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All successful sales professionals, regardless of what they are selling, have at least one thing in common: the ability to manage their time well. "Pay Time" are activities that generate money. This includes activities such as finding buyers, getting appointments, making sales and referral calls and servicing customers, all of which directly influence the money coming into a business. "No Pay" activities, such as writing proposals, organizing contact management databases, writing letters or e-mail to clients or buyers or doing research on the Internet are also important to the daily functioning of any business, but they do not result directly in the high profits and results you can get from concentrating on "Pay Time." Experts have long been praising the benefits of managing time wisely to lower stress levels and to maximize time use. With careful planning, time management can increase confidence levels, profit levels and generate increased productivity.

All successful sales professionals, regardless of what they are selling, have at least one thing in common: the ability to manage their time well. Time is tricky- it can be your best friend or your worst enemy. But by rethinking how you can make the best use of the limited time you have, you can become more productive and simultaneously make more time to do the things you really like.

After twenty years of training sales and sales management professionals, I've found getting them to treat time as "Pay Time" versus "No Pay Time" is the key to success. To start, think of "Pay Time" as activities that generate money. These are the ones that should be given priority when it comes to budgeting your time. By maximizing these'types of activities and arranging your workday to support paying activities, every day can become instantly more profitable.

What is "Pay Time?" In our training, we coach professionals to treat any activity that generates income directly as "Pay Time." This includes activities such as finding buyers, getting appointments, making sales and referral calls and servicing customers, all of which directly influence the money coming into a business. Generally, this "Pay Time" occurs during the normal working day (8 a.m. to 5 p.m.), the same time others are working to generate their own incomes. Knowing you are working on "Pay Time," however, can help you manage your time so you can adjust your schedule accordingly.

"No Pay" activities, such as writing proposals, organizing contact management databases, writing letters or email to clients or buyers or doing research on the Internet are also important to the daily functioning of any business, but they do not result directly in the high profits and results you can get from concentrating on "Pay Time." You should try to schedule these activities outside the normal 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. "Pay Time" block.

Here at Sandier, we recommend reorganizing your day to include 90 percent "Pay Time." This allows you to control how much time and effort you put into every part of your workday. However, be careful not to load on too much too soon. While redirecting your workday can increase productivity levels, it can also create an overwhelming sense of work left undone at the end of the day. Anyone who uses the "Pay Time" approach should also recognize the importance of time management, goal setting and reward systems. Keeping these aspects in mind will allow you to concentrate more fully on what goals you want to reach and what end you want to meet.

A day where you can look at your schedule and see a profitable workflow is a beneficial day. However, the effort to maximize the profits turned and income generated should never force you to sacrifice your healthy well-being. Rather, you should set goals, and then focus on accomplishing them, whether they take a fraction of the day or its entirety. If your goals do take the entire day, revel in the sense of accomplishment you will feel once you have finished such an arduous and jam-packed day. But if you reach them earlier in the day, celebrate your success and take the rest of the day off. Maintaining a healthy outlook on your day will allow you a greater sense of accomplishment. By focusing on your positive accomplishments completed during "Pay Time," you'll have a greater sense of achievement and will be encouraged to keep working hard. Be careful not to get trapped by a sense of an overwhelming and unproductive workload. This is a dangerous mind frame and will only affect you negatively, dampering your spirits and ability to continue to be constructive.

Allowing yourself a perspective that capitalizes on success rather than magnifying shortcomings will improve self-esteem. Emotional well-being is an important part of being a successful sales professional and should not be ignored. By neglecting to observe victories and focusing on what still needs to be accomplished, feelings of productivity and positive self-esteem can diminish. In turn, you and your psyche can suffer. Ultimately, this will affect your sales. Maintaining a healthy self-esteem can directly effect time management by keeping you from feeling overwhelmed or unproductive.

Experts have long been praising the benefits of managing time wisely to lower stress levels and to maximize time use. With careful planning, time management can increase confidence levels, profit levels and generate increased productivity.

When you take an active step towards organizing your workday and consistently using the "Pay Time" approach, not only will you become a more successful and profitable employee, your company will also reap the benefits. Just remember - "Pay Time" does just that - it pays. TAS