Are you Managing Yourself? Where Does the Time Go? Part 2

In the last post I talked a little bit about time management and included tips on how to "Eat That Frog" and make lists. 

Using your time effectively is so much more than that. Goal setting and making to do lists is a start, but then what? Where does one go once those steps are complete? Understanding that a To Do list is constantly shifting and is never totally complete, how do we accomplish the things we need to do in the limited time we have to do them?  Read on to learn about other strategies to maximize that limited resource we call time.

Prioritize
This makes perfect sense right? You have a laundry lists of things to do, you make a to-do list and then order in accordance to the task or project that is the most important. But here's where it gets tricky; how do you determine which task is most important?  Do you base it on the date that it's due and if so, how do you avoid procrastinating?  What about new tasks that are added to the list?  And let's not forget about those fires that inevitably occur during the course of the day and require our immediate attention-those take precedence, right?

This is where the Urgent/Important Matrix comes in.  Essentially, this is a matrix that breaks down each task based on it's urgency (i.e. putting out fires, resolving escalated issues, etc.) or importance (tasks that help you achieve your goals.)  Laying out tasks in this nature gives you a clear picture on how much time you're spending on what.  This is a great way to prioritize and to identify what your time wasters are.  For instructions on how to use the matrix, click here.

Delegate
Recently, I watched a competition show on the Food Network channel. Each chef was required to take over the kitchen of an upscale restaurant for one night. Whoever did the best job with the menu, the food preparation and the leadership in the kitchen would be rewarded with a job as Executive Chef in that restaurant.  The first chef was cool and collected. He helped the sous chefs with the prep work well before dinner service started.  He taught them the techniques for the menu he created so that he could delegate some of the cooking. During the service when things got off track, the chef took responsibility and made a few minor changes, which resulted in a nearly flawless dinner service.

His competitor on the other hand did not take the time to train the sous chefs on how to cook his menu. During dinner service he became so frustrated with the rest of the kitchen staff that he began snapping and yelling at them.  Finally, he took it upon himself to try and prepare every meal on his own without the help of the kitchen staff.  Of course this resulted in many errors and long wait times for people to get their food.  He did not win the competition.

The point is that no one can do it alone.  In order for the team to succeed, everyone must play a part.  Effective delegation is about more than just having a team member take over a task.  It's also about properly training the team member to do the task, allowing for questions, and coaching through mistakes.  In the case of the first chef, he did delegate much of the cooking and prep work to the kitchen staff, but not without first explaining what needed to be done and then coaching them through their first few plates and encouraging them to ask for questions and help.

Work In Intervals
We tend to be more effective when we work in "chunks" in other words after working for 45 minutes or so, give yourself a break.  Walk around, stretch, have a snack and just refresh.  Then you can chunk for the next 45 minutes (some people use 90 minutes instead of 45, use whatever works best for you.)

This is especially helpful if you are in the process of tackling long term projects.  Sometimes those can feel overwhelming if taken in one shot.  Break your part of the project into bite 45 minute chucks and see how much more you can get accomplished without feeling tired, stressed or overwhelmed.

As always, your experiences and thoughts are appreciated.  How do you manage your time most effectively?  I look forward to hearing from you.  Watch for our next blog post on self management.

Are You Managing Yourself?: Where Does the Time Go?

It's the end of the workday and you're exhausted.  It was another busy day as evidenced by your disheveled desk and overflowing inbox, but you can't help feeling like you didn't really accomplish that much.  As you reflect on the events of the day, you realize that you had three meetings, two of which were a total waste of your time and you spent a good part of the afternoon putting out fires.  As a result, you barely had any time to work to work on the project that is due to your boss tomorrow.  Looks like your in for another late night at the office.

There is a reason that time management continues to be a topic of interest in the business world.  It is one of our most precious resources so we are constantly trying to get more of it and to figure out how to best leverage the bits of it that we get. Yet, the race against the clock continues leaving productivity and efficiency in it's wake.

So, what do you do? How does make the most of his or her time?  Here are some tips:

Eat That Frog
In Brian Tracy's well known book of procrastination antidotes "Eat That Frog" he discusses the power behind consuming your frog early and often.  Did you ever have something on your to do list that you really didn't want to do? That's your "frog."  Making sales cold calls, writing an article for a company newsletter or working on your LinkedIn profile are all examples of things that many of us simply don't enjoy doing and so we create reasons why we cannot tackle those tasks.  We think to ourselves, I will make the calls when I catch up on my emails. Of course it rarely works out that way.  We become busy with some other task while those calls move further and further down the priority list.  The further down the list, the greater the feeling of dread we have in taking care of it.  According to Tracy, the best thing to do is take the task you least enjoy and start the day by working on or completing that task. Not only do you accomplish something, but the feeling that goes along with taking care of something that is not that interesting to you, energizes you and sets up the rest of the day for success.

Make Lists
The to do list has been around for...well, forever. It's one of the simplest and most effective ways to keep yourself on track with the myriad of things that you must do every day.  That is of course if you use the list effectively.  If there are 9 things on the to do list it's important to prioritize them and tackle them accordingly (don't forget to Eat That Frog!) Many of us, including yours truly, have fallen into the false satisfaction of crossing things off the list.  In other words, if there are 9 things on the list and I accomplish 7 of them in a day but I don't take care of the 2 most time sensitive and important items then I haven't really done myself any favors or saved any time.  I like to create a master list that I continuously add to and then transfer select items on the list to my daily to do list. This keeps me from feeling overwhelmed but it also keeps me on track.  Find a system that works for you and stick to it.  There are great apps and tools to help with this too! Check out Evernote and Errands for great list making tools.

The Secret
The to do list is never complete.  There will never be enough hours in the day to complete every single item on your list (which is why it's important to prioritize.) This is the nature of to do lists-they are on going.  Keep this in mind and stay focused. It will help you feel less frazzled when something unexpected comes up that demands your attention.

More time management tips to come! As always, please share your insights and suggestions!