Disconnect and Engage

Technology is a fabulous tool… it keeps us connected to family, friends, and business associates; however, it can also be a distraction, preventing us from achieving our goals, ambitions, and full potential.  How many times have you started working on an important task and were interrupted by a ‘buzz’ from your smart phone?

As soon as you pick-up the phone and respond to the text or email message, social network post, or incoming call you have “lost control” of your most valuable resource– your time!

In a previous post, I suggested that how we invest our 168 hours per week (24 hours X 7 days) ultimately determines what we achieve in our lives– the quality of our relationships and physical health, our professional accomplishments, and much more. Consequently, we must ensure that we invest adequate time each week to engage in the variety of activities necessary to enjoy success in each of the seven dimensions of human health (more on the seven dimensions in future posts).

To maximize your personal productivity, commit to ‘disconnecting’ from your smart phone, email, and other technology, for at least one or two hours daily, and fully ‘engaging’ in the important activities that you know you ‘should do,’ but rarely find the time to actually accomplish– this is critical to realizing your dreams!

In my time management and personal productivity workshops, I challenge my participants to set a goal each night before they retire for the evening– the goal should outline one important task or activity that they plan to accomplish the following day. The task should be an important task, not an urgent task.  An important task is one that makes a significant difference in one or more dimensions of your personal health (please refer to Stephen Covey’s ‘time management matrix’ to learn more about the difference between ‘important’ tasks and ‘urgent’ tasks).  Once the goal is established, power-down all of your technology and get a good night’s rest.

In the morning, DO NOT power-up your technology until the important task has been accomplished.  Wait a minute, you say, “That’s IMPOSSIBLE!”

For some of us, it may be difficult to commit our morning hours– perhaps you have a busy morning schedule or long commute to work or school. If that is the case, find some ‘me time’— an hour or two each day during which you can commit to disconnecting from technology and engaging in the accomplishment of your previously established ‘important-task-of-the-day.’ Strive to invest in yourself with ‘me time’ a minimum of 4 – 5 days per week.

You will be AMAZED by the increase in your personal productivity and the goals that you will be able to accomplish. After all, don’t you deserve to invest 8 – 10 hours of the 168 hours available within your week to realize your dreams?

Please share your ‘disconnect and engage’ success stories in the remarks section below.