Back in 2008, I was reflecting on how I could improve my leadership in every area of my life. I thought specifically of how I could become a better self-leader, so that I could become a better husband and dad, and a better pastor. As I was praying and reflecting on this matter, I realized that for me the concept of “time management” was too narrow. I needed to do more than manage my time. I needed to manage my life. Thus, I came up with the idea of “life management.” I realized that if I managed my life in key areas, life management would form the basis of effective leadership in all areas of my life. As I prayed and reflected on the matter, seven areas of life management came to me: rest, prayer, physical care, relationships, study, work and finances. (Of course you may come up with more or less areas as you consider your life and the need to manage yourself in order to become a more effective leader.) These seven areas have been extremely helpful to me and others with whom I’ve shared them in the past years in becoming more effective in caring for ourselves, and thus becoming more effective leaders.
Over the next week, we are going to invest a post on each of the seven areas of life management, but today, I want to say a little more about the importance of life management. If we don’t invest the time and effort necessary to manage our lives, everyone else will. We all recognize that we live in a media saturated culture. If we don’t plan our lives the sheer volume (both in the sense of loudness, and number) of those media messages will overwhelm us. I have heard various numbers as to how many media messages we are exposed to each day, but suffice it to say we receive thousands of messages through our phones, tvs, radios, computers, billboards, mail, and other avenues each day. They offer us “solutions” for every problem, challenge and opportunity we face. Unless, we have a filter for sorting out what we will permit into our minds, hearts and lives, we will drift through life much like a log drifting down a stream. When we pause to consider life management and to implement the seven areas we’ll be examining in the week ahead effectively, we will become much better at determining which direction we want to “float” through life, whether downstream or upstream, or whether we simply need to stay in one place for a while.
In addition to all those media messages, people are constantly asking us to do something for them or with them. While the people include our families, our bosses and coworkers, or our classmates at school, they also include strangers who have access to us through the multiple media venues mentioned in the previous paragraph. Unless we know what we are doing in a given day, because we are managing our lives, someone else has a wonderful plan for us. While we may well want to do what others are offering us, or in some case we may even be required to do what they are asking us because of their role in our lives, to the degree that we determine when we say yes and no, we will be effective life managers and leaders. That takes intentionality.
My hope for the coming week is that you will consider the seven areas of life management, and ask yourself, “What am I doing to be proactive in each area?” As you reflect on your answers to that question in each area, I hope you will take the time to plan and pray about any changes you need to make. (You may want to consider making your reading and reflecting on these posts part of your first hour activity for each day in the week ahead.) You may find that you want to add additional areas or combine one or more of the ones I offer to your life management plan. The key is to invest the time to address each area and to consider whether you are effective right now in that area, or whether you need to focus more time, energy and commitment on it.
You may have noticed that my posts play off of each other. In order to be effective life managers, we must invest the first hour (or some hour) of our day in planning and prayer. (That was the focus of the July 6, 2016) post. We will certainly be examining our lives. (That was the focus of the July 5, 2016 post.) We will develop margin in our lives. (The focus of the July 1 & 2, 2016 posts.) All of this involves moving beyond the tyranny of the urgent. (The focus of the June 23, 2016 post.) Leadership is not one action. It is a life filled with many intentional actions all geared to helping us influence others for good. After all, as John Maxwell said many years ago, “Leadership is influence, nothing more nothing less.” When our lives are planned, managed and lived well we may influence others for their good. I look forward to sharing what I’ve been learning about life management in the seven areas over the week ahead. I pray they will help you to become better leaders in every arena of your lives.
Here’s to leading better, by managing your life more effectively–today!