Wednesday, December 4, 2013Time Management
Welcome to today’s session. What is time management? Well first, we have to ask, “what is time?” Time is simply a measurement. Time is not a thing we can touch. It is a construct made up by humankind to measure how days, nights, seasons and other various events pass. We all get the same amount of time in a day provided that we are all on the Earth for the entire day. But, some feel that we “have enough time” during the day to get what we need done. While many of us simply do not.
So, again we ask, “what is time management?” There are many different answers to this question. Today, we are going to talk about strategies to help you meet your goal based on research provided from various sources. My goal is to simply offer information that you can use to build habits. What you choose to use is entirely up to you. A bibliography is provided for further reading and research.
Did you know that no matter how much time we have, we will always find more work to fill up that time. It’s true. This is the premise of Parkinson’s Law – no matter how much time we have, the work will expand to fill it up. If you receive a project that must be completed in two years and at the very end receive another year to work on the project, the team will be able to find more work to complete during that year to “fill up” the year. This is a reality of the human condition. If we had more hours in the day, we would find more work to fill up that time. Therefore, we actually need to reverse the law to manage our activities – for true stress management and to be happy, “we need to 1) figure out what we really what is really important to us; 2) focus on those activities only (creating less activities during the time we have to fill it up); and, 3) remove all other non-essential activities from our calendars.
Pretty extreme? Actually, this is what some of the most successful business men do in private industry. They focus on important and urgent projects and tasks only. All other category 3 and 4 projects are either delegated or removed. We will discuss this later.
But, why does this matter? Because if every project, task and issue coming to your desk, phone and emailare important all of the time, you will never relax or get anything accomplished. This creates a competitive atmosphere to complete all projects. If everything is “on fire” and an emergency, then we are going to have pressing emergencies or a sense of chronic time urgency on every issue we face. As a result, we are facing a health issue that impacts 1/3 of heart attack sufferers in the United States. These are Type A personality traits can lead to issues associated with heart disease and heart attacks that has been studied in adults over the age of 35 since the 1950s. Heart attacks are still the number one cause of deaths in men and women in the United States, causing one in four deaths across the country. While smoking, obesity, diabetes, cholesterol and other health factors are contributing factors for many deaths, a large portion are believed to be attributed to stress factors.
You came in here for a reason. Do you feel you are not getting everything done each day, each week, each month at work? Yes No at home? Yes No
Do you feel you have a hundred things you want to get done but are just not able to get it all done at work? Yes No at home? Yes No
Do you have 1000 competing priorities but are not able to fit them into the week at work? Yes No at home? Yes No
Do you have other goals you want to fit in to your schedule, such as going back to school, having some fun, etc. Yes No
Why did you come to this session?
What would you like to do with your time?
What is that priority you feel is competing with your work time?
What do you really want to use your time to do?
Or is it a work project you want to complete at work?
What is competing for time that you want to sacrifice and what is competing for time that you want to get done?
Time Management QuizQuestions are from MindTools.com
Almost Never / Some of the Time / Often / A lot of the Time / Statement – read the statement and put an “X” in the box that corresponds with how you relate to the statement belowX / Example. I like ice cream.
1. Are the tasks you work on during the day the ones with the highest priority?
2. Do you find yourself completing tasks at the last minute or asking for an extension?
3. Do you set aside time for planning and scheduling?
4. Do you know how much time you are spending on the various jobs you do?
5. How often do you find yourself dealing with interruptions?
6. Do you use goal setting to decide what tasks and activities you should work on?
7. Do you leave contingency time in your schedule to deal with the unexpected?
8. Do you know whether the task you are working on are high, medium, or low?
9. When you are given a new assignment, do you analyze it for importance and prioritize it accordingly?
10. Are you stressed about deadlines and commitments?
11. Do distractions often keep you from working on critical tasks?
12. Do you find you have to take work home or stay more than 8 hours a day at the office?
13. Do you prioritize your “to-do list” or Action Program?
14. Do you regularly confirm your priorities with your boss?
15. Before you take on a task, do you check that results will be worth the time put in?
Step 1 is “Goal Setting”. The first step in the process is to set goals. This is not a list of tasks this is a list of the major projects with outcomes you want to achieve. The first thing you have to decide is what you want your outcomes to be. This takes some sacrifice. If you are used to being to “go to person” for your boss or seen as the office superhero and want to see your kids more, you have to learn to say no and go home on time from work. You have to learn to take off the cape and stop being Super Office person and focus your time at home instead of at the office.
Are you good at writing goals? How did you answer questions 6, 10, 14, 15? Write your comments here.
Do you have all of your projects written down? Yes No
Are the projects outlined with milestones and task lists? Yes No
Are the projects reviewed on a regular basis with your boss? Yes No
Are only those projects you are working on listed? Yes No
Project List (no order, no priority, just list every project in your head that is using up space or energy)
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Wednesday, December 4, 2013Time Management
This is the start of an Action Plan. Many individuals use this option instead of just a straight “To Do list” because this allows you to prioritize projects and create more detailed lists under those projects instead of just writing massive to do lists that can be very overwhelming. Now, if you have a simple task like mail a letter that will take less than five minutes, you can just put that on a to-do list. This can be completed and checked off based on priority and your energy level. If you have a project to mail out 100 letters, that one letter would be a part of the mail out project. That project would be prioritized based on importance and urgency.
Step 2 is to prioritize the projects on the list. How good are you at establishing priorities? Let’s look at how answered questions 1, 4, 8, 9, 13, 14, 15? Write your comments here.
Before you establish your priorities, figure out what you are actually working on. For one week, log everything you do into an Activity Log. This has been provided for you on the next page.This will tell you how much of your time is spent on projects and how much of your time is spent reacting to other people and doing other things. It is meant for you to record and not think about. You are not trying to achieve a grade or look good. In fact, no one else has to ever see it. You are trying to get an honest assessment so you can work to create better habits and set schedules to maximize your time.
In “prioritization”, we have to accept we cannot be all things to all people. If you came here looking for a magic button, it does not exist. Activity management takes sacrifice, and it takes work. If your goal is to spend time with your kids, then you have to really dig in to the calendar to evaluate what is eating up your time in detail. An activity has to be sacrificed so time can be devoted to your children. That may be time at work even though you want to look good at work too. You have to decide what is more important, and only you can make that decision.
Above is a picturefrom off of Steven Covey’s Importance/Urgency matrix and the Eisenhower Principle. Those issues that are both Urgent and Important are critical activities you have to take care of right away. Those elements that are not urgent but are very important are your important goals that help shape the direction you are going in. However, items that are not important but are urgent are interruptions. Items that are neither important nor urgent are just distractions. Using this information, you have to number your projects. Do not do this based on how you want them to be regarded. Do this based on where they fall on the matrix below.
So what do we do with each of these numbered items? Each number can be managed using the chart below (from
If the activities fall in quadrant three or four, consider getting rid of it or trashing it. You may be thinking, “I can’t.” You may need to sit down and talk to your boss or manager and say, “if I did not have to do this, I could be 300 percent more effective. We could streamline my work by getting me just a little bit of help or by automating this function.” You may be surprised what you get back.
We have listed out projects, accepted we cannot do them all, limited what we can do, and focused on the most important projects, what is next? We have to outline all the tasks under those projects. We are not going to do that here. We do not have time. When you are able to, you will have to take the time to map out those elements to ensure you have the information mapped out. The benefit is seeing the details and ensuring nothing is forgotten. The other benefit is going over it with your manager so they have a more realistic view of what you have to do before the deadline. It may also give you a more realistic view of what you are trying to accomplish to determine if
- You need more resources;
- You need to reduce projects further;
- The plan is simply unrealistic;
- Etc.
It is better to know in advance what options you have than to get to the end over budget, under manned and still unable to deliver. Planning ahead provides everyone more options. It also provides you a better view of success!
Activity Log
Date of Activity Log: ______
The Activity Log should start from your first activity of coming into the office and turning on your light or computer and continue until you leave at the end of the day. It should be completed for a set period of time (week or month) requiring copies to be saved and replicated if completed on the computer. It requires dedication, completion and review for true assessment to be completed but can lead to discovering pressing issues in scheduling and interruptions in finding work flow maximization.
Time / Activity / Comments7:15 AM – 7:30 AM / Took phone call from customer while I was working on a mail out project. She needed a gas card voucher. I gave her an appointment for Friday (date/time) and told her what to bring. Entered case note in system. Updated calendar. Took 15 min. / She initiated the call.
Step 3 is to find your flow. When we “get into our flow”, we accomplish a lot of work because we are focused and moving fast. How did you answer questions 5, 9, 11, 12? Write your comments here.
What prevents us from finding our flow? Interruptions. Workplace interruptions happen all the time. This may be a phone call that we answer while we are in the middle of a project or task we are working on. We stop in the middle, break our concentration and stop our work to change activities immediately to respond to the caller. This “multi-tasking” activity actually causes us a loss of productivity as we shift mental gears to deal with the caller. If we remember to return to the task or project, we have pick back up the project, try to get back into the flow and continue the project. Some people cannot remember where they were in the project. Others cannot return to the state of creativity or productivity. Sometimes, projects or tasks are forgotten midstream and lost. In an average day, workers lose one to two hours due to interruptions. Managing interruptions can really help staff find their flow and be more productive in the workplace. Review your activity log to identify interruptions. If there are interruptions you enjoy, plan for them in your day, such as a walk with a friend or a cup of coffee: this is a healthy way to relax. If there are interruptions that are necessary, build them in too. For example, your staff may need to ask questions of you: you could create a manager on duty rotation. For time when you need to focus on a project, find when you work the best (when you are alert and can work on your most difficult tasks). Close your door and turn off your ringer. Do not serve as manager on duty. Work on your most important projects. If you have important and urgent tasks, nail those down as well! This is time to get into your flow.
Multi-tasking is doing more than one activity at the same time or abruptly stopping one activity to do another activity. According to research, is multi-tasking good? Yes No
How do we stop multitasking? If you have to work on multiple projects and tasks as a part of your job, set blocks of times during the day to focus your energy. Include non-dedicated time and include time for interruptions you want to happen (meet with friends). Limit distractions: you do not have to answer every phone call or respond to every email. Respond to those issues that are both urgent and important.
The next step is to KNOCK OUT THE WORK!
Watch Out for Procrastination! How did you answer questions 2, 10, 12? Write your comments here:
Watch out for procrastination. This is a time waster. Many people look at the task list under the “project” and get overwhelmed. They will look at the list and put off big projects or things they do not like to do until the last minute stating that deadlines help them get the project done. This is actually a fallacy. Putting things off until the last minute can actually create problems when multiple projects need to be balanced or a project deadline has to be moved up. Look at the project list and tackle using the Importance/Urgency Matrix.
Instead, use scheduling to balance projects. This allows you to have better control over what is important to you. You get to manage your day instead of letting other people manage it for you.
Learn How to Schedule Your Time Effectively. How did you answer questions 3, 7, 12? Write your comments here:
What are some ways I can use my schedule better?
- Do not schedule activities back to back. Give yourself time to breathe! You are a human being. Allow yourself to stretch, walk around, get a cup of coffee, eat lunch or go for a ride!
- Know your natural pattern. If you hate mornings…you might want to talk to your boss about arriving at 6:00 AM. This may not make you the most productive person in the world. Also, arrange your time to work on the most intensive projects based on your most productive times.
- Meet wisely. If you have to travel two hours to meet when you could use the Internet and still meet face-to-face, maybe you should try this option. That would save you four hours of travel time for just one meeting. Now, if you are traveling to get a customer base built, use your time traveling to build up your work skills while driving. There are great books on CD. After all, you are on the clock. You may also try to meet with several potential and current clients in that particular area or on that particular route on the same day to consolidate time and use your time effectively.
- Build in interruption time and flex time. The better you plan, the better you can focus these interruptions so they do not happen when you are focusing on your projects (so they do not interrupt your flow time).
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