WorkMatters Tips Issue #44 – May 6,2008
Publisher: Gayle Lantz mailto:lantz@workmatters.com
https://workmatters.com
WorkMatters, Inc.
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A quick tip to help leaders and executives who need to motivate their teams and themselves, and catapult their business.
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Using Discretionary Time
Your discretionary time is one of your most valuable possessions. How do you spend your discretionary time at work? Okay, I know what you might be thinking. "What discretionary time? I’m booked solid all day."
There are those leaders who confess to miraculously having some uncommitted time available in their day. They admit when that occurs, they don’t always know what to do with themselves.
If you’re not allowing some breathing room in your day, you just might suffocate your own performance. Even if you’re pressured by billable hours, take some time during your day or week to shift gears temporarily.
Walk around the office.
Read an article.
Meet a friend for lunch.
Run an errand.
Check in with an employee you haven’t seen in some time.
Call your spouse.
Whether you do something that gets you out of the office or you simply take a deep breath at your desk, commit to spend some time wisely that helps you function better in some way.
Leaders in particular need to carve out some "thinking time" to focus on strategic issues to drive the direction of the business.
Be intentional about how you spend your discretionary time. And consider ways to create more of it. You can.
PS — A smart way to spend some time at work is to catch up on current business news and trends in your industry. Better yet, get some conversation going with your team or customers about those issues. The Wall Street Journal has an excellent new program to help you do that called the "Business SmartKit." If you’d like to see your employees build their business knowledge, check out the new tool.
To learn more about the Wall Street Journal Business SmartKit, see my latest blog post:
http://gaylelantz.typepad.com/weblog/2008/05/the-wall-street.html
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ON THE LIGHTER SIDE
Time is God’s way to keep everything from happening at once.
~ James Brown
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Reprinted from "WorkMatters Tips," a free ezine produced by Gayle Lantz featuring tips for leaders and executives who want to grow themselves, their team and their business. Subscribe at
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