Its 6:00 a.m. Im awake. Im pumped! Im ready to go. I have a TO DO list that will keep me busy all day. My goal is to accomplish all of the things on my list before I go to bed tonight.

I turn on the computer.

Wow! I have 67 new emails. Well, I simply HAVE to check my emails. A lot them are unsolicited, but hey, I dont want to miss a great deal that one of them may be offering.

I start to read my emails.

RRRRRiinnnngg!! There goes the phone.

Hello?
Hey, Girl, whats up?
He did what'? Child, let me tell you
what Eli did in class yesterday. The
teacher said he..

Half an hour later

Back to reading emails. Of course there are some that I have to answer back. Then there is Lisas emails I MUST read because she always send about 10 jokes and I know at least 8 of them will be very funny.

HAHAHAHAHA. That was very funny. I must forward that one on to my list of friends. Im sure theyd get a kick out of it.

RRRRRRRRRiiinnnnggg!

Hello!
Hey, Mom. Whats up?
What? You dont say?
Hey, I warned you about her.

45 minutes later you look at the clock and

Oh My Goodness! Where Has the Time Gone?

Its now lunchtime and I havent accomplished anything.

That was me. Everyday I would wake up ready to conquer the world. By lunchtime I had wasted so much time accomplishing nothing that I would give up and figure Id start it all again tomorrow. But tomorrow would pretty much be a repeat of the day before.

That was until I taught myself how to manage my time.

You must focus and pay attention to your time, otherwise it has a way of slipping away without being noticed.

If you are in any way like I am, a person who can get caught up in spending hours reading emails. And many other hours idling chit-chatting on the phone with friends and family. You must make a conscious effort to eliminate or at least cut down on doing anything that takes you away from your purpose.

Make a plan for each day.

Schedule a time for everything that is important to you.

Schedule time to check your emails. I find that it is helpful for me to check my emails during lunch. Since I am on a break, so to speak, reading my emails will not distract me or take away time from more important things.

Limit the amount of time you spend on the phone idling talking with friends and family. Im in no way suggesting that you do not talk with them but talk with them after hours. Once you have completed your goals for the day, then rewind by laughing and talking with friends and family.

A spouse and kids can also take you off of your course. If you have small children who are home, they can often take you off track. Make sure that the time you schedule to accomplish your goals, you have someone else take care of your children. OR, help them to understand that during this time, you cannot be disturbed. It is important that you make sure you schedule time to take care of their needs as well.

Make a conscious effort not to let time slip away from you. For if you dont, you will wake up one morning, 85 years old, and wonder where the time went.