While reading State of Denial, I came accross the following quote regarding how a CEO should allocate his or her time.

“…one third of the time on top priorities, one third on executive placement and development and the final third on evaluating the product or results.”

Had I gone through a MBA this could have sound like old news, but to me, it felt like I had just unearthed the secret rule of time management.

Obviously, I don’t have to worry about finding and managing executive people but even a small independant internet company owner needs to spend time on developing personal relationships with its customers, partners and advisors. The rewritten rule could be:

The entrepreneur’s schedule

• 1/3: Top Priorities
• 1/3: Networking, sales and support
• 1/3: Measuring progress

Let’s just say that I think I get the first one right.