1. They delegate

Successful people know that they are not the best at everything. So they find people that are smarter and more efficient to do tasks they are not the best at. They leverage the knowledge and the abilities of these persons and get more out of their time.

2. They break down their goals

Having a mighty wall to climb over may lead to procrastination and frustration. Successful people know this. That is why they break down their goals into chunks that can be achieved in the shortest span of time. They believe in consistency and working regularly to make the most of their time and attaining big goals.

3. They prioritize

Some things are urgent yet not important. Some are important and not urgent. They make a balance with the tasks before them as to ascertain what is urgent and important and deserves their immediate attention. With this they can determine actionable results.

4. They de-clutter their lives

According to Pareto’s principle, only 20 percent of our actions drive 80 percent of the positive results in our lives. The other 80 percent of our actions only produce 20 percent of results. Successful people know that a lot of time can be wasted in small talk, having no plan or not following a plan. They focus on 20 percent actions that will produce 80 percent results while they either eliminate or delegate the other 80 percent that offers 20 percent results.

5. They make a self-assessment of their time

Successful people, unlike unsuccessful people, keep themselves accountable for how they use time. They make a self examination in written journals to identify the time wasters in their lives. They identify areas, like spending too much time social media, as time wasting activities and do well to be more accountable on how such time is spent.

6. They catch up on time

There is always some free time they can accumulate and take advantage of. Time spent in traffic could also be spent listening to an insightful audio CD or connecting with a client. They attack any window of opportunity to get more of their time.

7. They create a ritual

Successful people are plugged in on habits and schedules that are fixed. Such routines do not exceed the time limit allotted to them. For example, if it will take them 15 minutes to eat every morning, they stick to this routine and do not exceed it.

8. They plan their days

Nothing precise, concise and effective can be done without strategic planning. Successful people are organized and do well to plan their days beforehand. Being busy is not the same as productive and being busy could cripple your health. This is why successful people ensure their days are well planned to be more productive and effective.

9. They are motivated

They direct their energies and resources to things they are passionate about. It is difficult to flaw someone who combines skill and passion. Energy and time spent on passionate pursuits offer the best use of time.

10. They focus on one activity at a time

Some people think they make the most of their time by multitasking. Successful people understand that multitasking is a waste of time. According to a report, humans are not designed to multitask. It is best to increase your efficiency and performance to focus on a task and finish it properly before going on to the next one. Featured photo credit: http://www.flickr.com via flickr.com