How to achieve personal freedom

Today I wrap up the series on interruptions and time wasters with a challenge for you. If you could only work 2 hours a day, that's right, 2 hours a day, what would you cut out of your work day? This is your chance to achieve personal freedom in your life.We started this series talking about the 80/20 Principle, 80 percent of our results coming from 20 percent of our efforts or time. If this is really true, then 20 percent of a work day is slightly less than 2 hours a day. Use 2 hours as a goal.Go back over this series and look at all the ways you found to get interruptions and time wasters out of your life. Look at what is important and what isn't worth your time. If you spend 80 percent of your time doing things others could, or things that aren't really necessary, or things that simple systems could replace, then why don't you change?Wouldn't it be great to free up 6 hours a day to focus your energies on all those things you promised yourself you'd do ... one day? Make that day now. The only thing standing between yourself and the personal freedom in your schedule is you. Start with one of the changes we talked about. Then add another and another as you fine tune your life.Remember Parkinson's Law: tasks expand to fill the time you allow for them. Give yourself short deadlines to get projects done. It will force the interruptions and time wasters out of your life.Remember Pareto's Law: the 80/20 Principle. Apply this to every area of frustration and success in your life. It will open your eyes and help you to eliminate that bad and preserve the good. It will focus your efforts on success rather than on the urgent.The bottom line is this is all very doable. Most will consider it and say "interesting, but it won't work in my life" or "you don't understand how my business operates". To those real success will always be fleeting.What do you loose by trying? Make the effort and you'll be surprised by the results. I know I was and you will too. by Steven Schlagel