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Time
Management Made Simple: Five Practical Tips
1. Consider the "payoff" when planning
and performing your work.
High-payoff activities are those that provide the
greatest long-term value, as they are important to the fulfillment of your
goals. They are often complex, time-consuming, and require uninterrupted
concentration.
Low-payoff activities are typically short, quick, and
easy to do, but provide no real benefit. They tend to outnumber and take time
away from high-payoff activities.
Here are some strategies for effectively performing
each:
- High-Payoff Activities
Schedule them during your "prime time," the part of the day that
you are most alert.
- Divide them into smaller units if possible. It is
easier to find the time to complete three two-hour pieces of a project than
an entire six-hour project.
- If possible, minimize distractions: close your
office door, forward calls to voicemail, and request that unplanned visitors
schedule time with you.
Low-Payoff Activities
If possible, delegate them.
As they generally require less concentration than
high-payoff activities, schedule them for the time of day that you tend to be
least alert.
Rather than waiting idly between high-payoff projects
and meetings, reply to an e-mail message, read a journal article, or file a few
reports.
Don’t do more work than necessary. Handwrite a
response to a memo rather than typing one. Make a phone call rather than
composing a letter.
2. Catch up on your reading.
Chances are good that a large amount of written
material crosses your desk each and every day: industry journals, policy
manuals, direct mail pieces, company newsletters, etc. Chances are also good
that these documents are stacked on a credenza in your office collecting dust.
You know that there's some valuable information in that heap, but how can you
possibly read when there are so many other demands on your time?
Try this: Place all of your reading material - as well
as a pen, highlighter, and pad of sticky notes - in a folder. Bring this folder
with you everywhere... on the train during your daily commute, to
business meetings, to doctor's appointments. Take advantage of idle time by
reading through the documents, highlighting important text, making notes in the
margins, and marking them for photocopying or future reference. You'll get
through that pile before you know it, without even having to set aside time to
do it!
3. Get started on the project(s) that you've been
putting off.
Procrastination is the avoidance of starting a task.
We've all procrastinated at one time or another: concentrated on preparing
for the work rather than actually doing it, performed unimportant
activities rather the one we set out to do, or deciding to lie down or call a
friend instead of starting the job.
Here are some strategies for conquering
procrastination:
- Don’t put off beginning the project because you
don’t have everything you need to complete it. As long as you have what
you need to get started, you can gather the rest later.
- Start small. Divide the project into chunks. Reward
yourself after the successful completion of each unit.
- Imagine how good you will feel when the job is
done. If that doesn't work, consider the negative consequences of not
doing it.
4. Make every meeting count.
Too often, business meetings are longer than necessary
and don't seem to accomplish very much. Here are some strategies for ensuring
successful, productive meetings:
Prepare and distribute an agenda prior to the meeting.
This agenda should clearly define the purpose of the meeting and assign time
limits to each topic.
Confirm that the meeting room contains any necessary
electronic equipment, such as a speakerphone or overhead projector. Set up and
test the equipment prior to the arrival of the other attendees.
Start the meeting on time, even if some people are
running late. You will be amazed how punctual they will be next time!
Keep people on track. If a topic exceeds its allotted
time or a new issue emerges, add it to the agenda for the next meeting
and move forward with the current agenda.
At the conclusion of the meeting, summarize decisions
made and actions to be taken.
5. Resist the "If you want something done
right..." urge.
Perhaps you are unable to accomplish as much as you
would like because you take on more than one person can reasonably handle. If
this is the case, you may wish to consider delegating some of your work to
others.
Delegation is the assigning of an activity in your
area of responsibility to another person.
Delegation is not merely "dumping" one or
more of your tasks on someone else. Proper delegation involves:
Carefully evaluating what needs to be done.
Identifying the individual who is best suited to do
it.
Clearly communicating essential information about the
work, including:
Its purpose and desired outcome;
Exactly what needs to be accomplished;
The amount of authority you are giving the person over
how the job is performed;
The level of support he or she can expect from you and
any other available resources;
The standards you will consider acceptable and how you
will evaluate the results; and
The deadline for completion.
Encouraging questions.
Monitoring progress.
Letting go. (This means accepting that the other
person's approach may be different than yours and that the results may not be
perfect the first time. Also be open to the possibility that the other person's
methods may be better than yours, providing you with a learning
opportunity.) -
© Copyright © 2002-2003 Christina Morfeld and
Affinity Business Communications, LLC. Originally published by Suite101.com.
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