"Life offers two great gifts: time and the ability to choose how we spend it. Planning is a process of choosing among those many options. If we do not choose to plan, then we choose to have others plan for us." Richard I. Winwood

Performing redundant tasks, putting your time into ridiculous activities, and wasting minutes here and there all add up to significant amounts of unproductive time over your lifetime.

Consider statistics, recently reported by time-management experts, that the average American wastes over his or her lifetime:

eight months opening junk mail

seventeen months drinking coffee and soft drinks

two years on the telephone

five years waiting in line

nine months sitting in traffic

four years cooking and eating

a year and a half grooming

a year and a half dressing

seven years in bathrooms

twelve years watching TV

three years shopping

one to two years looking for misplaced objects

24 years sleeping

We could come up with some pretty fun statistics on how much time mothers waste doing redundant tasks:

picking up stray toys

wiping kitchen countertops

scouring the sink

washing the dishes

doing the laundry

folding clothing

putting the laundry away

cleaning bathrooms

mopping the floor

collecting the garbage

changing diapers

changing crib sheets

wiping runny noses and dirty bottoms

getting little ones out of car seats

blah blah blah...does the list ever end?

In order to eliminate common areas of wasted time, you need to be constantly on the lookout for ways in which you might use time more effectively.

A few tips:

Stop watching TV...or severely restrict your tube time. Allow yourself to watch the evening news for one hour after the kids are in bed. Eliminate morning "fluff" TV and afternoon talk shows. They are minor on content and major on commercials and pure nonsense. Unless you're sick in bed or need to spend the day on the sofa, give them up.

Keep a lot of irons in the fire. Remember the old saying: "If you need something done, ask a busy person to do it." The busy person is always ready because she has momentum. Doers always have multiple irons in the fire, so new projects are always ready to be tackled when boredom or fatigue sets in with her current project. Don Aslett calls it "ship jumping." When enthusiasm wanes, a project gets boring, or we need to put a temporary freeze on a project for one reason or another, we jump ship, leave it, and move on to something else. Working this way, you become fast, efficient, motivated, and highly productive.

Lastly, think ahead. Moms who "stand ready" always thing ahead to the next probable scenario. Red traffic lights are not stops; they are pauses for reflection about the next intended thing. Carpool lines are not monotonous waiting lines; they are times to write or read or do one's make-up or nails or plot out the next intended thing. Ditto for doctor's office waits, grocery line queues, and gas station fill-ups. Rocket Moms use these as intentional "mental moments"--always taking in opportunities for action, planning the next intended event, organizing the rest of the day, or reviewing activities lined up for the kids.

Critically examine the ways in which you spend your time. See if you might find yourself surprised to find extra hours in your day...to take a bubble bath, write a letter, paint a picture, or read a great book.