The importance of timing in business

When you set a goal, what do you focus on? Odds are, you put most of your energy toward how you will achieve results. But what if you shifted that focus from the how to the when? What if timing in business was that important? What if good timing could not only enhance your performance, it could actually give you the edge that you need to achieve your goal?

In this episode of the Tony Robbins podcast, we have a very special guest – New York Times bestselling author and one of the most influential business minds of our time, Daniel Pink. Dan has been studying the importance of timing in business for years, and what he has to say may surprise you.

Who is Daniel Pink?

Daniel Pink is an author, TV host and former speechwriter for Al Gore. He is widely regarded as one of the foremost thinkers in behavioral sciences. He’s upended conventional wisdom about what drives and motivates people. He’s challenged the value that society places on left brain over right brain skills. And he’s dispelled preconceived notions about what really makes a great salesman.

His latest work is no exception. In When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing – Dan shares profound insight into the importance of timing – and why most businesses, and most employees, get it wrong.

The “tyranny of how”

Both Tony and Dan have always been fascinated with the way we make decisions. As Tony says, humans often focus on the how, when it’s really the why that is the most important. Why do you want the things that you want? Connecting your goals back to your ultimate purpose in life is the only way to truly create lasting change.

Dan would add that we must also focus on the when. We make all kinds of “when” decisions – when to start a business, when to exercise, when to eat. But he argues that we make them in an ill-informed way – and he wanted to do better. Guidance didn’t exist, so like a true pioneer, he looked at the science and forged his own path.

Here Dan discusses the science behind time management – how it impacts your cognitive abilities, your mood, your state. He reveals the secrets of how good timing can help you become the most efficient, effective version of yourself. And he shares how business owners can leverage the time of day to create an optimal working environment for their employees.