No matter where we work or what work we do, time is of the essence, and how we manage our time plays an important part in our success.

There are many famous phases related to time, for example, “Time is money” (Benjamin Franklin), “Time and tide wait for no man” (St. Marher), “Time is what we want most, but... what we use worst” (William Penn)’  “Never put off until tomorrow what you can do today” (Thomas Jefferson).  We’ve all used these phrases before, but have we taken the time to realise just how true they are and how much time we waste?

I learnt very early on in life that one needs to be well organised, have a system in place, and be methodical in following that system in order to make the best use of the time at hand and be efficient and effective. Without a workflow system keeping you focused, you become mesmerised by your email inbox, overwhelmed by the volume of work and buried under the paperwork. We have all had days when there is just so much to do we don’t know where to start and before we know it the day is over and we have nothing to show for it.

Are overflowing in-baskets and emails, missed deadlines, missed opportunities and wasted time adding unnecessary stress and frustration to your day, leaving you totally exhausted and with no sense of achievement? Are you making the best use of your time? By making a few small changes you can help yourself manage your time better. Here are some suggestions based on my own experiences:

• Assess how you spend your time for a few days. What are you doing and how long does it take you to do it?

• Remove or minimise thieves of time. Scan through emails, telephone messages, newspapers, newsletters, magazines, etc., flagging them as business or personal. Deal only with business and park the personal in a file or folder to read and answer at your leisure. 

• Organize your workspace and your work. A well-organized uncluttered work area helps you feel in control of the workload.

• Make best use of technology. Use task lists, spreadsheets, calendar reminders, flags and categorizing tools to your best advantage. Trying to remember everything just adds the stress of worrying that you’ll forget something. Log tasks as they come in, record deadlines, put reminders in place. As you finish a task, mark it complete. No technology at hand? Good old fashioned pen and paper works just as well.

• Prioritise. All tasks are important, but let’s distinguish between what is “critical, urgent and important”, “critical and important but not urgent”, “urgent and important but not critical” and “important but not critical and not urgent” if we hope to achieve them all. As you log your tasks, prioritise them accordingly, paying attention to specific deadlines.

• Honour your diary. Block out some time daily for emails, telephone calls, research, reading and administrative work. Unless there is a crisis, honour these meetings with your work as if they were meetings with your clients.

• Delegate. If you have staff reporting to you, know your staff’s strengths and delegate tasks accordingly.

Lastly, but most importantly, I leave you with this reminder: Please make time for your loved ones every day. Time spent with them is so precious and all too soon, gone.

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Comments (1)

• |2010-11-03 13:25:17 Anne Hall  - Managing Time & working effectively
  Even as a very organised person and a good time manager, I found this article well written & very useful.I'm sure many readers will benefit from the good suggestions.
  Reply

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