T I M E M A N A G E M E N T
6. plan Your escape routes
When you check into a motel or hotel, do you immediately
figure out how you’ll get out in case of fire? You’ll probably never
find yourself in a motel fire, but if you do, your simple precaution
might save your life.
Fire can break out in everyday life, too. Figure out how you’ll
escape when it does.
“When the going gets tough,” Dwight Eisenhower once assured
us, “the tough get going.” This can mean, although I’m sure Ike
didn’t intend this interpretation, that if the going gets unbearable,
you might need to get going—out the back door for a break before
reentering the fray.
Will you find the courage to say, “Can we take a five-minute
break here?” If you do, I guarantee others will silently thank you
for it.
7. Wallow in Successes and pleasures
Don’t just check your accomplishments off the list. Acknowl-
edge them—and the talent, energy, and determination they
required. Don’t just shovel in fuel. Enjoy the pleasure of the food.
8. Give Less than 100 percent
Giving 100 percent isn’t even good enough anymore. With
inflation, athletes must now give 110 percent. But nobody really
has “110 percent” to give. You have limited time, limited energy,
limited resources. You can’t solve every problem, meet every cri-
sis, rise to every occasion.
Some challenges don’t deserve 100 percent. Save something
for later.