Time Management Secrets

Your choice is simple:

Either take control of your day, or let it control you.

Many of you are struggling to manage time at work and in your everyday life.

Considering the economic conditions and the burnout risk I mentioned earlier, I wanted to help.

That’s why I’ve been working on a new eBook over the past few weeks.

It's all about mastering your time so you can focus on where it matters the most.

It's based on extensive research and experience running my three newsletters and lots of other projects in parallel.

My upcoming eBook has for now over 10 chapters full of practical tips that will help you make the most valuable use of your time.

Today, I'm giving you a sneak peek into two chapters on how to get things done and win your day like a pro:

1. Set Goals

Successful people set clear and specific goals.

They figure out what they want in their personal life, family, work, and self-improvement.

Others have no idea where they are going, and navigate life based on where the wind blows.

Write Down Goals

This is fundamental and makes it more likely for you to achieve them.

Keep your written goals with you wherever you go as a constant reminder.

Organize Plans of Action

Planning helps you avoid wasting time and effort.

To get things done, you need to break your goals into small, actionable steps.

Create organized plans for each goal.

List all the steps you need to take.

Then, put these steps in order and work through them, one step at a time.

Analyze and Make Lists

Before starting any task, make a list.

It will help you focus, stay on track, and feel good when you finish the tasks.

This simple action can make you 25% more productive.

Create lists for your weekly and daily tasks.

Do it the night before, so your brain can think about them overnight.

Use lists to figure out which tasks are most important.

Identify the people who can help you, and decide what you should do first.

2. Get Productive, Not Busy

Set Priorities

This powerful principle says that most of your results come from just a few important tasks.

Successful people focus on these critical tasks only.

Ask yourself what's most important, at that very right moment.

And do it now.

Concentration

Concentrating means giving your full attention to one thing.

Concentrate on tasks that will have a big impact on your future.

Focus on one task at a time.

Work on the important ones to feel good and confident.

Don't waste time on busy tasks that bring no value but cause more stress.

Spend less time on old problems.

Focus more on future opportunities.

Use the ABCDE System

The ABCDE method helps you decide what tasks are most important.

Divide them into five categories:

• Must-do (A)

• Should-do (B)

• Nice-to-do (C)

• Delegate (D)

• and Eliminate (E).

It’s the equivalent of this life-changing technique I discussed earlier in detail.

Set Deadlines and Rewards

Being motivated often comes from knowing what will happen after you finish a task.

Set deadlines for yourself to get things done on time.

Tell others about your deadlines so they can help you stick to them.

And give yourself a little treat or reward for finishing tasks.

Even small rewards can help you stay focused.

Track Your Time

Successful people pay close attention to how they spend their time.

The more successful you are, the more you look at minutes, not hours.

Use this powerful AI tool to keep a record of what you do during the day.

Check if your time matches your important goals and tasks.

Look at your schedule and make changes if needed.

Overcome Procrastination

Procrastination is when you delay doing things.

It's okay to put off unimportant tasks, but not the important ones.

To stop procrastinating, make yourself feel like you need to start right now.

Say "Do it now" to yourself when you're tempted to procrastinate.

Focus on what's important, even if it's not urgent.

And That’s It

Enjoyed the quick read?

These are just two chapters out of over ten.

Want to be among the first to get a copy?

Simply reply and say “Yes, count me in!” and I'll add you to the waitlist.

CS Café Interview

Oliver Falk, Manager of CSMs - DACH Region @ GitLab

Where are you from?

I was born and raised in Vienna, Austria.

I still live near Vienna, but in more countryside. 

Your career path

I got in contact with computers and IT very early in my childhood - in the 80s, when computers were somewhat exotic at home.

Then with the Internet in the 90s.

And from there on, I knew IT was going to be what I wanted to do for a living.

I can proudly look back to 25+ years of IT experience with only being slightly over 40 today.

I spent most of my time as a Systems Administrator / Engineer and DevOps person at times the terminology Dev(Sec)Ops wasn’t even coined yet.

A quick note here: For those who are not familiar with it, DevOps combines and automates Software Development (Dev) with IT Operations (Ops). It makes systems development more efficient, quicker, and better.

DevSecOps extends this, making the entire process more secure.

Half a decade ago, I was formally introduced to Customer Success and that’s where I found my absolute passion.

I’m happy that I recently joined GitLab as a people manager in Customer Success.

Gitlab is the leading platform that helps companies automate software delivery, boost productivity, and secure their end-to-end software supply chain.

It combines so many of my strengths, values, passion, and beliefs.

We’re creating a DevSecOps platform, recently recognized by Gartner and Forrester as the leading company with a very strong vision and execution capabilities. 

How did you join Customer Success?

I’ve seen Customer Success being introduced in many companies in the past decade.

I strongly believe I always had a strong customer success mindset, even if for many years my customers were “only” internal.

Reflecting on this makes me realize I always strived to understand the business outcomes that were attached to my actions.

What are some of the biggest mistakes you've made in your customer success career and what did you learn from them?

Believing Customer Success can be driven by a single department/group in the company was probably the worst expectation.

Meanwhile, I learned that Customer Success is a team effort.

And that every department in a company can positively contribute to Customer Success, even if it’s sometimes less obvious.

Can you share a story about a particularly challenging situation you faced and how you overcame it?

A very technical issue that was difficult to debug in a production environment.

Layer after layer, we discovered new issues.

In the end, we sorted out the problems.

But for many months, keeping the customer confident they made the right choice and that we're dedicated to their success was exhausting.

What do you think are the most important qualities for someone in customer success to possess?

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You need to be multifaceted.

Of course, you need to have technical skills.

But more important are human skills, like strong communication skills.

Staying curious and being a lifelong learner, including surrounding yourself not only with like-minded people.

Beyond your comfort zone are many growth opportunities.

How do you see CS evolving in the upcoming years?

We’ll see more companies embracing Customer Success in one or the other way.

We may see more standardization but never forget: outstanding companies often strive to make a difference.

Just be absolutely conscious when not following the standard.

Ensure you implement metrics that provide you with leading indicators so you know if diverging from the standard is harmful or not.

I also hope that we’re seeing stronger collaboration across company borders.

In many cases, up to 90% of the company's technology stack and processes are the same and not the key differentiating factors for the customers.

What's your top challenge at the moment?

A key challenge that keeps following me is verticalization.

Of course, you need to segment your customers in some way.

Segmenting them by verticals (ie. automotive, retail, etc.) seems to be one of the most commonly chosen ones, but many companies dismiss the opportunity to leverage it efficiently.

If there was one thing you would love to stop doing at work, what would it be?

I hope AI is going to help us eliminate repetitive tasks to free us up for creative tasks and more human interaction.

What are you most passionate about?

Working with people and helping them learn, grow, and find their passion, aligned with their core values.

Where do you see yourself in 1 year? 5, 10 years?

I hope I’ll be a better version of myself.

In 10 years better than in 5 years.

And in 5, better than in 1.

I hope I’m surrounded by people helping me to advance towards my goals.

What are your top 3 priorities at the moment from a professional and personal perspective?

1. Help to advance Customer Success,

2. Share my knowledge and experience, while still staying curious,

3. Learn and grow, and keep a healthy work-life balance.

Why did you join my newsletter?

Your messages absolutely resonated with me right from the beginning.

And I’m happy to see how your audience grows.

I hope I added a bit to your success by sharing one or the other messages on my social feeds.

Other interesting facts about you?

People are often surprised about my tattoos.

If you’re searching for a conversation starter: I have 3 at the moment and each one has - of course - a story.

Sometimes people are surprised that I became a father in my mid-20s. 

And lastly, I’m the lead developer of Libravatar, a service that delivers your avatar (profile picture) to other websites.

It’s a free alternative to Gravatar.

So yes, I still code and I’m pretty fluent in Python and all things DevSecOps. 

Any book(s) you'd recommend the CS Café audience to read?

It can be any book you love.

Simon Sinek’s books here and this other one here are great reads and every leader should read them.

What advice would you give to your younger self?

Reading more would be great or listening to inspiring podcasts.

Don’t waste your time on binge-watching series.

Better invest your time in binge-watching videos from some of the greatest voices of our times, like Simon Sinek, Adam Grant, Brené Brown, Steven Bartlett, and many more.

Where can people find you?

Here’s my LinkedIn.

It’s my preferred platform and I’m trying to stay very responsive there.

—

Thank you, Oliver, for this awesome interview and your ongoing support from the very beginning!

Hakan.

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