The next week we met again for lunch. The following is the two-minute test I prepared for him:
Workweek Time Calculator
Start at the top and fill in each blank. Only account for an item once.
If an item is zero, leave it blank |
|
Item |
Time Spent
(hrs/day) |
|
Sleep |
|
|
Eating (meals, snacks, etc.) |
|
|
Personal grooming |
|
|
Exclusive time with significant other |
|
|
Exclusive time with children, including travel
time (school, sports, music, etc.) |
|
|
Household chores |
|
|
Exercise, including travel time |
|
|
Activities and hobbies |
|
|
Other leisure (tv, reading, etc.) |
|
|
Commuting time |
|
|
Other (charities, church, clubs, organizations, etc.) |
|
|
Subtotal hours (not including work): |
|
|
Hours left for work: |
|
This is what it looked like after he filled in the blanks and did the math:
|
Item |
Time Spent
(hrs/day) |
|
Sleep |
8.5 |
|
Eating (meals, snacks, etc.) |
2.5 |
|
Personal grooming |
2.0 |
|
Exclusive time with significant other |
1.0 |
|
Exclusive time with children, including travel
time (school, sports, music, etc.) |
1.5 |
|
Household chores |
0.5 |
|
Exercise, including travel time |
1.5 |
|
Activities and hobbies |
0.0 |
|
Other leisure (tv, reading, etc.) |
1.0 |
|
Commuting time |
1.0 |
|
Other (charities, church, clubs, organizations, etc.) |
0.5 |
|
Subtotal hours (not including work): |
20.0 |
|
Hours left for work: |
4.0 |
“Hmmm,” he said scratching his head. “Looks like I only work four hours a day. But I know it’s more like eight or nine.”
“You mean 11 or 12?” I countered.
“Yeah, well, some days I do work late.”
“Here’s my point, Manny. You are considering a new mega-million housing development on the east side. Great. But right now you don’t even have time for your wife and kids. Those missing seven or eight hours have to come from somewhere.”
“Okay, I’ll bite. What do you suggest?”
“If I were in your shoes, this is what I’d do:
- Take stock of your priorities. You’ve got enough money to be comfortable and your current projects will easily take you through next year. Plus, new opportunities come knocking daily. Your kids will only be kids once. Your health and your wife are far more important than that east-side development.
- If you must take on a huge new project, make sure you arrange time to handle it. There is only so much of you to go around. Delegate. Get a few projects out of the pipeline before stuffing any more in.
- Consider reengineering your staff. If you don’t have absolutely the right people in the right positions, put them there. To paraphrase Jim Collins in his book, "Good to Great" (Harper Business Publishers, 2001), get the right people on the bus and the wrong ones off — before leaving the curb.
We finished lunch and went our ways. It just happened that I had this conversation with a developer. It could have easily been any small builder, contractor or consultant I know. It could have been you. Time doesn’t care about income. Take the test.
(Author’s note: I was so shocked at my own test results, it caused a significant rearrangement of my life — principally shifting time away from work and toward kids and wife. Work can wait.)
Tim K. Garrison, P.E., M.S.C.E., of ConstructionCalc.com™ has authored a book and several short courses, and lectures on topics relevant to builders. Reach Tim at timg@constructioncalc.com.
The views expressed in this article represent the personal views, statements and opinions of the author and do not necessarily represent the views, statements, opinions or policies of the National Association of Home Builders. NAHB does not necessarily endorse any of the views expressed by the author and NAHB is not responsible for any direct or indirect consequences arising out of the views expressed in this article.
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