As most people in business will tell you; time is money – so in order to make more money you need to use time effectively. Time management is just as important as money management but is often overlooked and people who have poor time keeping skills tend to think that it doesn’t matter and that being a little late won’t change anything – well they’re wrong!
- Microsoft Outlook – There are many simple steps that you can take to help you manage your time more efficiently. The first one would be to use a time management system, similar to the one used in Microsoft Outlook. Here you can access your emails, check the calendar, schedule alarms as well as make a schedule. Using a schedule helps you to know exactly where you should be at any given time. It maps your task for the whole day on a time basis – for example, you could allow ten minutes to check your email and then schedule to meet a client, the alarm will go off after ten minutes and tell you that you should be meeting someone. This is a great program as you can do many things with it and it will really save you a lot of time.
- Plan ahead – Ideally you should plan in advance, maybe just a day or two, but if you can plan ahead for a week then why not? Always knowing what to expect in the future is a great advantage and allows you to keep track of your time a lot easier. If something in your schedule changes, don’t forget to change it in your schedule or journal and then use any spare space which may have been created to catching up on any work that you have fell behind on.
- Keep a diary – You could also carry a diary or journal which states where you should be throughout the day and also take into account how long it would take you to get to each location if you had to travel – this means that you shouldn’t be late as your journey would already be planned out. Keeping a diary also allows you to look back and see if you could have managed your time more effectively, or if you were late on any given day. If you were late you can take a note and plan that journey or task more efficiently so that you are not late next time.
- Wear a watch – Always wear a watch or carry something which always allows you to see the time. Losing track of time is one of the main reasons that people are late or forget to do other tasks. If you set aside time for each task and stick to the schedule then you should be able to handle your work load a lot better and with more ease. Sometimes you might not have completed a task and think – ‘ah I’ll do a few more bits of paper work’ – but deadlines are made for a reason, so stick to your schedule. By taking longer on that task you will be late completing the rest of your task, and sometimes this may be negligible but if you have to meet a client and you show up late it really gives off an unprofessional image about you and your company.
- Allocate time – When you arrive at work, set aside ten minutes before your shift to organise what order your work should be completed – list all the tasks that need to be completed the same day and how long you will spend on each one, then put all other tasks that aren’t that important into order and set aside time for those. Prioritising is an important skill and is vital in being able to manage time efficiently. By arranging all the tasks that have to be completed the same day and leaving the tasks that don’t have to be completed urgently until later you will undoubtedly save time and meet all your deadlines.
- Ignore disruptions – Interruption in the work place happens all the time and can happen for any given reason. Sometimes it is just hard to concentrate in a busy environment – and I would advise taking lunch out of the office every time you have the chance. When the phone rings, or an email is received, many individuals rush to deal with that rather than finishing their sentence or part of their task – you should continue what you are doing until you are in a position to stop and deal with the ‘interruption’. If you are really busy then why not ask a colleague for help or to take the phone call? People are often afraid to ask for help, but by asking for help you lower your work load and stress levels, as well as saving your company time and money. Never be afraid to ask for help!
- Cut back on the office gossip – Another bad habit that people adapt (mainly people who work in an office environment) is taking on too much work. Maybe your colleague needs some help, but what you must remember is that you will fall behind with your work in the process, so if you do help out, make sure that the person you help is going to help you catch up with your work also. Many people will be glad that you help them out, but may put themselves first and refuse to help you out in return – so make sure you know what to expect and weigh up if you really have the time to help them.
Time management is a skill that is respected by all employers, and is a valued trait – employers know that effective time management means more money and more work flow. By reading this article you have taken the first step in trying to improve your time management, and that is a big step, now you have to understand where you can save time in your own routine. Analyse is and ask yourself, do I really need twenty minutes to check my email or can I do it more efficiently? Do I waste time? What can I do differently? By answering these questions you will have a clearer view on what you can do to save time and then you have to find ways which work for you. Not everyone can use a diary efficiently as they may forget to write things down, where as others may not have access to a computer schedule program. Find what works best for you and constantly look to see if you could complete tasks in a more effective manner.
0 comments:
Post a Comment