It’s a common problem for just about anyone — there are just not enough hours in
the day. Everyone is looking for ways to work smarter and take control of his or her
workload.s Many people spend their days in
a frenzy of activity but achieve very little
because they are not focusing efforts on the
things that matter most. This is why time
management skills can help you optimize
your efforts and function better, even under
pressure.
But, mastering the concept of time management requires an important shift in focus
— concentrating on results, not on being
busy — and this is not always easy.
“According to the ‘80-20 rule,’ 80 percent of
unfocused effort generates only 20 percent of
results,” says Amy Broadbent, a senior consultant and manager of client services for
JRG Advisors, the management company for
ChamberChoice. “This means that the remaining 80 percent of results are achieved
with only 20 percent of the effort.”
Thus, says Broadbent, applying time management skills can optimize your efforts to
ensure you focus as much of your time and
energy as possible on those tasks with the
highest payoff, which will enable you to
achieve the greatest benefit possible in the
amount of time that is available.
However, procrastination is a major obstacle to proper time management. Learning to
kick this destructive habit can help you become more productive. Procrastinators put
off the very things that should be priorities,
usually in favor of doing something that is
more enjoyable or easier to do. Since the
truly important tasks rarely ever go away, it is
important to find ways to motivate yourself.
Smart Business spoke to Broadbent about
time management and how you can kick procrastination and start working more effectively and efficiently.
How can one overcome a procrastination
problem?
The following approaches can be helpful if
you find yourself procrastinating:
- Make up your own rewards. For example, promise yourself a ‘treat’ upon completion of a certain task.
- Ask someone else to check in on you.
Peer pressure does work! - Identify the consequences of not completing the task, which will more than likely
be unpleasant. - If you are the type of person who needs
to feel as though you are achieving, break a
project into a series of smaller tasks. This
way you will feel as though you are achieving and the whole project will not be so
overwhelming.
You need to recognize that you are procrastinating before you can conquer this negative
habit. Then identify the reasons why you are
procrastinating and take appropriate steps to
overcome them. This is an important step in
productive time management.
How should I organize my time?
A ‘to-do’ list is instrumental for those who
practice effective time management skills. If
you feel overwhelmed by the amount of
work you have to do (both at work and in
your personal life), if you feel you are constantly faced with looming deadlines, if you
sometimes simply forget things that seem too
important to forget, then chances are you are
not keeping a proper to-do list. It sounds simple, but to-do lists are very powerful — they
are time management tools that provide a
means of keeping yourself and your life
organized, which, ultimately, can reduce
stress. We can all use less stress in our lives.
The use of to-do lists will ensure that you
remember to carry out necessary tasks, tackle the most important jobs first and do not
waste time on less important things, and,
most importantly, ensure you do not get
stressed by a large volume of unimportant
tasks. Chances are, if you create a to-do list
today or this evening, it will more than likely
contain more things than you can actually
accomplish. This is fine. This is why the to-do
list is valuable. Review your list, choose the
most important things on the list and do
these first. The to-do list is a helpful tool
when it comes to appropriately scheduling
your time.
So, how can I effectively schedule my time?
Scheduling forces us to look at the time we
have available and to properly plan how we
will use this time to achieve our goals and
objectives. A well-planned schedule allows
you to manage commitments while still finding time to do the things that are important to
you — both in your work and personal life.
Effective scheduling can reduce stress and
maximize your efficiency and effectiveness,
which makes it one of the most important
time management skills you can use.
Scheduling is important and, unfortunately,
there is often a misnomer that rescheduling
something for a later time or a later date is
procrastinating. This is not necessarily true.
Rescheduling is a way of taking control. It is
only procrastination if you do not reschedule
at all or if you reschedule for the wrong reasons, which will become apparent when you
find yourself rescheduling the same thing
repeatedly. In that case, stop and think about
whether or not you truly want or need to do
the thing you keep rescheduling. Your time is
important. Properly managing your time is
even more important. Recognizing when you
are procrastinating and making the most of
your time with the help of to-do lists and
scheduling can help you be more efficient
and effective in all aspects of your life.
AMY BROADBENT is a senior consultant and manager of client services for JRG Advisors, the management company for
ChamberChoice. Reach her at (412) 456-7250 or [email protected].
