One of the most talked about subjects in organizational behavior happens to be time management. With individuals working of the 14 hours per day not including commutation and then personal issues it appears that the one thing that bogs everyone down is managing time better.
I will never forget the time that I delivered a time management presentation to a very large group of individuals. Each was suffering from the same thing-over work and underpayment. So within the first hour I began discussing best practices in time optimization. We took a break and one of my facilitators met a participant in the Main lobby putting on her coat. My facilitators thought the participant was simply leaving to take a smoke break. She replied, “Everything that Dr. Drew has been discussing is so important that I realized I don’t have the time to sit here and listen to the remainder of it. I need to leave now to get my priorities completed!”
The fact is that in order to maximize everyone’s day because they are so busy it is vitally important to think in terms of two modes; 1) prioritization and 2) and conclusion.
Before I get into some technical details here it’s important to understand that time management usually requires these two steps:
- Employees need to make a list of all tasks that they need to accomplish during the day
- The tasks must be prioritized in terms of those that are most important and must be done and those less important.
In addition to it is important to understand that employees will also have telephone calls and meetings to attend, therefore, they must develop coping strategies. The more proactive individuals are in planning their day the more effective they will be.
There are three tools that interrupt the day for any work team these include:
1. People
2. Problems
3. Processes
Each of these factors contributes to a waste of time, energy and euphoria and manages to throw your day into pandemonium. For teams to reach instant organizational momentum they must embark on three ideologies:
• You must be selfish
• There are only 24 hours to a day
• Embrace and make changes
When we look at organizational skills we need to first understand what gets in the way of efficiency and organization and the most common cause of disorder. Procrastination.
There are a number of major reasons for procrastination – such as FEAR. The issue takes too long to complete, is too boring or simply ridiculous and takes time from something else. Yet, research shows that in 98% of instances when procrastination exists, the excuses for procrastinating actually take more time then the issue itself.
In order to overcome procrastination one must meet it head on. Here are some tactics.
- Get the things you hate to do completed first. Stop putting things off until tomorrow or the next day since it will not get accomplished anyway. Get the calls, the reports, the meeting with the nasty client all out of the way first and the remainder of the day is easier.
- Stop seeking alternatives through email and voice mail. Many individuals hide behind electronics. Refrain from wearisome habits and confront the issue. The manner in which to stop poor behavior is confronting it.
- Prioritize. Most people simply lack good planning and goal setting. The only way to stop sputtering is simply to prioritize. Plan the day and stick with it, do not enable interruptions.
Finally I often get asked what can a manager do to ensure that all meet timeframes and goals. Well that is simple. Managers must think in terms of a project manager writing a non-fiction book. Tasks should be broken down into managed tasks and people. Dates must be assigned as well as individuals responsible for them. However to help teams increase effectiveness with team performance the only thread binding individuals to tasks is consistent and relentless communication. That means managers must set the bar by holding individuals accountable and recording on time or lagging performance or helping teams prioritize so that jobs are completed. In the end the other thing that matters in time management is results, it is not what is done but by when.
