Productivity Lessons From Former US President Jimmy Carter.
Image courtesy of the US Department of Defense. Department of the Navy. Naval Photographic Center
Continuing my series on looking at how people from different areas of life manage their work, in this article, I take a look at how President Jimmy Carter, the 39th President of the US, managed his time as President.
Jimmy Carter was a peanut farmer who became governor of Georgia before winning the presidency in 1976. He was President from 1977 until 1981.
As President, Jimmy Carter kept a detailed log of his days, and with few exceptions, he followed a simple structure.
6:00 am — wake up
6:30–8:15 am — Quiet time in the Oval Office
8:15 am — meeting with his National Security Advisor
8:45 am — 12:30 pm — meetings
12:30 pm — 1:20 pm — Lunch with his wife
1:30 pm — 7:30 pm — meetings and engagements
7:30 pm — 8:30 pm — Dinner with family
8:30 pm — 11:00 pm Watch a movie or official engagement
11:30 pm — Retire for the day.
One thing you will notice about farmers is they are very good at structuring their days. Animal farmers wake up to feed their animals. Dairy farmers milk their cows, and arable farmers are very sensitive to the time of year and weather and structure their year around planting and harvesting their crops.
I noticed Jimmy Carter began his days with reading and preparation time; he started his day with an hour and forty-five minutes of quiet time in his office. Then his meetings began. Each day his first meeting was with his National Security Advisor, and then a series of meetings of varying lengths.
His first stop for the day was at 12:30 pm when he had lunch with his wife — something that was consistent throughout his presidency.
The afternoons were filled with more meetings and engagements, and then the next stop at 7:30 pm, where he enjoyed a family dinner.
Following dinner, it was family time if there were no official engagements, and then his day ended at 11:00 pm.
A President’s role is the ultimate decision maker. Government is full of advisors who will brief and advise the president, but ultimately, the decision on what to do lies solely with the President. This means there are a lot of meetings and precious little time to step back and think. Carter used the early mornings to get that peace to read briefing documents and think.
Where in the day do you get time for quiet reflection?
One of the interesting parts of Carter’s schedule is the importance he put on family time. It can be very easy for the leader of a country to neglect their family because of the constant demands on their attention. Carter ensured he had time set aside each day to spend with his wife and family. It was a non-negotiable part of his day.
Another non-negotiable part of Carter’s day was his daily jog. He took up jogging in 1979 when the modern keep-fit boom began, and it became a staple in his day. Carter would jog for around forty minutes daily, whether at the White House or Camp David. Carter would go out for his jog every afternoon, although, on hectic days, he would head out late into the evening. In an interview with The New York Times in 1979, he commented, “I start looking forward to it almost from the minute I get up. If I don’t run, I don’t feel exactly right. I carry a watch, and I can click off a mile in 6½ minutes when I really turn it on.”
President Carter ensured he covered the three basics of a productive day. He managed to get sufficient sleep (six to seven hours). He was known to eat fugally and ensured he got plenty of movement into the day.
Being President of the US is not your typical everyday job. It’s incredibly pressured, stressful and can consume you if you do not set some structure into your day. When you have a degree of freedom to structure your day, it is essential to make sure you ‘block’ time for the important things in life, like your family.
How much time are you dedicating to the three critical areas of life?
On Sunday mornings, Carter attended church. Another part of bringing some structure into his days and allowing him to spend more time with his family and to take care of his spiritual area of focus.
Since leaving office, President Carter has maintained a busy schedule. Although in his nineties now, he has always been very hands-on with his philanthropic work, helping build houses and other projects he was closely associated with. He has travelled extensively to promote human rights worldwide and was involved in many international negotiations to reduce tensions. Carter was also a member of The Elders, an independent group of global leaders working for peace, justice, human rights and a sustainable planet, founded by Nelson Mandela in 2007.
No matter where you are in your life (or your political affiliations), there’s a lot you can learn from people like President Carter. Create a structure in your day that ensures you take care of the essential things in your life (family, health etc.) Build some quiet time into your day for thinking, and ensure you get sufficient sleep.
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