Time Management

Yesterday is a cancelled cheque

Tomorrow is a promissory note

Today is ready cash. Use it

Remember time is more valuable than money!

“Go sir gallop, you can ask me for anything you like except time”

Napoleon

Good Time Management• Prioritise actions - the time management matrix

• Daily, medium and long term planning

• Learn to say No

• Common “time bandits”– Paperwork– Telephones– Meetings– Poor delegation– Information overload– Interruptions

Prioritising your timeFirst sort out major “time allocation” categories

– Family– Work– Leisure– Education– Wealth– Health– Community– Fame– etc, etc….

And the relevant importance of each of them

Time Management MatrixUrgent Not Urgent

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Crisis

Pressing Problems

Deadline driven projects

Prevention

Relationship building

Recognising new opportunities

Planning, recreation

Interruptions, some calls

Some mail, some reports

Some meetings

Popular activities

Trivia

Some mail

Some phone calls

Time wasters

1 2

3 4

Time Management Matrix

• Something that falls into Quadrant 1 is both Urgent and Important. It demands immediate attention.

• If you’re a School Head and a teacher fails to show up on , you are faced with an urgent and important matter.

• If you’re a parent and your teenager announces she’s running away from home, you know full well what “urgent” and “important” feel like when they happen at once.

Time Management Matrix

• Quadrant 2 could be called the “power” quadrant.

• This is where the most productive activities occur. Quadrant 2 activities are Not Urgent, but they are Important.

• They include such things as planning and prevention,

Time Management Matrix

• Quadrant 3 consists of those time-consuming activities that are Urgent but Not Important.

• This would include interruptions such as a ringing phone and even some meetings that are regularly on your schedule but have begun to lose their value.

Time Management Matrix

• Quadrant 4 includes those activities that are Not Urgent and Not Important.

• Much of what falls in this quadrant shouldn’t even be done at all.

Time Management Matrix

• Some people find themselves forced to expend an inordinate amount of their time on Quadrant 1 activities—crises and pressing problems.

• They are fire-fighters, constantly dousing the flames of problems that are mostly preventable.

• Investing more in Quadrant 2 activities—planning, prevention, tends to shrink Quadrant 1, preventing the fires of crisis.

Time Management Matrix• Quadrant 1 is the “symptom” quadrant. • It is here that we see the symptoms of our poor time

management. • Symptoms include missed deadlines, poor meetings,

low motivation, weak performance. • Quadrants 3 and 4 are the “cause” quadrants. Time

spent in Quadrants 3 or 4 inevitably results in less that desirable performance.

• Every minute invested in Quadrant 3 or Quadrant 4 is a minute that’s no longer available for investing in Quadrant 2.

• When we neglect Quadrant 2, Quadrant 1 grows.

Time Management Matrix

• The key to effective management of our time, then, is to say “no” to Quadrant 3 activities and to say “Yes” to Quadrant 2 activities.

• We solve our time management problems by giving priority to Quadrant 2 activities – those that may not be Urgent but which are clearly Important.

Time Management MatrixUrgent Not Urgent

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Crisis

Pressing Problems

Deadline driven projects

Prevention

Relationship building

Recognising new opportunities

Planning, recreation

Interruptions, some calls

Some mail, some reports

Some meetings

Popular activities

Trivia

Some mail

Some phone calls

Time wasters

Symptom Cure

Cause

NO

YES

Prioritising your time• Does the time allocated to a given task or activity

reflect your priorities? Is the bulk of your time being spent on the key functions, core responsibilities, major aims and objectives of your life?

• What are the items which take up a significant portion of your time and contribute nothing? What would happen if they weren't done at all?

• How much of your time is committed by others? Is this a good use of your time?

Prioritising your time• Are you spending time on activities that could be done

more efficiently by others?• Do not assume that you know how you ARE REALLY

spending your time. For one or two weeks keep a “time log” which records in detail how you spent your time

• Analyse, using your “time log”, how much of your time is actually spent against how it ought to be spent; in the light of your responsibilities and current aims and objectives.

Time Log

Time Log

• Keeping an Activity Log for several days helps you to understand how you spend your time, and when you perform at your best.

• Without modifying your behaviour any further than you have to, note down the things you do as you do them .

• Every time you change activities, whether opening mail, working, making coffee, gossiping with colleagues or whatever, note down the time of the change.

Prioritising your time• Know when to “Stop flogging a dead horse”• Make sure your objectives are attainable, measurable, and

positive• Don't rely on technology to improve your time management,

only you can really prioritise your usage of time • Know the difference between effectiveness and efficiency.

Results come from being effective– Efficiency is doing things right– Effectiveness is doing the right thing

Prioritising your timeUse the Pareto Principle, known as the 80/20 rule, (invented by

Vilfredo Pareto (1848 - 1923))

• 80% of business comes from 20% of clients

• 80% of results come from 20% of time

• only 80% of the time allocated to a task will actually be available

• 80% of wealth is owned by 20% of the population

• Only 20% of the day is spent on important tasks

• 80% of the day just gets used up

Daily, medium and long term planning

Remember

To fail to plan is to plan to fail!!!

Good planning saves time by reducing the time for implementation

Daily planning• Use a yearly diary, possibly a page a day

• Use a “quick glance” yearly planner

• Write a daily “activity list”– Don't try to do too much or you might get “task

overload” syndrome

• Give the activity list a priority rating– A Must be done today– B Should be done today– C Might be done to day

Daily planning• If you are always moving tasks from one day to

the next this may indicate a bad case of

“Procrastination”

(putting things off, especially decisions, till tomorrow)

• Don’t spend more time playing with the latest “Time management” toys, than actually using your intelligence to plan your time

Daily planning• Put target times against activities and tasks

• Can some activities/tasks be done in parallel?

• Don’t promise what you cannot reasonably deliver!

• Be aware of the effect of others on your daily plans

Medium term planning

• Usually less than 6 months

• Basic “medium term planning” skills– Imagination– Sense of reality– Power of analysis– Helicopter vision

• Sort out the planning/implementation ratio

Categorise objectives• Vague• Clear• Measurable• Agreed• Realistic• Written• Time bound• Consistent• Worthwhile

Planning hints and tips• Regularly review your plans, STAY FLEXIBLE, “don’t

carve your plans in stone”• Use some form of pictorial “time line”• Be very wary of being delegated vague goals and objectives

Clear objectives should be:– Specific– Measurable– Subject to deadlines

Long term planning

If you do not know where you are going you can take any road

Even the longest journey starts with a single step

Long term planning• The comparison of life to a journey is a powerful

metaphor

• Some journeys have clear objectives and routes, others are a “leap into the unknown”

Don’t confuse the two!!!!

• Define both your long term strategy and policy– Strategy defines how you will make the journey– Policies are guidelines to decision making on that

journey

Long term planning• Long term planning must have a sense of

purpose and direction

• Know your own “Value set” when making “Long term plans”; your long term plans need regularly reviewing as “Value sets” often change

How to say NO Buy yourself thinking time Use positive body language Give an honest reason Remember your time is valuable Never be aggressive Good time management should help you

justify saying NO in some situations Keep your explanations short and to the

point

Reducing Paper work• Accept no office is going to be paperless• Keep legal and financial documents safe• File it, pass it on, or throw it away• Clear your desk• Keep only necessary papers to hand• Reduce the amount of paper reaching you• Have a simple filing system and use it• Use as few pieces of paper as possible• Use machines to eliminate paper

Subdue your phone• Work out who phones you, why and when• Take calls at specific times• Keep calls short and to the point• Don't make unnecessary calls• Take full and accurate notes• Make your desk “phone friendly”• Use technology to deal with phone calls• Prepare “call content” before picking up the phone• Always be polite and smile

Master your meetings• Eliminate, avoid or delegate meetings• Be clear about the meeting objectives• Write a good agenda• Take clear meeting minutes• If you’re chairing the meeting be in control• Don’t go to meetings if you have nothing to say• Prepare for the meeting beforehand• Don’t be late

How to delegate• Choose the right person• Delegate now• Allow enough time to complete• State objectives clearly• Provide all the information• Ensure all staff understand the task• Set deadlines• Monitor progress regularly and take responsibility• Be available for clarification and advice

Dealing with information overload• Take your name off mailing lists• Learn to “quick scan” information• Eliminate junk mail and phone calls• Don’t oversubscribe to news groups• Learn to listen effectively• Take notes while reading or listening• Tear articles from magazines• Don’t subscribe to too many “techie” magazines• Only look for information you really need

Dealing with interruptions• Set a time limit• Set the stage in advance of the chat• Keep “casual visitors” standing• Meet in the other person’s office• Avoid small talk• Get them to the point ASAP• Be ruthless with your tine, but gracious• Have a clock available which visitors can see• Use a “call back” system for phone calls