Eighty percent of success

Early methods to determine cycles of time relied on seasons or the moon as a basic unit for time reckoning. These rudimentary calendars allowed farmers to make better plans to grow their crops, and for people to anticipate how many days until a certain event was to take place, like a harvest or a religious festival.

The origin of the calendar, as we know it, has its roots in the Roman calendar established by Romulus. It consisted of a year of 304 days divided into 10 months, commencing with March. Later, Numa, added two extra months, January and February.

The Roman calendar became so far off that in the year 46 B.C. the Emperor, Julius Caesar, asked the Egyptian astronomer Sosigenes to help straighten out some of the differences between the solar year and the Roman calendar. By imperial decree, a sweeping reform was made in 45 B.C. that made the year 445 days long to bring the calendar back in step with the seasons. This year was known as the “Year of Confusion.”

The new Julian calendar, named after Julius Caesar, also decreed the year to begin with the first of January, rather than the previous vernal equinox in late March, and it declared every fourth year as a leap year. It was more accurate than previous calendars; yet it was still about 11.5 minutes longer than the solar year.

The calendar continued to fall behind the solar calendar so that towards the end of the 16th century there was a difference of 10 days. To correct this, Pope Gregory XIII ordered Thursday, Oct. 4, 1582 to be the last day of the Julian calendar and the next day would be Friday, Oct. 15th and the start of the Gregorian calendar.

For long-range accuracy, only every fourth centennial year was made a leap year. This rule eliminates three leap years in four centuries, and allows the calendar to only be 26 seconds longer than Earth’s orbital period. It will take 3,323 years before our current Gregorian calendar accumulates one whole day.

Every civilization has adopted some common means to reckon with time. It baffles us that with all the efforts made by emperors and popes, princes and monarchs to reconcile dates, synchronize events, and avoid confusion some people continue to experience “days of confusion” all year long by not effectively utilizing a simple daily planning tool to better manage their business.

Do you use some form of a personal organizer such as a Day Timer, Day Runner, or Day Planner? Computers, PDAs, and electronic organizers provide a high-tech method to easily record and recall tasks and events. However, even a low-tech device like a monthly pocket calendar can help get things out of your head to record daily appointments and keep a “to do” list.

The American sage, Woody Allen, once commented that “eighty percent of success is showing up.” Even though he is a comedian, there is a simple truth in his quote. Many opportunities are lost because people rely too much on their memory alone to remember a scheduled commitment. The dullest pencil can be more useful than the sharpest mind when it comes to recording and remembering appointments and important events.

Many people rely on a desk or hanging calendar as their central tool to get organized and manage reminders that relate to appointments and deadlines made on specific times and dates. Your calendar, however, should be the start of a more integrated system for controlling and growing your business. Problems can occur when you are not near your calendar and you try to remember what is on it. Even worst, if you do not write down commitments and appointments on a calendar, it makes it difficult for others who depend on you to schedule their time and coordinate their efforts.

What type of an organizer you should use depends on what would best help you improve your behavior and cause you to regularly use it. If you love your PDA, use it. If you have a notebook-sized planner that is indispensable, use it. The key is finding something you enjoy and that works for you. After 25 years of using various calendar organizers, we designed our own one-page system that is easy to use, and fits in a pocket, purse, or wallet.

The purpose of any calendar system is the same for you as it was for ancient farmers: to anticipate how many days until certain events, make better plans and to grow – not your crops, but your business. Calendars help you keep your commitments. If your are not using a calendar system, you may not be “showing up” when you are expected or needed, and remember, that showing up is 80 percent of success.

(Rik is a business instructor at NMC and Janel is the owner of Positively Outrageous Results. They have consulted with over 400 businesses in 40 different industries. For better business results go to BizResults.biz to read previous articles.)