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
Coaching and Behavioral Transformation International 