{"id":16973,"date":"2012-06-25T04:00:54","date_gmt":"2012-06-25T09:00:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/michaelhyatt.com\/?p=16973"},"modified":"2012-06-25T04:00:54","modified_gmt":"2012-06-25T09:00:54","slug":"more-margin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fullfocus.co\/more-margin\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Create More Margin in Your Life"},"content":{"rendered":"

The last five weeks have been incredibly busy for me. My new book, Platform<\/a><\/em>, launched on May 22. My daughter Madeline got married the next weekend.<\/p>\n\n

Since then, I have done seventy-three radio, podcast, magazine, and newspaper interviews. I have also had eight speaking engagements<\/a>.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

To be honest, it has been overwhelming, especially because I am committed to keeping up with my blog and podcasting. It finally came to a head last week.<\/p>\n

I realized that if I didn\u2019t take action now<\/em> and regain control of my calendar, the train was going to come off the tracks.<\/p>\n

So, I went back and reviewed my Ideal Week (see image below). I learned a long time ago, the best way to change anything is to start with the end in mind.<\/p>\n

I didn\u2019t worry about how<\/em> I was going to make it happen; I first needed clarity<\/a> about what<\/em> I wanted my calendar to look like.<\/p>\n

In a word, I needed margin.<\/em><\/p>\n

In his excellent book, Margin: Restoring Emotional, Physical, Financial, and Time Reserves to Overloaded Lives<\/a><\/em>, Richard Swenson, M.D. describes margin like this:<\/p>\n

Margin is the space between our load and our limits. It is the amount allowed beyond that which is needed. It is something held in reserve for contingencies or unanticipated situations. Margin is the gap between rest and exhaustion, the space between breathing freely and suffocating.<\/p>\n

Margin is the opposite of overload. If we are overloaded we have no margin. Most people are not quite sure when they pass from margin to overload. Threshold points are not easily measurable and are also different for different people in different circumstances. We don\u2019t want to be under-achievers (heaven forbid!), so we fill our schedules uncritically. Options are as attractive as they are numerous, and we overbook.<\/p>\n

If we were equipped with a flashing light to indicate \u201c100 percent full,\u201d we could better gauge our capacities. But we don\u2019t have such an indicator light, and we don\u2019t know when we have overextended until we feel the pain. As a result, many people commit to a 120 percent life and wonder why the burden feels so heavy. It is rare to see a life prescheduled to only 80 percent, leaving a margin for responding to the unexpected that God sends our way.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Margin is not something that just happens. You have to fight for it.<\/p>\n

Everyone, it seems, wants a piece of you. And no one seems to appreciate the fact that you are a finite resource. (Perhaps you don\u2019t even realize this.)<\/p>\n

That\u2019s why creating or re-visiting your Ideal Week is so important.<\/p>\n

I was first introduced to this concept by author Todd Duncan in a series of audio recordings he made that eventually became the book, Time Traps: Proven Strategies for Swamped Salespeople<\/a><\/em>.<\/p>\n

The idea is similar to a financial budget. The only difference is that you plan how you will spend you time<\/em> rather than your money.<\/em> And like a financial budget, you spend it on paper first.<\/p>\n

\"My<\/a><\/p>\n

My Ideal Week\u2014the week I would live if I could control 100 percent of what happens\u2014is divided into a simple grid (see image above). Each day has a theme.<\/em> In addition, each day is segmented according to a specific focus area.<\/em><\/p>\n

Last week, I discussed My Ideal Week with my wife, my assistant, and my two managers. I realized that I didn\u2019t have any hope of implementing it unless all of us were aligned on my intentions. I then updated my Ideal Week spreadsheet and distributed it.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s how it works:<\/p>\n

My themes<\/em> are listed on the very top row:<\/p>\n