TIME MANAGEMENT TIPS!

If time management skills were taught in school, life today would have been a lot different from what it is now. If you can’t manage time, your degree (no matter where you got it from), experience, intelligence or even your charm – you are not quite an asset to the firm.

In today’s business world, old-time management techniques are not enough. With the increasing pace of change, extensive downsizing and firm’s growing expectations of prompt communication and responsiveness, you need updated tools and practices to keep you ahead of everything. “Careers are made or broken by the soft skills that make you able to h

and a very large workload,” says Merlin Mann, editor of the productivity blog 43 Folders. Here are a few tips that would help you to manage time.

1. Organize your to-do list daily.

You need to be aware of what it is you have to do in order to allocate time for each action. The easiest way to do that is by writing down the chores everyday till they are done. If the chore is still on the list for over a week, you are not managing your time right! The best thing to do, rather, is schedule appointments with yourself. Use softwares or your cellphone to make appointments for every chore and monitor the time it takes. Be disciplined with your appointments.

2. Prioritize an action plan.

After making a list of to-do chores, make sure you are doing the most important one first. The best thing to do is to plan or prioritize your actions a day/night before each day so when you reach work, you already know what to work on right away – it saves you time and energy!

3. Take notes!

Write down everything you think of, all the ideas, actions, important conversational points – everything, you do everyday so you can eliminate the time-wasting elements and focus on what really needs attention. During this process you might be able to shortlist some really productive ideas that can be incorporated in your business that can lead to success.

4. Never pile up unanswered emails.

Most of us do this on a daily basis. Letting your unanswered emails pile up in your inbox is the worst thing you can do to yourself. Make it a point to reply to each email as you read it. This not only shows your time management skills but it also tells how prompt and responsive you actually are.

5. Is multi-tasking made for you?

For those who can’t multi-task – Dont Try! the more time you spend on trying to simultaneously handle multiple chores, chances are you wont get done with any and would only end up wasting your time. Deal with one chore at a time and move on to the next. Slow is ok as long as you are getting the chore done rather than wasting your time and that to-do list remains the same, or even worse, you end up adding more without marking the ones that are dealt with. Eventually you would get the speed kicking in once you know what, how and when to do.

6. Establish a routine

For effective time management, be sure to set a routine for yourself and stick to it. Any task can take up your entire day if you let it, for example, taking calls and replying to emails. Set an hour to reply emails and answer calls and make this a routine to be practiced daily. If you set time goals for yourself, chances are you would be more productive than ever.

7. Set expectations and assess results.

Before stepping into any meeting, taking any call or even starting any task, take five minutes to know what results you would want from it. This would help you understand what success looks like. Also, after the call/meeting/task, take another five minutes to assess whether the desired result was achieved? if not, what was missing? How can you incorporate the missing link in your next activity to achieve the desired result?

8. Take charge!

When you know you absolutely have to get the work done, put up a “do not disturb” sign on your door and make sure your cell phone is  on silent as well. Similarly, disconnect all IM’s and,  don’t just answer a call because its ringing, answer if it is urgent. Don’t instantly give people your attention unless it’s absolutely crucial in your business to offer an immediate human response.

9. Learn to delegate!

No matter what the size of your organization or firm is, there is absolutely no requirement for you to be a one-man show! You need to analyse what tasks you can delegate to your team members and what tasks you need to deal with yourself. But if you are planning to do it all yourself, you are headed towards disaster.

 

These are just a few tips to help you with time management, however, at the end of the day, no matter how organized you are, there are only 24 hours in a day. Don’t be disappointed if you are unable to complete a task or get the desired results. It is persistence and the desire to achieve that gets results, as Rodin says it best, “Nothing is a waste of time if you use the experience wisely.” So learn from your mistakes and pave your way to success!

 

By Marriam Ahmed

Never EVER fall in love with the company!

One of my friends just lost a job, and I kept telling him this piece of advice that you, “Never EVER fall in love with the company, fall in love with what you do, your vision and purpose and then work where it aligns”

Most people don’t know the hacks of corporate sector, every business entity much before it is created, has an exit strategy first. Yes now that is a “lol”, at least the most successful companies do. I am pro believer that one would continuously work on self development and move on from companies to find better challenges then sticking on to one. You become redundant, so you better switch after those 4 to 5 years and find bigger dreams and goals.

Scenarios have changes so if you are a employee, work out on job progression or switching smartly, making good self development initiatives and finding bigger challenges & if you are an entrepreneur do try putting people before money just for a change!

‪#‎Grow‬‪#‎Groom‬ & ‪#‎GO‬ as said by a leadership expert…

 

 

By Arslan Larik

BUILDING A BRAND!

Building a brand is the most important thing you can do for your business. Whether your business is service oriented, all about manufacturing and production, import/exports or whatever, people would know your business through the brand name as for most of us, from the shoes to the ties we wear, it’s all about the brand.

In a competitive global market today, it is extremely essential that branding is based upon what your customers think about the product/service you offer. For instance, some, majority of people, use certain products/services based on their priorities, therefore, it is necessary to relate customers with any brand you want to create.

If you were to ask yourself, what you thought branding was all about? You would easily say that anything that makes a customer choose your product over anything else, a certain mental association with a product/service is what can define branding in layman terms Right! And mind you, customers are either convinced by what they hear, or in their own imagination, associate with any product/service if watched on Tv or heard of on radio. All this is a part of branding.

Today, Branding is not about doing something for the company, it’s about building relationships, let me correct myself, building long-term relationships with your customers in that target market you focus upon. And this my friend, does not happen over night – Not at all. It takes time and even years at times.

Mostly in my seminars when I interact with business students, I often rather, always, talk about how when making presentations in front of an audience, telling personal stories brings your presentation to life. It’s the lesson out of that story that people remember and relate to. Similarly, when branding your product/service, it is necessary to keep your customers needs in mind as they would associate with your product if it caters to their needs.

Now you are probably wondering how do you build a brand for your customers, Right? Well, that’s not all that easy, but not all that difficult either. There are a few easy steps that can help you brand your product/service.

–          Place yourself in your customers shoes, relate to them. If it weren’t for them, how would you brand your products/services.

–          Build relationships with your customers.

–          Customers always focus on quality of your product or service, focusing on that is very essential.

–          Provide better deals, more value. Customers would always remember how you walked an extra mile for them, a nice complimentary something that you could offer to them. A cost-effective strategy might be what you want to focus on here.

–          People should know why you are different. State your edge clearly and boldly so you can stand out.

–          Be patient and try continuously.

Like I said before, nothing happens over night, it takes time for brands to build. You would have to be persistent, stop, watch, observe, learn and then try. Try these steps and let me know how your branding went. Enjoy Branding now!

 

Author, Marriam Ahmed.