The idea of no one valuing my time as much as I do was a
concept that stunned me the first time I came across it. But, the more I reflected
on it, the more I realized it’s actually quite true. And that’s when I tried
what for me was a radical experiment: instead of completely re-juggling my
daily/weekly schedule to accommodate requests, I started putting firmer
boundaries on my time commitments. This is what happened:
-My insurance broker agreed to meet with me in the morning
rather than the afternoon, saving me a second trip to the same part of the city
that day.-When I sold some textbooks, I told all of the students who bought them to meet me on a particular day at a given time to pick them up. Everyone showed up except one girl – and she arranged for a friend to come get her books for her.
-When someone called wanting to meet for coffee on a night I
was exhausted, I suggested meeting later in the week. This meant I got both the
rest I desperately needed, and had a much better quality visit with my friend.
-My landlord agreed to meet with me on an alternate day than
the one he proposed, which allowed me to go out to dinner with a close friend.
-When I ordered furniture and appliances for my apartment
and was given choices of delivery times, I picked something. Then, I coordinated
multiple deliveries on the same day.
No one died. No one accused me of becoming a self-centred
ego-maniac. No one was really inconvenienced by my new time tactic. I, however,
really reaped the benefits.
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