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Thoughts from your Systems Goddess, Sandye Linnetz, Process Prodigy

Well, my fellow prodigies, I’m afraid it’s rant time for your favorite Systems goddess (I am your favorite, aren’t I?). This month, from the tips and blogs to OES, is all about time management by scheduling, calendaring and creating time blocks; designing and implementing the “behind the scenes” processes and systems that allow you stay on schedule, on time and on purpose! From your computer to your blackberry and beyond, you have a myriad of choices in the electronic arena to implement your flow chart plans. Type it… Speak it… copy and paste it or simply beam it over!

For those of you on the slightly less electronic track, you might feel as I do… you may actually LIKE your desk calendar, day-runner or at-a-glance. You may actually relish the idea of WRITING something down and seeing your plans without pushing any buttons or hitting any keys.

Okay, the computer is not without value; neither is your Blackberry or iphone. Personally, I am still having bad dreams and flash backs to my first personal, hand held, electronic date book. Remember yours? Does your heart flutter when you recall your first stylus and the thrill of that tiny keyboard and hard plastic case that held the very contents of your life within? And, now, do you also recall all of the times it crashed? All of the times that those stupid batteries gave out and took all of your personal information right along into cyber-hell with them?

Now it is possible that I am harboring unnecessary grudges, but the pain… the frustration… the tears I shed over lost information and time spent in RE-creation instead of recreation! Perhaps I will never get over it. Certainly I am not over it yet. I hated spending all of my time making a multitude of very important entries – names, dates, notes, appointments, contact info – only to suffer the horrendous loss when the inevitable crash came! My address book, though very full with numerous cross outs and write overs, and my date book, full of and notes in all the margins, has never crashed – has never erased itself – never set me up to cry.

Having said all that… I love my computer and use it every day. I don’t want you to give up any of the electronic devices that you use and love. I am a firm proponent of that old adage, “if it ain’t broken, don’t fix it”. I do, however, want to be sure that you consider the value of both the “purse or pocket calendar” and the old, reliable desk calendar. Neither of these needs a battery, a charge or an update. They are easily replaceable – on no more than an annual basis. They can’t crash or self-destruct and they are very inexpensive!

Make new friends, but keep the old… one is silver and the other gold!

Doesn’t really matter what you use to control your time. Good time management habits – an effective system in place – that’s what it takes to create a business that will run without you!

© 2008 Beth Schneider, Process Prodigy, Inc. Want to reprint this article? Feel free as long as you include the following: Beth Schneider, President of Process Prodigy Inc., www.processprodigy.com, along with her team of highly sought after operations consultants, reveal the insider secrets billion-dollar corporations pay thousands of dollars for. Specializing in process creation, Process Prodigy tools and techniques have helped entrepreneurs increase productivity by as much as 600%, and revenues by as much as 250%. Visit www.processprodigy.com/ezine and grab your FREE systems starter kit valued at $297.00.