Quitting The Day Job

Manage Time to Manage Your Escape

Einstein must have thought up his theory of relativity while watching the clock in his work place.

I’m sure he thought “MEIN GOTT!!! It is only 3 O’Clock!  Time must have slowed down!!!!”

Time management is extremely important if you are planning on quitting your day job.

Now, I’m not going to bore you with some kind of Stephen Covey, “write down lists…use an organizer…eliminate email…” lecture.  Instead I’m going to discuss how, why, and when you have to fit time in to plan, manage and execute your escape from the time warp that is the work day.

Ultimately, all of us “own” one commodity that is rare and precious.  No, not a signed cast photo of the original Dukes of Hazzard!  Time.  There are only 24 hours in a day and we spend at least of 8 of them at work.  Another 1 or 2 hours getting ready for work, another 1 or 2 hours traveling to and from work.  For those of us with family, nothing is more annoying than single people or married people with no kids saying “Oh, I have no time!!!”  Yeah.  Try working all day, then coming home and doing 5th grade Algebra with the kid!  A few years ago, an Indian consultant told me “You are so lucky you are not as busy as me!  I have no time.  You get to go home and relax!”  I said, “Oh, why are you so busy?”  “Oh, I must go and work out at the gym, then I go and meet friends for dinner.  Then I go home and I’m lucky if I get to watch and hour of television.”  Right.

But you want to escape the rat race, right?  So do I.  Where do we find the time to plan and execute the escape?  You have to make it.

MORNINGS

If you are a morning person, then you must get up an hour earlier.  Do your “side work” for one hour straight before you do anything else: Shower, coffee, breakfast.  It’s tough.  Especially if that hour sets you back to 5 a.m. or 4 a.m.

I recently heard an author state that the only way he was able to quit his job as a journalist and become a novelist was to get up an hour early in the morning and work for 1 hour straight.

Works great for Early Birds.

LUNCH

Give up the lunch hour.  No, not lunch, food is important.  And for GOD’S SAKE do not eat at your desk!  Your boss will start coming by and asking you to work on stuff.  You don’t need the interruptions.

Bypass going out at lunch with friends and co-workers.  Bring in your own sandwich (Hey, saving money and working on your escape!  A double hitter!).  Find somewhere close by and hopefully quiet.  An unused meeting room, a park, your car (if shaded).  Try not to spend time or money getting to your destination.

Take a notepad, your laptop, whatever tools you need.  Eat your lunch, then get to work!

Resist the temptation to go out with friends “just this one time”.  Resist the urge to login to Yahoo! and check the recap of last nights “Project Runway”.  Just work.  Then stop 10 minutes early, rest your eyes, and concentrate on what you have done.

AFTER WORK

This might be the toughest time to “find time”, but if you have to take the kids to music lessons or gymnastics, etc.  Instead of chatting with the parents, or reading a magazine.  Work!  Use that hour!

LATE NIGHT

This is probably the most likely, but most dangerous time.

Put the kids to bed,  then set a limit.  1 hour is a good number.  Why?  Because if you don’t and your are working hard, you’ll look up, it’ll be 2 a.m., and you’re going to have a super tough day.  Plus, if you work for 1 hour only, you can reward yourself with a bit of TV or pleasure reading afterward.

AT WORK

Ah, unethical!  Whatever!  You’re trying to escape!

Keep a pad at work.  Keep it close, don’t write on the first page but if you do, make it something nondescript.  A “TO DO” list….or some such, that your boss or co-workers wouldn’t pay any attention to.  Then at the top of the hour every hour, stop, stand up, stretch, and jot down some ideas, some “to dos’, some ideas, etc.   It’s a non-smoking smoke break!

In conclusion, you have to make time.  You have to create time.  You have to use your time effectively and efficiently.  You have to use time in 5 and 10 minute slots.  You have to do a bit of sacrificing.  Ultimately, it will payoff.