Take control of your life for a brighter future

The last year has been full of mixed blessings. We have seen an increase in output, in property prices and in retail sales. At the same time we still have a feeling ofinsecurity in the job market. There has been a constant fall in the number of unemployed, according to government statistics, and yet we have heard of major restructuring and redundancy programmes in the corporate sector.

We want to look forward in 1997 to an increase in productivity, more effective time and life management and a better future. But can we leave it all to the politicians? Indeed, should we?

Everyone is in control of their own lives and the events which are contained in them. We can say “yes'” or “no” to given options, we can work hard to improve our professional lives as well as our personal lives or we can sit back and leave our destiny in the hands of others. If we do that we increase our risk element considerably, we lose control over our lives and ultimately our destiny. Certainly we do not have complete control over everything but we can make a determined effort to control our own lives and the way in which we become fulfilled, contented members of society.

If we are to change anything in 1997 we need to take responsibility for our own lives, and to achieve that we need to start with a positive plan.

More importantly, it needs to be a plan which takes us beyond the second week of January and lasts for a lifetime. Many managers who have reported increased stress levels during 1996 would not believe that there is any plan which could make a difference but I believe there is.

First, we need to assess our personal values, to understand what we are and where we fit in. Do we really want to spend two thirds of each year doing something we are ill suited for simply to pay the mortgage? Is there no alternative to commuting miles to a workplace where our potential isn’t recognised and our talents are not being stretched? What priority do we put on our family, friends, our environment, our time to simply be ourselves? Can we get off the merry-go-round and take another route, one which will bring us a sense of satisfaction in what we do which pays the bills, a sense of belonging to a community because we value our time within it, a sense of achievement in seeing children grow securely within a caring environment?

Start this year with a clear understanding of your own values. Write down what matters most to you – you’ll be surprised at just how difficult it is to start with and then how easily it flows. Once you have established those values you can prioritise them. Now you can see a shape evolving.

The next step is to prepare a list of goals, achievements which you want to realise within, say, the next six or 12 months, two and five years – and decide the period. Take time and think about what you are doing. You are creating a model for the way in which you want to live. Yes, there will be times when the plan moves a little to the left or the right, there will be times when you need to be more flexible than usual. But you have established your goals and you can see how to get back on that path.

Without any plan or known goals you will find that it is difficult to prioritise your time or the events that make up your life. Events take over and you find yourself in the control of others – and you know how frustrating that can be.

Successful time and life management offers real alternatives and opportunities.

It requires commitment but the results can really change your life for the better. That sense of insecurity is removed because you know who is in charge, you are less stressed because you are more in control and you feel a sense of achievement each time a task is successfully completed.

You begin to move forward both personally and professionally in the knowledge that you are doing what matters most, for you and your organisation.

That sense of direction becomes apparent to those around you and recognition follows because instead of floundering in uncertain waters, you know where you are going and can lead others towards that same sense of security.

So where does all this lead us in terms of corporate profit? It leads to an increase.

A well-managed, happy and innovative workforce will always outperform one with low morale and low productivity. It is up to all managers to ensure that they lead from the front, that they act as the role model for their teams. This in turn can lead to an empowerment of those team members. But if the general out in front is unable to make a decision, pity the poor troops!

The future can look bright if we understand our personal values and goals and relate them to our business objectives. This understanding and power should result in prioritised daily tasks achieved, a sense of satisfaction at the end of the working day and time in which to be with the people who matter most in our lives.

Charles Macadam is general manager at Franklin Quest Europe.