NEWSD: How Much Time Do You Really Have?
There are 168 hours in a week. Work through the four categories using your own honest numbers, subtract from 168, and see what is left.
A framework developed by Charles Kovess, Australasia's Passion Provocateur, executive coach, and professional speaker. charleskovess.com
Charles Kovess
charleskovess.com
Most people are certain they have no spare time. The NEWSD calculation tends to tell a very different story. Work through the four categories below using your own honest numbers. The result surprises almost everyone.
N
Necessities
Meals, personal care, household tasks, gardening, errands - all the essentials of daily life
E
Exercise
Physical activity for health and mental wellbeing - treated as a distinct priority, not a chore
W
Work
Paid employment and significant unpaid commitments - your committed time
S
Sleep
The essential recovery block. Most guidelines recommend 7 to 9 hours per night - that is 49 to 63 hours per week
D
Enter your numbers above to see your Discretionary time
Your Discretionary time is almost certainly bigger than you expected.
That is the time available for hobbies, passion projects, starting something new, or simply living more intentionally. The hours are there. The question is whether you can see them.
Now scroll down and see how this same thinking applies to your working day as a dental receptionist.
FACETS: Where Does Your Time Actually Go?
A working day is 480 minutes. Work through the five categories below and see what remains as your Self-directed time.
A framework developed by Julie Parker, Dental Business Mastery. Inspired by Charles Kovess's NEWSD.
Ask any dental receptionist how she is going and the answer is almost always the same. Busy. No time. But busy and out of time are rarely the same thing. FACETS maps exactly where your time goes. Work through the calculation using your own real numbers and see what your S actually is.
F
Front-facing interactions
Every in-person patient moment at the desk and in the waiting room
A
Admin
Daily checklist tasks - opening, closing, reconciliations, appointment confirmations, checking phone messages
C
Clinical admin
Referrals, uploading records and radiographs, specialist calls, treatment coordination
E
Engagement
Team conversations and internal communication about daily operations
T
Telephone
All inbound and outbound patient calls
S
Enter your numbers above to see your Self-directed time
Your self-directed time is almost certainly bigger than you thought.
This is not extra time you need to find. It is time that already exists in your day, every day, that has been quietly going unmanaged.
That is where the follow-up calls live. That is where the recalls live. That is where every "we never seem to get to that" task has been waiting.
Would you like some guidance on making the most of your time?
If you would like to talk through what your results mean for your practice and explore how we can help, we would love to hear from you.
Book a time with us
