–A calm workspace is conducive to productive work. Identifying time savers and time wasters helps to become more efficient and more satisfied in our daily work.Įxamples of time savers as pinpointed by research: “There is nothing so useless as doing efficiently that which should not be done at all.” Peter F. Recording every day for a week, for example, what activities you have engaged in and for how long, may reveal that you have spent much more time on unimportant tasks, such as e-mails, than important ones, such as completing an important project. Periodic evaluations of where you spend your time turn out to be very useful. This raises the question whether meaningful planning is still possible, given the fact that significant accomplishments typically require longer periods, even years. The time frame to fix deadlines has shrunk considerably: What used to be medium term, say 3 months, is now often considered long term and short term has shrunk to a week or even days or half days. Having specific daily objectives and being ever conscious of their respective priorities is a hallmark of successful people (Covey, 2013). In order to manage our time effectively, it is indispensable to precisely define our objectives, for example using the five SMART characteristics: Specific, Measurable, Ambitious, Realistic and Time-bound. We frequently let ourselves be pushed by someone else into undertaking a task immediately that we do not necessarily deem important.
Unless we are mindful of our priorities, we’re always tempted to first tackling urgent rather than important work, often at the detriment of obtaining significant results.Ĭontrary to what counts for us, the urgency is most often determined by others. We know from our daily experience, and studies confirm it, urgency constantly overrides importance both in the choice of a task and the amount of time consumed in the activity. Absorbing this constant onslaught, sorting out what is relevant, is time consuming, distracting and taking our focus away from the objectives that really matter (2). We are inundated by a flow of information that never stops, day or night. It is partly a matter of perception, but there is also much reality to it. The feeling of time starvation has taken on gigantic proportions. Our productivity, our commitment to contribute to the success of our company and our wellbeing depend on it. It is vital to find some pleasure in our work. Treating everything as urgent, rushing from one activity to another all day long, not enjoying anything and without ever feeling satisfied is a straight path to tension and ultimately to burnout, the disease of our century (Huffington, 2015). Yet, despite these obvious and ever-present constraints, today’s demand at the workplace is to accomplish more, better, faster and cheaper, inevitably leading to more stress. If we are given less time, there is pressure on the quantity and quality of our production. If we want to increase the number of things we want to accomplish, quality may suffer or we’ll be short on time. The diabolical triangle with its 3 poles of objectives, quality and duration imprisons us permanently in inevitable constraints: If we want to improve quality, we need more time or we have to reduce the number of objectives. Time pressure has become the curse of our time: It is a major source of stress and the origin of a multitude of ills and dissatisfactions (1). Poor Time Management is a Major Source of Stress It is crucial to be mindful of where you spend your time and to evaluate the results of your time investment.Ģ. The number of hours in a day is the same for everyone, but some manage to use them much better than others. The amount of time you spend in any activity fashions the quality of your work, your relationships, your comfort… We suffer from a lack of time: Today more people complain about not having enough time than not having enough money. Time has become our most precious commodity. It is essential that you become aware at every instance: How you spend your time is how you spend your life.
It’s not about working more, but smarter, becoming more results-oriented and more satisfied. It is a fundamental skill we must learn to master in our everyday life at work and at home. In fact, time management amounts to life management. Time Is Life: 5 Key Factors of Time ManagementĮffective time management is intimately linked to success, productivity, satisfaction and wellbeing.
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