Do you have days when you just think to yourself, “I don’t know how I’m ever going to get anything done today; there are just so many things to get through”? When the end of the day comes do you wonder why you’re exhausted from so much work, yet you really don’t feel as though you achieved anything?

I’m sure the vast majority of us can relate to that, putting it down to the fact that we live in a world that’s becoming more demanding and frenetic every day. I think it’s weird that we seem to be getting ever busier, yet we’re surrounded by a growing multitude of machines, which are sold to us on the idea of being “labor-saving” devices.

Something just doesn’t seem right there, does it?

Life In The Fast Lane

I hear from a lot of photographers who tell me that they just can’t seem to make any real headway in their business because they are just so darned busy! They run from one job to the next, get caught up in endless phone calls and email conversations, find themselves multitasking just to try to get ahead, are forever playing catch-up on tasks that get delayed, and then have to deal with their personal lives at the same time, which are also racing along at a million miles an hour!

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Personal Zen goals, law of attraction, time management

Except for those in the Southern hemisphere, most of us are in the grip of a cold snap that’s setting records in some areas and causing major disruption everywhere.

While the snow can be photogenic from a landscape perspective, this isn’t just a minor inconvenience for us photographers, especially those who create portraits on location – for many it’s brought business to an apparent standstill.

But, within every disadvantage is the seed of an equal or greater benefit…

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Personal Zen planning, professional photographer, time management

It’s a new year, a new decade in fact, so perhaps we should start out with a new attitude – a mindset designed to win. Let’s forget all the negativity and depression that came to a head in 2009, and start afresh with a new outlook.

Think of your favorite successful brand for a moment.

They probably have a CEO, numerous vice-presidents, departmental managers and front-line workers.

Photographers, on the other hand, are usually one-man bands – we have to do everything from opening up shop, managing the accounts and cleaning the bathrooms.

Often, that’s the root of most of our problems…

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Photography Business Ideas professional photographer, professional photography, success, time management

This weekend, in the USA at least (I know the UK have already done so), it’s time to “Fall Back” an hour as daylight savings for 2009 comes to an end. This is where we get to withdraw the hour we deposited in the time bank at the start of the summer – if only they paid interest on that deposit, oh well…

The question is, “What are you going to do with your extra 3,600 seconds this year?”

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Personal Zen success, time management

After struggling along for several years trying to grow a home-based photography studio, I realized that I needed to grow more as a person, as well as learn new technical skills and business knowledge. That meant learning how to use my time to the best advantage.

It’s a Crazy World!

You know how it goes, you have a business to run, a house to keep, family to take care of, pets to feed, cleaning, gardening, decorating, fixing, cooking, washing… the list goes on and on! Running a business from home does have its advantages – I can roll out of bed and be in the office in two minutes without having to start the car – but it also has its downsides. Distractions come from all directions and it can be especially hard to work when the kids are home from school.

So, what do we do when it comes to our own personal and professional development? Sometimes it seems impossible! How can we possibly work that into our crowded schedule?

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Personal Zen success, time management

If only that were true – how much more could we do in a day?

I enjoy watching Dave Ramsey on the Fox Business Network whenever I can, and last night I managed to catch it while I was cooking dinner. Dave’s guest for the evening was Dr. Henry Cloud, who had some very interesting things to say about time management and setting boundaries between our personal lives and work lives.

As I was simultaneously listening and trying not to burn dinner, I realized that much of what Dr. Cloud said applies very well to us as professional photographers, especially those, like me, who work out of their home.

How many of you feel at the end of a busy day that you’ve really achieved something with the time you had? I know I sometimes get frustrated at many of the interruptions that divert my attention from what I’m supposed to be focused on, leaving me feeling overwhelmed and disappointed at the end of the day. It’s unpleasant going to sleep with the thought of all the things you should have done that day, but will have to do tomorrow.

Plugged Into The Matrix:

I’m sure it was a lot easier in the days before email, mobile phones and Facebook – but now we have so many distractions throughout the day that they can really affect our level of achievement. Sometimes I feel as though we, as a society, constantly need to be plugged into something, and I doubt there’s a hardly a place on the planet where we could hide for too long without being disturbed in some way.

Several years ago, when I still worked in the corporate world, my bosses thought it would be good for me to attend the “7 Habits of Highly Effective People” course. One of the key points of that course was the concept of prioritizing tasks and potential interruptions using a simple chart of important/unimportant and urgent/non-urgent. Something can be important, but not urgent, but the tasks we need to focus our time and energies on are the important/urgent ones.

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Personal Zen planning, time management