Page 227 - Roy W. Rice - CEO Material How to Be a Leader in Any Organization-McGraw-Hill (2009)

208 • CEO Material: How to Be a Leader in Any Organization

Know What Is Important to You and Then Give

It at Least a Small Amount of Time Every Day

List what’s important: work, family, children, church, charity, exercise,
the arts, community, parents, continuing education, friends, fighting
for justice, defending the planet, etc. Then starting as early in the day as
possible (as opposed to waiting to the end), spend four minutes on every
area you listed. That’s right, just four minutes. Why? Four minutes is not
too burdensome to find in your schedule; it’s only 240 seconds. (It’s sort
of an umbrella that protects you from the downpour of other demands
and disruptions you’ll have.) It’s enough time, with no interruptions, to
get something productive completed—like one ministep toward your goal.
I am trying to get you to think about your interests in life and allo-
cating a small chunk of time (at least) to all.
Think about it: If you spend four focused minutes with each member
of your immediate family before you head to work, that’s 14 minutes
(figuring a spouse and, on average, 2.2 children). In each person’s four
minutes, you could have learned about, discussed, or decided on an
activity or a schedule, shared a laughed, or solved a problem.
Do the same when you return home from work. Don’t immediately
look through the mail, go to change your clothes, answer the phone, get on
the computer, or even pet the dog. Give another concentrated four minutes
to each family member. Now, you don’t want a buzzer on your wrist watch
to go off so that you can head to the next person like you’re speed dating.

I’ve learned that balance is much like the airlines tell us in the safety
check to put on our own oxygen mask first before helping others. It
only makes sense.

ƒ

You get a maximum of one hobby as a CEO.
ƒ

One of my partners loved to ride. He named his horse “Business” so
that when you called his secretary, she could honestly say, “He’s out
on Business.” I’ve thought of naming a boat that!