Time management starts with commitment to change. Time management is easy as long as you commit to action. The key to successful time management is planning and then protecting the planned time. In order to achieve this, your environment must be re-conditioned. This also entails re-conditioning your expectations of others.
10-Tips for Effective Time-Management
1. Re-condition the expectations of others as to your availability and their claim on your time - use an activity planner to help you justify why you and not others should be prioritizing your activities and time.
2. Manage your environment as a whole - especially at the proposed or actual introduction of new systems, tools, technology, people, or processes, which might threaten to generate new demands on your time.
3. If you accept changes without question - particularly new technology that helps others but not you - then you will open the way for new increasing demands on your time, or new interruptions, or new tasks and obligations.
4. Consider new technology and other changes from the point of view of your time and efficiency. Ask yourself – “Is this going to save my time or add to my burden?”
5. Manage your environment - which includes managing, redefining, or reconditioning the expectations of others.
6. Plan time slots for unplanned activities - you may not know exactly what you'll need to do, but if you plan the time to do it, then other important things will not get pushed out of the way when the demand arises.
7. Plan time slots for unplanned activities - you may not know exactly what you'll need to do, but if you plan the time to do it, then other important things will not get pushed out of the way when the demand arises.
8. When you're faced with a pile of things to do, go through them quickly and make a list of what needs doing and when.
9. Handle each piece of paper only once. Do not under any circumstances pick up a job, do a bit of it, and then put it back on the pile.
10. Do not start lots of jobs at the same time - even if you can handle different tasks at the same time it's not the most efficient way of dealing with them, so don't kid yourself that this sort of multi-tasking is good - it's not.
These are just a few tips that could assist you in effective time management. Time management allows and enables you to improve and be more productive not only in your personal life, but your professional life as well.
