A list can help keep priorities in order

By Judy Miller Gerard (contact)

Thursday, April 30, 2009 | 3:14 p.m.

Judy Miller Gerard

Many years ago, the manager of the office where I worked had an efficiency expert come in to check us out. The first thing he did was give each of us a steno pad and asked us to write down what we did every minute of the workday and for how long — every phone call, every trip to the file cabinet, every conversation with a client, absolutely everything we did. At the end of the workday we were to date it, sign it and give it to him. You can imagine the howls of protest that went up; however, some of us had to admit that we were surprised and amazed at just how little time we spent on some things and how much time we wasted on others. It was truly a learning experience.

In the workplace it is not unusual to undergo observation and testing to discover how we use our time, and whether we are using it well. If we are not, steps will be taken to correct that, so we can become more efficient and productive.

In our personal life, on the other hand, except for knowing the approximate length of time we are away at work, we rarely have a clear idea of how we spend the time with people who are special to us. We probably consider that part of our lives the most precious of all, and yet it is the one most often in danger of being neglected.

So what to do? Try this simple version of doing a check-in on how we spend our time. It will be about home and family and other people and things of importance to us.

Take a piece of paper and write the following, leaving a space after each one for a figure: Work, rest/sleep, home, family, pets, spiritual activity, yard, car, TV, reading, sports, exercise, entertainment, shopping, hobbies. Add any others you think of on which you spend time.

Sit alone quietly for awhile and come up with the percentage of your time you think you now spend on each of these. Write that figure after that category. Remember, all the percentage figures can only add up to a total of 100. For a more dramatic look draw a circle, draw in the percentage wedges for each category, and label them.

Now the bottom line: Draw a line through any figures you don't like or that show an obvious need for adjustment, and write in new figures to work with. Again, the total can be no more than 100. When you finish, sign it and date it. Look at it and work at it every day.

As you go along, you will make new discoveries about you and your time, and see other changes to try so there is better balance in your life, and no important areas or people are being neglected. If you keep working on it, you will be blessed.

Judy Miller Gerard is a Henderson resident and can be reached c/o the Home News, 2360 Corporate Circle, Third Floor, Henderson, NV 89074; by fax at 434-3527 or e-mail at editor@hbcpub.com.