Technology can help tremendously with time management, and many examples of this are seen everyday: It can make changing calendar appointments effortless. Also, with the click of a button, many people can be emailed an announcement of a meeting change. Potential uses are enormous. But, time and time again, in my personal coaching practice, I frequently see folks simply using technology to automate a poor time management system. They are in effect, paving the cow path, or putting lipstick on a pig.
Putting lipstick on a pig makes the pig a little prettier, but underneath it, the pig is still a pig. Cosmetic changes don¡¯t result in underlying structural change. Technology can be used like lipstick, or to support a more fundamental realignment of a time management system. Using a handheld computer to manage appointments is great, but if we aren¡¯t making the correct appointments it doesn¡¯t help much.
Most of us are very busy. Automating the tracking of all the harried appointments we keep during the day is nice. But, at the core, do the appointments tie to achieving goals within the roles of our lives? Is there some planning mechanism that results in using the time management system to bring our lives more in line with a personal mission statement?
Email results in quicker communication, but is the communication more effective? Faster technology speed creates quick movement. But is the movement in the right direction? An old saying applies well here: If you are in a race, but are going down the wrong route, it doesn¡¯t matter how fast you are. Technology can help us go faster, but in the end, it may not matter much, if we aren¡¯t effectively accomplishing our personal goals.
The next time you use technology, think about lipstick on a pig. Do you really want to put lipstick on that big, old, ugly, smelly animal? Or would you rather invest some additional time and get rid of the pig completely, replacing it with something that will more effectively assist you on your journey to peak performance?
This story was authored by Scott Fite, who specializes in Peak Performance Coaching. Stop by his website at http://www.lifedesigncenter.com for more peak performance information and to sign up for a free newsletter.