teleclass

I must admit this has been the most difficult E-Newsletter that I have had to write thus far. 

The opportunity to live my vision of coach, speak and write has come to life through the TV spots, web sites and e-newsletters and I am really enjoying sharing the information and ideas that I have from almost two decades in the personal and professional development industries.

Yet, this issue has been hard due to the lack of interest.  The energy, money and time that have been invested into the TV spots, the web sites and e-newsletters have been enormous.  If it were not for my parent company, Leading Advisor, the resources for this project would not be available.  The thought has crossed my mind to stop writing Simon’s Success Strategies and put 100% of my attention into Leading Advisor and the Leading Advisor Web Site and E-Newsletter – More Profit & More Time.

If you will indulge me for a few minutes, I believe that I have something valuable to share with you that may be of value to you or to your friends and associates in the e- world of web sites, e-newsletters and e-products.

The reason I say “this has been the most difficult E-Newsletter that I have had to write” is we launched our first E-Product last week, "Behavioral Time Management" Assessment and follow up "Behavioral Time Management" Teleclass. The response from the Simon’s Success Strategies E-Newsletter readership has been non-existent.

We launched the "Behavioral Time Management" Assessment and follow up "Behavioral Time Management" Teleclasses because we had passed the 1000 reader benchmark.

My coach, Chris Barrow who specializes in working with coaches to develop their coaching business said that it takes about a year to create 1000 readers.  Chris recommends that one develops their readership through public speaking presentations.

Through the magic of TV, we shattered the idea that it would take a year and our readership was created in about 6 weeks.

We were very excited and decided to launch our first E-Product on "Behavioral Time Management" even though our readership had only known us for a few weeks.

And then thud.  Zip.  Nothing.  Not a peep from the readership – at least the new subscribers.

And then I heard the second part of Chris’ message.

“It takes about a year to create 1000 readers through public speaking and clients will buy from you when they trust you, respect you, like you and when they are ready!”

So onward and upward to developing more trust, respect and like!

As Al Franken made fun with his Stewart Smalley character, who would always say “I’m good enough. I’m smart enough, and gosh darn it, people like me!"

Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to clear my feelings through the above writing and cheers to the future.  As you know, I am firm believer in Journaling to create clarity.

One more thing …

And all was not lost, we did get the following responses through the "Behavioral Time Management" offer and the response far exceeded the 10 – 15 individual sales ( 1 - 2% ) that we were looking for through a tipping point that was somehow created to re-ignite business from clients that we have worked with over the years;

– note the trust, respect and like and the length of time of our relationship …

• a real estate office owner - a client for 15 years

• a venture capital firm owner - a client for 7 years

• a real estate developer - a client for 15 years

• an insurance firm owner - a new client referred by a client for 6 years

• a small business owner – a client for 4 years

So onward and upward to developing more trust, respect and like!

And thank you again.  This writing has reminded me of my vision to write a book, and the writing in this E-newsletter is the foundation for that book.
 

Weekly Journal Questions

Here are the questions that I answer in my journal every single Friday.

1. What do I consider to be my 5 top achievements this week?
2. Why are they significant?
3. What further progress could I make in this direction?
4. What am I resisting doing? How can I use my personal strengths to commit to 3 needed actions this week to meet my 90-day goals?
    

Questions To Live By

• What is the future that I want to create that is worth showing up for?
   
• What would a winner do next?
   
• Is what I am doing or about to do going to decrease or increase the complexity of my life?
   
• Am I doing the right things or the right thing right?
   
• What is the fastest way to move from idea to implementation?
   
• Am I taking control of what matters or what doesn’t matter?
   
• How can I move from efficient, to effective, to great?
   
• Am I struggling?  Right or wrong, I made a decision. Struggling equates to no decision.
   
• In what ways is this adversity moving me forward?
   
• What system do I need to put in place to enable me to stay authentic?
   

My Personal Blog – Starting March 1^st

I am starting my personal Web Blog on March 1^st.

A Blog is a frequent, chronological publication of personal thoughts and Web links.

A blog is often a mixture of what is happening in a person's life and what is happening on the Web, a kind of hybrid diary/guide site, although there are as many unique types of blogs as there are people.

People maintained blogs long before the term was coined, but the trend gained momentum with the introduction of automated published systems, most notably Blogger at blogger.com. Thousands of people use services such as Blogger to simplify and accelerate the publishing process.

Blogs are alternatively called web logs or weblogs. However, "blog" seems less likely to cause confusion, as "web log" can also mean a server's log files.

Blogging is a way for me to offer my authentic experience of what is going on with both my business and personal life both good and bad to again, give you a more authentic experience over and above the systems that I write about to add more value for you.

To get started we needed;

• Blogger Software
• A Title
• A Photo

The Blogger Software that we are using is Six Apart Moveable Type.

My Blog title is “What would a leader do next?  It’s better to lead than to follow”.

We will have the official Blog launched in the first week in March.  Until it is officially launched I am going to write the Blog into the E-Newsletter.
 

26 February, 2005 – The Blog Starts Here

“What would a leader do next?  It’s better to lead than to follow”.

I woke up at 6am Saturday to write the E-Newsletters for Simon’s Success Strategies and More Money & More Time.

The writing was difficult as I explained in the The Human Side - Behavioral Time Management Assessment and follow up "Behavioral Time Management" Teleclass.

Later that morning went out to take some photos for the Blog Banner.  In advance we created a list of Vancouver City Scapes that we wanted to take to be add variety to the Blog and they are as follows;

• Science World
• Science World and the North Shore Mountains
• BC Place and the North Shore Mountains
• Yale Town Marina
• Granville Island
• English Bay
• Canada Place
• Lions Gate Bridge

We planned to start at Science World working our way along the Sea Wall towards Granville Island.

We took a few shots and decided to go to Granville Island.

The Blogging Fog rolled in within minutes as we took the Mini Ferry to Granville Island.

So we stopped for breakfast at the Granville Island Hotel and the food was excellent.  After a breakfast of smoked salmon scrambled eggs with scallions we were hoping that the Blogging Fog would lift so we could take the photos.

The Blogging Fog didn’t lift.  We kind of chuckled that it was a great metaphor and a possible Title for the Blog –

“Staying Out Of The Fog with the Blog – Creating Clarity”

27 February, 2005

I came to realize that the Feb 15^th e-newsletters were written Feb 7 – 9 to enable us to publish them before the Chris Barrow workshop Feb 14 – 16.  So it has been about 2 ½ weeks since I have done any serious writing and it took a little bit before I got back in the groove.

I am going to create the space at the end of the day to do a half hour of writing to stay in the flow of writing.  At the same time, there are just too many ideas that I come across over the course of a day and they are worth documenting.  This will make the writing a lot easier.

28 February, 2005

The following message is something that I want to share and for me to remember when burning the midnight oil and working extra time to publish the e-newsletters and it is the dream message that I love to hear first thing Monday morning.

Hey Simon, this is L. calling, it’s been several years since we have worked together.  I have started a new business with my husband and I am in need of a coach.  I’m subscribed to your e-newsletter and enjoy doing the homework and getting the downloads that you have been sending and it dawned on me there is other stuff that I want to work on with you so give me a call.