What in your opinion is the most valuable commodity in the world today? Bet you would think it is Rhodium, Diamond, Platinum or Gold? The list goes on. But is it? When you really think about it, isn’t ‘Time’ the most valuable? Once spent, it’s gone. Irrecoverable. The sand in the hour glass falls - regardless of what you do.It ticks.Second by valuable second, never to be recalled.

Use it. Don’t abuse it.

When climbing the career ladder and becominga CEO, managing time becomes topmost priority. If you don’t you are doomed.It is a do or die situation. A constant battle between time and your ‘to-do-list’. How do you think business visionaries like Elon Musk, Howard Schultz, and Michael Joseph accomplish so much? They structure their time effectively to include every aspect of their lives – which are balanced. A Harvard business School Study revealed data of how 27 CEOs heading companies worth over 13.1 Billion in revenue single-mindedly stick to a schedule. Is this key? Let’s find out.

Get your days right

Of course, you get your days right. But that’s not what we mean. There are days that you get swamped, and then you come across days with more breathing space. Manage it. Schedule consequential meetings so that you clear up time for other stuff. Establish with your assistant to reserve only two or three days a week for meetings, taking & returning calls and doing interviews. The rest of the week could be dedicated to managing the to-do-list and for strategy or budgeting. Also, free-up the mornings for reading, getting on track with any unfinished business overflowing from the previous day or simply to focus on things that get pushed around on the desk.Attending to emails - well that’s a different ball game altogether which we will touch upon in another paragraph of this article. Though scheduling is crucial, you need flexibility up to a certain extent. Thiscreates allowance for sudden meetings or breakfast forumsthat may suddenly pop up on your plate.Partitioneach day into manageable chunksin the calendar and establish a routine which suits you best. Try to stick to it as much as possible so that everyone learns to respect each other’s time and space, while productivity will increase as a result.

The calendar rules

After splitting your day into manageable slots, block your calendar. Block the morning slot reserved for reading. Block Meeting times. Block strategy sessions. Block time for calls. Block the calendar for just about everything, with enough free time for yourself.This way you see at-a-glance what’s on your plate anddisplays the timeslots that are available. These downtimes can be utilized to meet prospective clients or meet with team members where they themselves can book the calendar if given access.If you do not have the luxury of a human assistant, you could use the services of an AI Assistant.The AI Assistant will effectively allocate and reschedule times and handle cancellations as well. X.AI is such an application. 

Replying emails vs. the to-do-list

The different ball game. Which should have priority?Emails? Or the list? Whatever you do, do not delve into emails first thing in the morning. You will get lost in the maze. If your ‘to-do-list’ looks overwhelming, line them up according to priority and delegate whatever could be done so. A project management application like Trello could be utilized for this, which helps keep tasks on track. THEN investigate your inbox. This way you know that if not all, a certain chunk of your list is completed, giving you a sense of accomplishment and peace of mind.

Don’t plan yourself to death

Yes, they say “Failing to plan is planning to fail”. But from ‘getting the days right’ to ‘managing the calendar’ and the battle between ‘emails and the to-do-list’ scheduling every minute of your day is a sure path to insanity. Furthermore, you will not be able to attend to any unforeseen situations that may arise. Georgetown University professor and author of Deep Work, Cal Newport has an effective method of how to tackle this issue. He stated to Business Insider, “When blocking off time on your calendar - within certain blocks of time, note down a secondary task that could be attended if there is downtime after completing the primary task”. This is sound advice because it dispels the worry of wondering what to do next. It’s already planned in your calendar and it saves valuable time.

Lead the team

Having a supreme team is paramount to your success. Devoting time in empowering themand reinforcing their leadership skills is of utmost importance as they represent you and the organization. Without solely depending on emails to and from your team members, invest in facetime, inquire about their wellbeing and let them know that you are with them and they are important to the business and its progress.Schedule a weekly meeting on a Monday morning to kick off the week on a positive note. 

Automation frees you

While people are an invaluable asset, at the other end of the spectrum lies automation.Automation frees up time which can be used to attend to more important matters. Automate emails, follow-ups and whatever else that could be automated. Applications like Boomerang and Streak come with built-in CRM systems which make forgotten emails re-emerge into visibility. A tip - when sending off replies, regardless of the time you may type it, make sure to schedule their departure from your outbox to reach the recipient’s inbox at a prime time like 7.30 am. This displays your professionalism. 

Work-life balance

Everythingbecomes worthless if there is no work-life balance in a CEO’s life. Or anyone’s. If the CEO is to be an effective leader, he must have a proper balance in his life. Time to spend with family, to engage in hobbies, explore new initiatives and adventures and most importantly exercising – time needs to be carved outin your schedule for these things. 

Being mindful of priorities, health and balance in life - being mindful as a practice, will reap huge benefits for you, your team and for the entire organization at large, because mindfulness fosters gratitude, awareness of others and their feelings, decreases stress, increases immunity and an overall positive progression in health can be experienced. 

Be in the moment. Shift gears. Be the change you wish to experience in your organization. Manage time, people, work and life effectively and positively.