Time Management - Greatest Lessons from Jim Rohn

Jim Rohn reframes time management as a conscious art of shaping life through intensity, clarity, and deliberate planning. Life gains value through the frequency and depth of experiences. Mastery of time comes from planning ahead, strengthening skills, distinguishing majors from minors, protecting focus, and taking full responsibility for one's choices.

• Life is a collection of experiences, not the passing of time.
• Start the day, week, month, year only once they are planned.
• Human dignity comes from choice — unlike trees, we decide our potential.
• Skill development multiplies time far more than working harder.
• Major time = moments of real impact, not preparation.
• Movement is not achievement.
• When you work, work. When you play, play.
• Guard sacred personal time from intrusions.
• Think on paper: notes, lists, agendas, journals.
• Three treasures to leave behind: pictures, library, journals.

• Time management is self-leadership.
• Planning creates internal order and sharpens execution.
• Freedom comes from choosing the level at which you express your potential.
• Skills reduce time cost while multiplying results.
• Distinguishing major vs. minor determines long-term growth.
• Presence is a resource: full work, full rest, zero mixing.

Rohn links time management to a philosophy of intentional living. Time becomes valuable when infused with meaningful experiences. Pre-planning establishes a backbone for productivity and reduces chaos. Human choice is central: we can redesign our lives, abandon old patterns, and create new trajectories. He emphasizes boundaries — saying no, eliminating intrusions, and protecting moments that matter. “Thinking on paper” becomes a structural tool for clarity, while journaling becomes a form of legacy. His approach aligns discipline, presence, and responsibility into one coherent path.

Time management is conscious design. Through planning, skill refinement, and intentional focus, life becomes richer, sharper, and more aligned. The goal is not to work harder but to direct energy toward what truly expands the trajectory.

00:00:02 - 00:00:38
my father had 90 years but it seemed 93 years  but it seems sure in his seemingly long life of 93 years it was short because it just seems  like if we only had more time old testament gives us a view of some people who live to be  five six seven eight nine hundred years old if i have a chance to ask i will  ask how come we got short changed wouldn't that be a good question  if you had a chance to ask imagine seven eight nine hundred years to watch  generation after generation after generation after


00:00:45 - 00:01:24
generation stay healthy and well i mean you got  to have you got to be healthy to make it to 900 you got to take your vitamins i'm pushing the bible i'm pushing  vitamins i'm doing good today so the key is time is precious now let me  give you bill bailey's description of time life is not just the passing of time life is not just the passing of time life is  a collection of experiences their frequency and their intensity life is not just watching the clock tick  away life is a collection of experiences


00:01:52 - 00:02:20
their intensity their frequency when my friend mark died at age 44 someone says  that's young to die but what if he lived four lifetimes in one might not be too young so here's  what it whatever the span of your life turns out to be here's what you want to fill it up with  experiences and the intensity of those experiences but now let's talk about the management of  time here's one of the best ones we covered earlier when should you start building  this hotel answer as soon as you have


00:02:28 - 00:02:54
it finished now jot this one down on time  management when should you start the day as soon as you have it finished plan the day the best you can leaving plenty  of room for improvising and surprises and all the stuff that happens during the course of the  day but if you've planned a good productive day now you start that day you can't believe  how much more valuable your time will be don't start the day until you have it finished  now here's the next one don't start the week


00:02:59 - 00:03:31
until you've had it finished now to lay  out a week is a pretty good challenge next don't start the month until you have it finished the places to go  and the people to see and the productivity and the sales and the customers and the  development and all the rest of what you want to accomplish during the course of 30  days don't start the month till it's finished and then here's the big one this is  really challenging don't start the year until you have it finished to the best of your  ability it can't be finished like minute by minute


00:03:39 - 00:04:09
but in terms of the sweep of what you want  to accomplish in the year 2002 make sure that that's set and ready to go by the time january  1st rolls around and it might get all upset it might get torn up and you do a new and you make  so much progress the first 90 days that now you've got you've multiplied it all by two by three  because that happened to me i thought wow here's how this is gonna be a great year by the time i'd  finish the third month i'm rolling i'm sore and


00:04:09 - 00:04:44
so many things are happening i revised my whole  year's plan okay now jot this down approaches to the management of time here's the first one  ignore the subject i mean that's good advice don't let anything overly bug you because you  remember now you don't have to do anything someone says well i got to get a handle on my time  the answer is no you don't if you want to let it all go you can let it all go i mean this is good  advice somebody says you ought you what you ought


00:04:48 - 00:05:20
jot this down ignore all the you oughts or you  should only if they're giving general information we should it's better to say if you're teaching  we should not you should we should then you let me listen in without it being too confrontational  if everyone did this see that would be great and then you give a person a chance to choose to  do it or not to do it but when you start the you ought you ought now see if i don't now see we got  some tension and maybe some problems so you oughts


00:05:20 - 00:05:53
seem to always create problems when you're talking  to your kids you say no if kids would do this not always saying if you did this if you did  this life would be better but if kids did this life would be better it's like making a little  talk and letting them listen in and then it's a little less confrontational it gives us a  choice in one of my seminars here's what i teach all life form strives to the max of  its potential except human beings all life form strives to the max of  its potential except human beings


00:05:58 - 00:06:30
how tall will the tree grow as tall as it possibly can you never heard  of a tree grown half as high as it could no trees don't grow half a tree drives its roots as deep as it can reaches  as high as it can produces every leaf it can every fruit it possibly can to the max every life form  strives to the max except human beings now why not human beings jot this down you've been given  the dignity of choice you're not a robot you don't have to repeat this year the same as last year you  can tear up last year's plan develop a new plan


00:06:42 - 00:07:19
so the dignity of being a human being  now here's the choice on being a human being to be part of all we were meant to  be or to be all to strive for all or half or part or some the choice is up to you to develop  one skill or ten skills someone says well i'd be happy with just one more language well some say  hey i'm going to learn six or seven and this is all a matter of choice and when someone says no  you ought to learn four you've got to resist all that because this is personal dignity and you  don't want to destroy someone's dignity by by


00:07:19 - 00:07:49
doing all the odds and they feel reluctant to  do it now we've got problems so if you want to just ignore this subject on time management now  here's the next one step down to something easier the guy's in sales and he says oh i want  to own the company finally owns the company now he's got no time to play golf  he said when i was in sales i was making big money playing golf three days a week heck with this own and something heck with  managing my life was never my own after i started to manage i'm going back to sales  see this is the key if you're getting too


00:07:56 - 00:08:25
pressed you might consider stepping down to  something with a little easier time pressure little girl says to her mother daddy comes  home brings his briefcase and pats me on his head and says hello disappears and works  on his papers how come my daddy doesn't play with me and her mother said look your  daddy loves you very much but he has he's so busy at work he can't get it all done he has  to bring it home he loves you but that's why he can't play with you and the little girl said  why don't they just put him in a slower group


00:08:32 - 00:09:13
so jot this down now if you don't have  time for your kids you might consider joining a slower group remember when i said some  things i went for cost me too much so reconsider next key to time management and that's work  longer and harder but see there's a limit to that i almost lost my health the first year  i went so crazy about personal development and achievement i just went bonkers you know i told  you i was skinny by the end of that first year i was a walking shadow and then it suddenly occurred  to me what if i got rich and too ill to spend it


00:09:16 - 00:09:44
i mean that was a shocker so i started you know  developing a little more reasonable because i said if 12 hours won't do it i'll work 14 if that won't  do it i'll work 18 i mean how many hours it takes and sure enough it cost me too much so see working  longer and harder for some might be appropriate you know if you're just sitting around not doing  that much this might be good work longer and harder but you can only work so hard here's the  key not to work harder but smarter when you've


00:09:45 - 00:10:13
worked as hard as you can doing the best you can  in terms of physical output in the time reasonable time now here's the ultimate in the management of  time and that is you simply become more skillful when i first got into sales you know  i was around people that could get you know nine out of ten eight out of ten and when  i first started i could only get one out of ten but here's what i did i worked  around the clock around the clock so that i would make up in numbers what i  lacked in skill that's good in sales you


00:10:19 - 00:10:56
got to jot that down when you're new you  make up in numbers which you lack in skill now when you become more skillful the numbers can  go down because now your your persuasive ability and all of that is now so high that you don't  need to put as many numbers out but at first if you want to compete or if you want to really  get good you've got to put in the numbers but if you get more from yourself develop more  of yourself now the time management becomes an easier task now here's the next thing either  you run the project or it runs you i've found


00:10:57 - 00:11:26
out when you start something at first you're in  charge all of a sudden a year later it's in charge some of the companies i started i'm telling you  i'm in control a couple of years later i'm out of control at first i've got it on the run two years  later it's got me on the run i haven't got enough time i'm dizzy with trying to get it all done  so here's part of the key and that's to get in charge say i'm gonna take charge of my health one  of my albums is entitled take charge of your life


00:11:31 - 00:11:55
take charge of your time take charge of your  resources which we're going to talk about next take charge of your health you're  the one that's responsible for it it's not a requirement of society that you not  have a heart attack and take care of your family that's not a requirement of society but  you must make it a requirement of yourself society doesn't require that you build a financial  wall around your family nothing can get through that's not a requirement of society it's  a requirement you impose on yourself


00:12:01 - 00:12:41
to build a financial wall around your  family nothing can get through okay so impose on yourself the self-development  of being in charge taking charge of your life and your health and your future and your  responsibilities and all the rest next reasonable time is enough time to achieve all of your goals  just shut that down reasonable time is enough time i had to learn that reasonable time is enough  time here's why it's not the hours you put in it's what you put in the hours if you start  depositing greater ideas into the hours you've got


00:12:46 - 00:13:19
later than now i'm telling you later you  can't believe the productivity that will flow the ideas you can't think of now a year  from now they'll start to flow and when you deposit those ideas in the hours you've got  productivity multiplies by two three five ten next time management essential we've already  covered the first one a written set of goals and then do priorities on your goals what's  important this week what's important this month here's the next one often review  just go over your goals to make sure


00:13:26 - 00:14:00
that your list is working for you it's  got you inspired it's got you turned on somebody says how come you're up so early say  if you were headed where i'm headed you'd be up early too well if you were going to meet  who i'm going to meet you'd be up early if it was gonna stack up for you like it's  stacking up for me you'd be getting up early here's some more time management essentials learn to study  what we call majors and minors you pick up the phone here's what you  must say when you pick up the phone is


00:14:12 - 00:14:48
this a major conversation or a minor conversation if it's minor a few pleasantries and you're done  if it's major maybe you've got to make a few notes so here's the next one important conversations  make an agenda before you make the call just jot down a little agenda it's so easy now  to just talk out of your head do you ever hear a conversation end like this like this let's see  there was something else see you don't look that swift i can't think of it right now i'll call  you back see you look a little incompetent


00:14:52 - 00:15:26
let's see there was something  it escapes me right now really so if you got this now make an agenda before you  make a call if it's an important call now later that saves you all kinds of stuff you call john in  the salesman say john remember those four things we went over he said no we didn't talk about that  and then you pull out your daytime or whatever and there's the list you made when you made the call  he said oh yes seems like i do remember and you've got him with your list if it's just sales people  especially can talk you out of what's in your head


00:15:32 - 00:16:03
it's true no we didn't talk about that and if  you don't have a little proof i'm telling you it's gone so make an agenda before you make a call  so what's major what's minor now here's the key on this don't major in minor things if you take up  major time to do minor things i'm telling you you'll be behind the curve constantly here's  what we learn in sales training what's major time and what's minor time here's minor time  thinking about prospects here's minor time


00:16:03 - 00:16:34
making list of prospects here's  minor time keeping books on prospects here's minor time going to see the prospect here's minor time evaluating the prospect  after you've been there that's all minor time here's major time in the presence of  the prospect that's mine that's major time and if you took a look if you're in sales and  you took a look at a week you'd say my gosh i'm spending 90 of my time on the minor stuff and so  little time on the major stuff in the presence of


00:16:42 - 00:17:16
how many hours in the presence of in my day how  many hours in the presence of during my sales week because the time that really counts  is in the presence of the prospect majors and minors here's another key time management  essential don't mistake movement for achievement it's easy to get faked out by being busy god comes home at night all exhausted falls in the  chair and says oh i've been going go and go and here's the big question doing what  it's not to go and go and go and


00:17:23 - 00:17:54
some people are going going going and they're  doing figure eights their progress is small so don't mistake movement for achievement here's  another one in sales we learned don't mistake courtesy for consent if somebody's pleasant  and they nod you say oh they're going to buy no they're courteous you can't  mistake courtesy for consent now here's a big one concentration i had  to learn this all those years ago i'm in the shower trying to compose a letter  found it turns out to be a strange letter


00:18:09 - 00:18:39
so here's what i learned to do save the work till you get to the office save the  work till you get to the work don't try to get to the office on the way to work  on the way to work enjoy the way in the shower enjoy the shower then go to work when you get  to work i found this to be helpful concentration here's another big one learn to say no i'm  telling you in such a social society we have now it's so easy to try to be a nice  person saying yes yes yes to everything find yourself overloaded now you got to call  make the well gosh you know all the time it takes


00:18:45 - 00:19:16
to back out of something that you should said  yes to too quickly here's what might be better i don't think so but if that changes i'll call  you little things you can use not to commit over commit yourself my friend ron reynolds says don't  let your mouth overload your back it's a good one now here's a big one on time management when you  work work when you play play don't mix the two don't work at play i used to take my family  to the beach and i would bring my briefcase


00:19:28 - 00:19:49
i learned not to do that or at the beach i'm  saying i should be at the office i should be at the office now my family's upset because i'm at  the beach and i'm thinking office office office now when i'm at the office i'm thinking what i got  to get my family to the beach the beach the beach so things are not going too well at the office  because i'm thinking beach and things are not going too well at the beach because i'm thinking  office here's what i learned to do at the beach be


00:19:49 - 00:20:19
at the beach at the office be at the office when  you work work when you play play don't mix the two don't work at play now here's one of the  most important ones don't play at work work is too serious you don't want the reputation  of being the office joker it's not a good one yes there's time for some  pleasant stories yes there's time for a little humor yes best if it's a happy office of course  but i'm telling you you got to be serious about work because you're partying with a piece of  your life for the work you do your work costs


00:20:25 - 00:21:08
you a piece of your life here's what it's called  serious business not grim not unhappy but serious key don't play at work the old expression i don't  think we use it anymore horse around at the office play around play jokes play tricks no  place not at the workplace at the beach yes at the bar yes somewhere else not work you got  to treat work with all due conservative passion because it's leading you to your future  here's another key phrase all work is good you may not like your job but if it's the  stepping stones to get you to where you want to


00:21:14 - 00:21:48
to go you got to appreciate your job you don't  have to have a passion for your job here's the ultimate passion a passion for incredible success  in every department of my life that's the passion but don't look down on some menial job you have  to do to finally get you to where you want to go no job is menial menial no job  is not no every job is noble training life for pay making  a contribution to society next analyze how you are and if you have some  weaknesses if you can't doesn't seem like you


00:21:54 - 00:22:32
can change here's the key get it covered i used  to keep promising myself i'd keep the books keep the books keep the books finally i gave that  up and back then it only took me an extra 50 60 bucks a month for some accountant to keep the  books i said no i'm going to save the 50 bucks you can't believe what i started losing in  productivity because i tried to save the 50 bucks so the key is a lot of time you can stay like  you are but just make sure you get it covered okay next beware of the telephone and all  other systems of communication especially


00:22:34 - 00:23:08
the telephone at home and systems of communication  at home and here's one of the best lines i've got for you for the weekend let all communication  systems serve you but don't let them intrude when it comes time to have dinner with your family  you shut off all systems unless the ones that can take messages silently don't let the phone ring  don't let anybody intrude come through the front door no the back door nor through the telephone or  any other device so you can't reach john and his


00:23:10 - 00:23:45
family when he's having dinner the president  of the united states couldn't get through if you develop that kind of a reputation father mother when we have dinner when we're visiting and  have this time with our family nothing intrudes so don't let these clever little devices  keep intruding you've got to have a place that's sacrosanct it's it's valuable you  don't let anything in for that period of time okay isn't it good advice excellent advice here's  the next one read all the books you know i've


00:23:54 - 00:24:26
only got a few notes here on time management  but if you've got some particular challenges you run a big organization a big corporation  you've got some challenges there's plenty of books now here's what's next just be more alert  to the things that might be stealing your time here's why time is like capital you can't  let someone steal your seed corn you can't let someone steal your capital and you can't let  someone steal your time you must designate your time and some of the time that you designate  you must not let anyone steal casual time you


00:24:30 - 00:24:59
might let someone intrude and steal a little  bit and take a little bit but not serious time next one of the great time management  savers is to learn to ask questions up front sometimes you talk to somebody for  an hour then you ask questions and find out if you would have asked those questions up  front you could have saved yourself an hour asking questions up front helps you to get  to the problem now but if you just launch into some discourse you might waste 30 minutes  waste an hour when here's what you should have


00:25:08 - 00:25:40
been talking about after you've finished an hour  you say john what's really the problem he said well it's something personal see that's what you  should have been talking about this whole hour okay next learn to think on paper and we're going to take a break some ways to think on paper one we've covered  one solving problems take it out of your head and put it on paper another one is setting  goals making these lists we've already started here's another good way to think  on paper it's a projects book


00:25:52 - 00:26:20
each person you're working with in each project  you're working on get a loose leaf binder and a tab and some pieces of paper behind the tab and  do a little continual summary of how it's going between you and that person and between you  and that project i call it a project's book it is so useful to me but what's going on between you  and this person when you last got together what did you talk about and you got a few notes here's  what we talked about the last time we got together


00:26:20 - 00:26:46
now when you get together again you can review  that so you'll know better what to talk about when the president gets ready to travel and he's  going to meet some important people guess what they bring him all these briefing books right  the last time you were with khrushchev kennedy is informed here's what he said and here's  what you said kennedy said oh that's valuable i need to remember that if a person is  important it's worth a little running account you might even have a project's book for your  children here's what's happening between me


00:26:49 - 00:27:14
and my child we've talked about this and we've  talked about this and we've talked about this next a day timer keeping track of  all of your appointments you know mine is all filled with you know when to  catch an airplane and when to do a seminar when to sit down and have  a conference all the rest next is a game plan you know if you've got a house and the you know insurance is going  to come due and some other things are going to come do you just put it on a  spreadsheet make sure it's taken care of


00:27:25 - 00:27:55
key phrase take things out of  your head and put them on paper and the key is to just experiment with  different ways that helps you to do that now here's the last one thinking on  paper and that's to keep a journal one of the things i'm known for around the world  have been now for 39 40 years is keeping a journal now my journal is not a you know it's not  necessarily a it's not like a diary it might be part diary you know i'm flying over ireland and  i write down a few little things that impressed me


00:28:04 - 00:28:39
today i met this person wow what an extraordinary  event today this i conducted this seminar in rome a thousand people stood up and sang for me i've  got a little bit of a diary in there but here's what primarily your general is for collecting good  ideas a journal is to collect good ideas on your health good ideas for your business good ideas  for your future good ideas for time management because i used to take notes on pieces of paper  and torn off corners and backs of old envelopes and restaurant placemats and i threw all this  stuff in a drawer it did not serve me well


00:28:40 - 00:29:16
i foundly learned to get a bound copy right and  just keep a journal right if i was here i had my journal i'd be taking notes right these two  days in my journal now if you're caught without your journal you just take the notes when you  get back home you've put those notes in your journal throw the paper away because we don't  usually go through paper to review but see my journals now make up a significant part of my own  library my journal's all reserved privately for my children and my grandchildren can you imagine what  i've collected over the years it's unbelievable


00:29:19 - 00:29:48
there are three treasures to leave behind i  think you've already got those notes right here they are number one your pictures  don't leave the event unrecorded it takes only a fraction of a cent of  a second to say here's who i was with when i travel the world right we take all these  pictures and here's one of the gifts people send me the pictures they took of me and them  it's part of the treasures i have on the farm incredible a picture's worth a thousand  words to describe the scene the emotion


00:29:55 - 00:30:31
what happened say wow this was an extraordinary  day for me when i met these people here's what they told me happened to them when  they went to my seminar ten years ago wow the drama comes back if you've taken the pictures it's  one of the treasures to leave behind when you go remember the old photographs that we have now  you know 100 years ago 70 80 years ago just a few photographs what would it be like if you  had thousands of photographs of the past of your history your mother your father right grandparents  so change all of that now for your children leave


00:30:36 - 00:31:11
all your photographs as a record here's what's  next to leave behind and that's your library the books that changed your life the books  to change your health the books that rescued you from oblivion the books that you passed on  to other people they were so exciting for you the books that made you financially independent  the books that developed your leadership the books that gave you wisdom to ponder when things were  tough the books that got you through the winter the books that helped you to plant in the spring  and harvest in the fall what a treasure to leave


00:31:14 - 00:31:39
behind if you do that here's what's for sure your  books will be more valuable than your furniture wow now the third treasure to  leave behind is your journals the notes you took that helped  you to live life as you lived it long after you're gone a treasure that children  grandchildren great-grandchildren will find so fascinating they may use it to help guide their