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Each chapter of solutions contains the following sections:
Goal: Should you choose to accept this mission, this is the lowdown on the mind-set you need to apply in order to make your life better.
Tactics: If you’re limited on time and need a quick fix, and/or you’re screaming, “Just tell me what to do!” implement these solutions. These are the ever-popular top five or top seven things to do — the how-to tactical solutions for the situation. They are the weapons that will get you out of your time deficit.
Strategy: When it comes to time management, thinking is doing. If you’re saying, “Just tell me what to do!” it’s important to realize that recommending how you should think — how your brain should operate — is telling you what to do. Just because it’s mental doesn’t mean it’s unimportant. In fact, it’s absolutely critical that you take more mental action than physical action. If you want to truly understand how you got into your current situation, why the aforementioned tactics are recommended, and how to prevent getting into the same situation in the future, read this section too. These are the overall strategic-thinking concepts and mind games to apply. This is your protective armor and your battle plan, both of which lead you to more success on your missions.
Next Steps: To aid you in successfully completing your mission, debrief the chapter with these questions, and plot your next steps.
Those of you who feel that self-discovery and learning the reasons behind what works and doesn’t work is just a bunch of hooey can simply read the “Goal” and “Tactics” portions for your how-to tips — and skip the rest of the chapter. Those of you who want to dive deeper can read the “Strategy” and “Next Steps” sections. If you’re ready for deep undercover work, you can utilize the activity guide that complements this book and is available as a download at www.HeleneSegura.com/30tactics.
After the chapters that explain my CIA framework, I’ve also included part 4, “Situational Solutions.” These chapters provide “troubleshooting” assistance for the most common pitfalls that busy professionals face.
STRATEGIES AND TACTICS: NAMES AND ACRONYMS
For the best possible learning experience, I encourage you to read the chapters in order so that you can fully understand the complete CIA framework for better time management — or, should I say, mind management. However, I realize that because you’re struggling with finding time, you may not have that luxury just yet. Therefore, the book has been formatted so that the various situations that busy professionals face are divided up into individual chapters to enable you to pick and choose which situations apply to you and hop directly over there to get the tactical tips you need. I do encourage you, though, to read the “Strategy” sections when you’re ready for that information. It’s mind-bending knowledge that will truly help change the way you view time.
Many of the concepts in the book are interrelated, so you’ll find that I do repeat strategies and tactics here and there. The repetition will help those of you who decide to skip around — you won’t miss anything. The repeated information will also serve as reminders and will help you learn and remember what to do. After all, humans must read or hear ideas four to seven times before we synthesize them. After all, humans must read or hear ideas four to seven times before we synthesize them. (Repetition. Get it?)
If you have an important point to make, don’t try to be subtle or clever. Use a pile driver. Hit the point once. Then come back and hit it again. Then hit it a third time — a tremendous whack.
— Winston S. Churchill
If you read the book in order, each strategy or tactic will be discussed in full at its first mention and then referred to multiple times throughout the book. Just in case you skip around from chapter to chapter — or you return to this book later for a refresher — here’s a location guide for my interestingly named strategies and tactics:
ONLINE RESOURCES
If you wander over to www.HeleneSegura.com/30tactics, you’ll find links to time management planning templates, the activity guide for this book, research by neuroscientists and psychologists that supports what I assert in my book, a glossary, apps and software programs that might be useful tools, suggestions of helpful office supplies and great books, quote sources, videos, and more.
IF YOU DON’T HAVE TIME TO READ THIS…
Throughout my book, I’ll present various case studies from my client base. Some of my clients work for big corporations. Some clients work for small businesses. Some clients telecommute. Some clients own their own companies. Some clients own their own franchises. No matter what your situation is, you can learn from others’ experiences in order to improve your current personal and/or work life.
Some of you will receive tremendous affirmation because you’re already doing some of what I mention. Celebrate! Others of you will slap your forehead and declare, “Brilliant! I never thought of that!” And some of you might say, “Well, duh! That’s simple. There’s nothing new. We should all be doing that!” So then the question for you becomes, Are you? Every day?
Applying just one of the concepts that I share with you in this book will save you — at a bare minimum — at least 60 minutes each workday…which is five hours per week, 20 hours per month, 240 hours per year. That’s six workweeks! Who wouldn’t want all that extra time?
The majority of clients I work with don’t have the time to read this book in one sitting. And that’s perfectly fine. If you fall into that category, I encourage you to set aside 15 minutes at the same time each day — perhaps right before or after breakfast, during lunch, or in the evening — to pick up this book and read a little each time. If you commute via train or metro, wouldn’t this make a good read — and a perfect distraction from any smelly folks who plopped down near you?
It’s important to understand that everything you’ll be doing here is ongoing. It’s not a one-shot deal. After all, we’re human. We evolve. We change. Our responsibilities change. Those around us change. I encourage you to come back to revisit this handbook whenever you start to feel a little off-kilter.
The time you invest in reading this book is an investment in your career, your personal relationships, and your physical and mental well-being. If you’re thinking, “I don’t have time to read all this,” that’s exactly why I strongly encourage you to read it all — because the strategies and tactics in this book will give you the time to do whatever you want!
Have your pen, highlighter, sticky notes — whatever tools you need — ready to help you to interact with the text. If you’re reading the digital version, hopefully your system has a bookmark and note-taking function. If not — or perhaps in addition — don’t be shy about carrying around a journal or spiral-bound notebook to take notes and develop your plans; or you can utilize the companion activity guide.
MY COVER STORY
I love adventure. Every summer my husband and I travel for three weeks, completely unplugged. We journey off the beaten path to “nonnormal” destinations like Bran, Romania, and Mostar, Bosnia. What I learn about people, cultures, and political and ethnic divisions around the world helps me relate to people and become a better teacher of behavioral modifications.
I was born and raised in Los Angeles and was known for my sports prowess (four varsity sports my senior year of high school), not my smarts. I was the kid in AP class who had to study her tail off in order to make decent grades. I had my brainiac friends, jock friends, and thug friends. This mixture was my introduction to figuring out different types of people in order to get along with them.
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