HIGH-QUALITY VS. LOW-QUALITY TIME

Ask yourself, "What should I be doing with my time right now? What is it that really needs doing now?"

Clearly, you have high-quality time and low-quality time. One of your hours will be very productive when all other hours are wasted. An hour spent in front of a prospect may produce a very big money-making result for you. An hour spent in filing, which may be necessary, will never make you very rich. Remember, you are paid for results - not for the hours you work.

Because time management is vital to every salesperson's success, we've extensively researched the subject and studied various remedies. You'll find the time management principles developed here to be practical. You can start using them today to make maximum use of your selling time.

In our research we reached a couple of important conclusions. First, in any type of sales work a slight improvement in time management produces a marked improvement in bottom-line results. Second, if you condense the many articles written and thoughts developed with reference to time management, you will discover that the most sound approach to time management revolves around mastering these five principles:

1. Developing a Time-Conscious Attitude - Like most success factors in selling, time management is largely dependent upon attitude. Shape your attitude so that you become aware of time and the manner in which you use it.

2. Planning Your Priorities Daily - Planning is decision making. Plan your to-do list of priorities for each day the day before. It's a good idea to plan at the same time and place each day. Determine how much time you need for planning and put it on your schedule.

3. Staying Effective - Simply put, if you want to see improved results, you have to know the activities that bring results and spend most of your time doing those things. If you do this, you will be highly effective.

4. Establishing and Maintaining Momentum - You do this best by establishing a daily routine. Avoid interruptions, they are momentum stoppers. In your daily planning, delegate as much as possible. This will save time, develop the role of others, and help you avoid interruptions. A daily routine that forces productive activity builds momentum.

5. Developing a Sense of Urgency - Imposing deadlines on yourself and experiencing self-discipline in adhering to them aids you in overcoming indecision and procrastination. Give yourself some special reward when a high achievement is reached on time. Stay in a hurry to get things done.