In my previous blog on time management I mentioned that the very first step to “effective” time management is not planning your time. It is “identifying” where you are currently spending your time. I recommended setting up a simple recording sheet to track you day as it occurs. Do it in no more than ten minute increments. Don’t wait until the end of the day to do this. But do it at least every hour. This process of recording your day will not take more than for or five minutes for the entire day. It is time well spent. Do it for at least a month.
The next item is important and will take some time to do. Make a list of everything that you do in your job. Most often you will not be able to do this accurately in one sitting. Hint, it will be considerably more than shows on your job description. But keep at it. Over a period of two or three weeks, you will have a substantially complete list. But make sure to include everything. Do you conduct a Monday morning meeting? Do you handle Performance Reviews (be looking for a blog on how to conduct performance reviews) for your department? Do you hire, fire, discipline? Budget projections, projects, lead a team, etc., etc.? List all of your activities. Every single one of them. You may have a list of upwards of one hundred items. This is a very important list. If you haven’t already read the blog Some Thoughts on Pareto, do so now. Recall the 80/20 rule. For example if you have one hundred things that you do, you will find that approximately twenty items on your list are more important than the remaining eighty. It is crucial that you identify what those items are. “They are all important”, you might say. Fine. Think it through critically. Prioritize the top twenty things that you do.
Around the turn of the twentieth century, as the story goes, a consultant by the name of Ivy Lee was called to work with Charles Schwaab, then President of the largest steel company in the U.S. He was to track everything Schwaab did for an entire day. At the end of the day he would give recommendations on how he could more “effectively” manage his time. At the end of the day, the advice was simple and to the point. I have given the same recommendations in BasicsRedefined Time, Priority and Resource Management programs. Lee said, toward the end of the day, before you leave your office, write down the six most important things you have to do when you come in to work the next day (this takes discipline). Then take a few more minutes and prioritize the list. Then, upon coming into the office the next morning, after very briefly getting settled into your day, start working on item number one. Keep working at it until it is complete or you have gone as far as you can go with it at the time. Then on to item number two. And do this until you work your way through the list. Does it sound impractical? What about all the interruptions, emergencies, etc.?
A most important Question. What is more important than doing the most important thing with your time at this moment? If you are continually distracted or interrupted, why? Emergencies coming up? Why? Here is the ultimate test of your list. Why would you be doing things that are not more important than those six items. If they are more important, why weren’t they identified on your list. In Part 3 we will discuss multi-tasking, the nature of relationships in the context of time management and the critical difference between “efficiency” and “effectiveness”, as well as important strategies for effective delegation. To summarize:
- Track your day. Identify accurately where your time is being consumed.
- Identify every single thing you do in your job. Make a complete list.
- 80/20 your list. List and prioritize your top twenty.
- At the end of every day, before you go home, write down and prioritize the six most important things to do the next day.
- Always be asking “Am I doing the most important thing with my time at this moment.” If not, why not? Always be honest with yourself.
