• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Dr. John Townsend

Dr. John Townsend and his team offer executive coaching, corporate consulting, and leadership training in a variety or programs. Join us today!

Archives for August 2017

Calendar as Servant, Not Master

August 9, 2017 by Dr. John Townsend Leave a Comment

Most of us wake up in the morning, the first thing we look at is today’s calendar, either on our phone, or monitor, or the one hanging on the refrigerator door. The calendar orients us and gives us an idea of what time we are going to do whatever. It is a structure to make the day make sense.

Calendars exist to serve us. They are intended to help us get life done in a meaningful and orderly way. But too often, the calendar becomes the master and not the servant. I have too often looked at my week’s calendar and thought, “Why in the world did I agree to that meeting? What was I thinking?” Well, what I was thinking at the time was, “Sure, that sounds fine, I’ve got some space there”, forgetting this principle: space doesn’t mean free space. Just because there is some time on a calendar doesn’t mean a low-priority meeting must go there. Nature abhors a vacuum, however, and we fill that space up with nonessentials.

Here is a tip to help this, which has helped me and lots of people I work with. It’s actually pretty simple: Create dedicated “Energy” times in every day of your work calendar. Energy times are those spaces in the day in which you need to have some wiggle room between meetings and phone calls, to do the things we never schedule but can make a huge difference in your attitude and productivity: catch up on a few (not all) emails, take a walk, grab power nap, talk to a friend about the weekend, reflect on how your day is going. It may be 15 minutes and it may be 60, depending. But our minds need a bit of “me” time that is dedicated to recharging. You will find yourself renewed and ready to tackle the next challenge.

Don’t get caught in the thinking of “I’ll power through all day, except lunch, and then kick back tonight.” It doesn’t work that way. We tend to be way too exhausted with this approach, and the kick back ends up being sitting passively on our butts watching TV or playing video games or doing Facebook, basically in recovery mode. Instead, put the Energy times directly into your calendar so that nothing but a true emergency can break into it, and your evening will be more fun and active when you get home.

Keep your calendar your servant. Protect yourself and your energy by scheduling the time that recharges you.

Filed Under: Leadership, Planning

Primary Sidebar

Recent Posts

  • Adult Children: Relating to Them in the Best Way
  • Trusting After Trust Has Been Broken
  • Patience is a Better Friend than a Foe
  • Closure Can Be Overrated
  • Passion

Recent Comments

  • Cecilia on 3 Skills to Help Improve Your Willpower
  • David Heinig on 3 Skills to Help Improve Your Willpower
  • Deb Casey on 3 Skills to Help Improve Your Willpower
  • Peggy on 3 Skills to Help Improve Your Willpower
  • android hack Games on Believe In Yourself

Archives

  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • August 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014

Categories

  • Boundaries
  • Communicating
  • Current Events
  • Education
  • Emotions
  • Family
  • Growth
  • Leadership
  • Mentoring
  • Planning
  • Uncategorized

Meta

  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org

Copyright © 2025 · Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in