Your Iconic Image : Making The Best Use of Our Time

Jones Loflin

HOPE Inc

Business Tagline: Helping others make the best choices with their time so they can thrive!

Jones Loflin has made it his life’s work to deliver powerful ideas and practical solutions to help people make the best choices with their time.

Jones’ innovative solutions have attracted the attention of organizations around the world. His client list includes Federal Express, Wal-Mart, and Choice Hotels as well as the United States military and a number of international companies.

Jones is an accomplished author and coach. His books include Always Growing, Juggling Elephants, Getting The Blue Ribbon, and Getting to It.

www.jonesloflin.com

https://jonesloflin.com/juggling-elephants

www.marlanasemenza.com

Audio: Ariza Music Productions

Transcription : Vision In Word

Marlana  

Jones Loflin has made it his life's work to deliver powerful ideas and practical solutions to as his tagline reads help others make the best choices with their time so they can thrive, which has attracted clients such as FedEx, Walmart, and the US military. Welcome Jones.

Jones  

Oh, pleasure to be here with you, Marlana. Thanks for the opportunity to talk about a subject near and dear to my heart, which is making the best choices with your time.

Marlana  

And honestly, sometimes a subject that I can be a hot mess with. So why do you think we struggle with time management?

Jones  

Well, first of all, let me say this, I don't have it all figured out. If I tell a lot of people that when I do have it all figured out, I'll be dead, and it won't matter. You know because it is such a difficult topic. I think one of the things that happens for many people is it's just this whole term time management. You know, we really don't manage time, as Charlie Gilkey says, you know, we manage schedules, we manage energy, we manage choices, time can only be accounted for. It's only in the rearview mirror can we look back and go, Oh, yeah, that was not a good choice, which led to taking too much time with this and those kinds of things? And answer to your question, the reason I think we struggle is because we have so many competing demands on our time and competing expectations, you know, what we expect of ourselves, what our boss expects of us, what our family expects of us. And so sometimes it's hard to cut through the clutter, and figure out what is the best choice for me to make in this moment, and then you add in, you know, poor energy levels, so we don't have the mental energy to make the best decisions or to hold on to those healthy boundaries, that I think it's just a cadre of reasons that bring us to the point of we as not making the best choices with your time.

Marlana  

You know, it's interesting because I believe that people don't seem to understand that everything comes at a cost. The cost does not necessarily have to be monetary, but if we say yes to something, then we're saying no to something else, because we only have a limited amount of time. So even if we say yes to something that we want to do or saying no to maybe another choice that we could have made or relaxing or anything, there's always a give and take here. That being the case, how do we make better choices?

Jones  

I think it starts with stopping. And I know that sounds strange, but I make the comment sometimes that I think we're so busy checking boxes, we haven't stopped to ask ourselves, are these the right boxes to check? And so, I think it starts with stopping and giving yourself some space to say, what is important to me and to even step back? What are my values? What do I value? What's my purpose? I mean, I think it really starts with getting to that deeper level, and saying, what is it I want from my life, from my work, from the choices that I'm going to make this month, this week, today, and really kind of beginning to take control, if you will, of your time resources little bit more. One of the books that I have coauthored called Juggling Elephants and a Talk About Managing Your Working Life Like It's A Circus. And in the book, we talk about being the ringmaster of your circus and I think that's really where the second part is, is okay, this is my purpose. This is what I value now, what am I in control of as it relates to making choices? So, I think that's where it starts is stopping and asking yourself, what is important to you? And then aligning or making choices based on what is important instead of how I feel at the moment or what someone else expects of me.

Marlana  

Does the end goal come into play at all when making our choices to like, let's say if I know that tomorrow I want this or in a week I want that, making those choices with our time that will get us closer to the final goal? 

Jones  

Sure, right. The great point and I think it was first said so well in Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. One of the principles of habits is begin with the end in mind. You know, what's the outcome you want? It's interesting in some of my keynotes when I talk to people, and I'll ask them that question, I'll say, What do you want from, what do you want to have by the end of the day, or by the end of the week? What are the outcomes you want? And it's interesting to see people kind of really have to really think about that, I'd like to feel fulfilled, or I'd like to be happy about the work that I got done, you know, during the week, okay, what does that look like? 

Let's make that real, because I think that's the other thing that happens, or one of the other things that happens when we start talking about time management, is we forget to make it very tactical to make it real. I find myself saying so often the people who tell Yeah, I just want a better life, right? I just want to, you know, improve. Okay, what does that look like? Because once we know what it looks like, then we can begin to figure out how to create that picture. And how to create that image, you know, all about image. I mean, it's your expertise. How do you create that image? What do you change? What do you adjust to get to that outcome that you want?

Marlana  

You know, and it's interesting too, because a gentleman that I spoke with at one point, he said, we also have to really be specific in the things that we want, because he said, people come and say, oh, I want to make more money. He said, I can take a quarter out of my pocket and hand it to him say, Okay, now you have more money, you need to be more specific. What does that look like to you?

Jones  

Oh! I love it. That's beautiful, to me is so important. I had the privilege of working a few years ago with Dr. Spencer Johnson, who wrote the amazing bestseller Who Moved My Cheese. And he talked about when people want to change, they need to have a sensible vision to motivate them. It's got to make sense to them, just like you said, you know, what does more look like and being able to create that image is just critical. And in fact, some of my sessions, I will actually have people write down, okay, if you're successful with becoming a better leader, or if you're successful at becoming a better parent, what are you going to see, hear, smell, touch, and taste? And it's a fun exercise. Because once they stopped, they go, Well, yeah, this is what I would physically see how it happened, this is what I would hear my child or my boss saying, once we get that specific, then it motivates us. And it also gives us a path forward, okay, what's it going to take for your boss to say that to you, and then you can start making better choices. So yeah, idea of an image is extremely important.

Marlana  

Okay, so now we have decided on what we want the outcome to be, and we're specific about it. Now, how do we form our plan?

Jones  

Sure, absolutely! The next step is that you have to look at your non-discretionary time, you know, what's already taken up in your day. And so, I think that comes in to looking at and looking at what's already blocked out, whether it's meetings, expectations are already on your calendar of where you've got to get certain work done. So, I think you've got to look at your non-discretionary time. And then from there, if you've done a good job with that, then you start to see your discretionary time, you know, what are the holes in my schedule? What are the opportunities? What are the openings that I could focus on some of these high priority tasks, these things that aren't yelling at me, but that I want to work on? 

I think once you've got those figured out where that discretionary time is, then then the next step is you've got to decide what the next step is, what's the action that can be taken? You know, for example, let's go back to the better parent example. I was just coaching someone earlier about parenting and using their time well, and if you want to be a better parent, okay, you've got 30 minutes this afternoon, you, and your schedule, how could you use that time to work on being a better parent? And for some, they might say, well, you know, what if in that 30 minute, I took care of these tasks, I can be more present with my child that evening. Fantastic. Some might say, you know, I'm just really struggling with how to work with a strong-willed child. Okay, are there some blogs? Is there a couple videos that you could watch? Is there a friend you could reach out to who you know he's got a strong-willed child that you could talk to, but how are you going to use that time that you do have effectively to help get towards that outcome? So, I think those are the next logical steps after you decide on purpose and values and outcomes that you want.

Marlana  

Okay, you said that this parent said that, maybe they can use their time to take care of other things, so they have more time to spend with the child. So, in a way, can we create time? Like can we create more time?

Jones  

I'm gonna get to your question, I promise. One of my goals in life is to write a book. In fact, I've got on my wall, my vision board kind of over here. I have one, but it's called Time Is Money. And I think in terms of your question, you can't necessarily create time, we just have the same number of minutes, I think you can spend less time on something, which is going to give you more time to invest, if they get in terms of money to invest on something that's going to give you a better outcome. So, I think you're creating the space, you're creating potential outcomes. The time to me is very transactional is if I if I spend, if I use that 30 minute to so now, I'll almost argue my on point with you, but if I could use that 30 minutes wisely, then I probably can have more than 30 minutes that evening. Because if I'm trying to work with my child and get some other tasks done, it might take me an hour to get everything done. Whereas if I focus that 30 minute, I get it all done, and then I've got more space in the evening. So long answer is the reality is I don't think we can create more time, I think we can use time more effectively, which is going to create that space for us to be more present, you know, for whatever that other thing is,

Marlana  

which you brought up another interesting thing that a lot of people think is that they can effectively multitask. Go ahead.

Jones  

weekend saw this right now Marlana. Okay, this is the group participation part of this podcast, okay, so your listeners can participate, you're gonna participate, you're going to prove my point, here's what I want you to do. And you may have to slide back on your screen a little bit. So, you don't post your camera. But I want you to take one hand at my left, right, and I want you to stick it out in front of you. And I want you to make a circle with it. Okay, now stick your other finger out. And while you're making a circle with this one, make a rectangle with the other one. How's that going? We cannot consciously focus on two tasks at one time. Now we can quickly switch, but we can't do them at this. Our minds just aren't wired that way. 

Now, when I use this exercise, sometimes in a training session, it's hilarious because some people will focus so hard and they'll say, Okay, if I go slow enough, I can do it. I'm like, Yeah, and so their tasks gonna take three times as long, right? They'll go. Yeah, and that's the whole thing with multitaskers. We slow ourselves down for getting anything done. Because we're switching back and forth so quickly, and using so much physical, mental, and sometimes even emotional energy, trying to switch between one and the other. So, no multitasking, it doesn't happen. Quick switch, quick switching, yes. But then we're wasting energy, that if we'd fully focus on one, get it done, and then fully focus on the other one as much as possible and get it done. We set ourselves up for so much more success.

Marlana  

So now that we've decided that we're going to focus on the one thing, how do we cut out distractions or protect that time, so we can accomplish that?

Jones  

I suggest that there are three sources of distraction for any of us that we have to manage. And those are internal, external and the expectations of others. Let's start with the internal is just what it sounds like. It's the noise in our heads. It's the perfectionism that screaming at us saying everything's gotta be done perfectly. It's the I've got to get everything done today. mentality, but it's that noise going on in our head. It's the worry that Okay, what if this happens, what if that happens? So, I think one of the things we have to do is to manage those internal distractions, we have to turn down that noise by, you know, let's just take procrastination or excuse perfectionism, and you know, I think it's stopping ourselves and saying, does everything really have to be done perfectly? Or does this task I'm working on what parts of it need to be done perfectly and what parts just need to be done? You know, one of my favorite quotes that I heard from someone, “sometimes Done is better than perfect,” you know, type of thing. So, I think it starts with managing the internal. 

The second thing is to manage the external. And this is usually the easiest one to deal with. It's the smartphone that's in your work area that's making the dings, or the chirps are lights up or the little red dots that tell you've got a notification. It's the noise around you, is the physical environment you're in. You know, it's interesting with so many people who are working remotely now, in my coaching with many of them, I'll do a an audit of their workspace and I'll say, do you currently see something that reminds you that you need to work on it or do you currently see something that that causes you to go Oh, I don't like seeing that they say, oh, sure I see some painting I need to be doing or, and he's painting on the walls, I said laundry needs to be folded, oh, I am sitting next to the kitchen. So, every time I look up, I'm like, I'm hungry. You know, that's what I'm talking about with the external, you know, we've got to deal with those external distractions to figure out how do we create an environment where it's easier to focus. And sometimes if you're working remotely, that's just changing the direction of your workspace. Some people like to get out of the office to go to a local coffee shop, or somewhere where they can put the earbuds in. 

The third is expectations of others. You know, sometimes we get so caught up in thinking that this person wants this from us, or they want something a certain way or that they want us to be this, that that we just can't meet it. And they keep an example, in the workplace. Sometimes we've got a boss who, who keeps giving us work or has unrealistic deadlines for what we're supposed to be doing. And that, that frustrates us, What worries us, it feels heavy to us, and we can't deliver our best work. And so that's a distraction if you will. So, I think really, that's what it comes down to, is evaluating the internal, external, and the expectations from others. If you can get those in line and manage those effectively, then I think you have a better chance of being able to focus on that one thing.

Marlana  

Do you think that we've become addicted to distraction? For example, our phone or let's say, you know, people say, Oh, I can do this and leave the television on while I'm working on this. So, do you think we've become a little addicted to them?

Jones  

Yeah, and we could do a whole other podcast on this one, probably. But I think one of the things that happens for many people is that they like getting distraction, because they don't want to work on something else. I mean, I struggle with this, I've noticed that when I have something to work on that that feels heavy, or that seems hard. I noticed myself reaching for my coffee cup to take a sip of coffee, or I find myself going, I need a snack. Or I start saying, you know, I haven't checked my email, or if my email dings, oh, I need to check my email. 

I think we have for lots of reasons, I'm addicted distractions, because it takes us away from focusing on the work that needs to be done. And there's a whole series of things we can do to help with that, sometimes that's making the task simpler, you know, reminding us of the outcome of getting this done, how much better we'll feel. And then sometimes it's just going back to those three things I mentioned earlier, but I do think we're addicted to our distractions, because it's a crutch for not doing more important work at times,

Marlana  

or just the stuff we really don't want to do.

Jones  

Exactly, yeah. And here's the thing, is that if we would do those things, we know the weight that will be lifted off of us. And that's what I talk to a lot of my coaching clients about,...