Voicemail can save you time each day!

Americans come in third in the world wide cell phone usage race, with eighty-nine percent of our population now being tied to phone calls anywhere at anytime. The only countries that outrank us by number of cell phones are China and India. 

I myself am amoung the ranks of chronic cell phone users... my husband lovingly refers to my beloved smart phone as my "pacemaker".  The nickname fits too, it is always near me and I use it's many capablities to help me manage all areas of my life.  I have a calorie counter, MP3 player, stopwatch, calendar, contact manager, to do list, and many other applications that make my life easier and more organized.

However, one of the most basic features of my phone tends to be the biggest problem for me... incoming phone calls.  I can get many, many calls in a day; personal calls, business calls, cold calls, and others.  The number was becoming so overwelming that I was having a hard time getting work done... until I had an realization that changed my daily life for the better.  My phone has a voicemail feature. 

I knew I had voicemail and I used it to answer calls when I could not get to my phone fast enough.  However, it was when I realized that my voicemail could easily become my best friend in business that I really began to appreciate and utizlie the feature. 

I saw that I do not have to answer EVERY call that comes through my phone.  I have now given myself permission to ask myself, "To answer or not to answer." and have implemented new rules and guidelines for myself.  For example, if I am at work in my office in the middle of a project, I turn my ringer on silent and allow my trusted voicemail to carefully record each question or need for me to address at a specfic time later in the day. 

By implementing these new guidelines, I have given myself permission to put more value on my time and have reduced my stress.  I am now able to get more out of my time when I am working, and more out of my phone calls when I make them because I am not distracted by other tasks. 

I challenge you this week to use your voicemail feature on your phone too as a time management tool, not just a back up when you don't jump the couch fast enough to get there. Release yourself from the feeling that you need to answer EVERY single call at the time they are calling.  If you are eating dinner, reading to kids, or trying to do a project... let the phone call go to voicemail and you can return it at a time later when you have more time and attention to pay to the caller. 

This one small change in your life can help save you time, energy, and frustration every day!