Time Wasters

Not prioritizing your tasks. Some things are more important that other things. For instance, finishing my message for Sunday is more important than the ninth or tenth thing on my list. It would be unwise for me to spend my whole week on less important tasks and then trying to throw together a sermon on Saturday night. No, that would be stupid.

Not giving yourself deadlines for projects. If you have a project or work assignment with no deadline, your project will stretch out too long. This is a waste of time, and valuable brainpower, not to mention your company's time and employer's money. Establish a deadline, get it done, and move on to the next project.

Too much technology. I’m sure you like Facbook, twitter, e-mail, blogging, cell phones, iPads, iPods, iTunes, texting, Craigslist, online banking, and instant messaging, just like I do. But too much technology doesn’t save time, it wastes time. For me, there has rarely been a status update, a tweet, a text, or a message to my cell phone that has been a game-changer for me. These things are fine tools, but they can quickly turn into time wasters. If you are checking Facebook 25 times a day or tuning into a twitter account to find out what your friends are having for lunch, that’s a waste of time.

Television. The wrong person is going to win American Idol or Dancing with the Stars whether you watch it or not. And Kate with Eight is going to end in a train wreck too, whether you watch it or not. You know it’s coming, so wean yourself.

Meetings that don’t have an agenda. I am actually an advocate of MORE meetings, but SHORTER meetings. Most subjects can be discussed in fifteen minutes or less if you have the right people in the room and they are on time, and prepared when the arrive.