Time Management 2

In the previous article, some key concepts around time are shared. A quick recap

1. Time is not the clock you follow but a space in which actions take place.

2. You will never get all your things done.

3. It is not about time and it is about you.

The concept of time management started in the last century along with time and motion studies pioneered by Frederick Winslow Taylor. Though we have come to realise that during the knowledge era the systems and practices developed during the industrial era are not relevant we are still struggling to find new ways of becoming productive and engaged with our work. Post-COVID with the increase in hybrid/remote working and also the need to collaborate across time zones is creating stress not only on the work-life balance but also on the individual well being.

The focus of this article is to help you with some techniques to help to manage your day to day workload.

An approach to managing your work.

These days the work hours are getting blurred as many people are embracing hybrid/remote working. At the same time, they are also utilizing the flexibility to finish a quick errand at home. The first step to managing all the work is to capture it in an external system. Keeping everything in your head is not a good idea.

Let's call all your work "stuff" that needs to be get done. It can be a presentation to your customer,  getting your groceries, taking your dog for a walk or facilitating a meeting for a large distributed team.

Step 1: First, Identify a system to capture all your "stuff". It can be an electronic or a simple pen and a paper system but it is important to have one place to capture all your stuff.

Step 2: Ensure that you have captured all the stuff in your system, even those you are thinking of dropping from your list of things to do.

Step 3: Put your stuff into three categories

a. Task -> Stuff that can be completed in one go.  Like responding to an email, or keeping the bin out for collection. Typically can be finished in less than 2-5 minutes.

b. Event --> stuff that takes some time to get done. It can take from 10-15 minutes to a few hours or maybe a few days as well.  Example -> conducting a training, cleaning your garage, going on a holiday.

All events will have a duration of time in which it gets done. These events are of two types Fixed and flexible. Fixed have to be done on a certain date and time (conducting a training) whereas flexible can be done any day/time (cleaning your garage).

There can be certain Events that need multiple days can be put into a project like learning a new skill. In that case, again divide the project activities into tasks and events.

Step 4: First take the Fixed events (events that need to be done on a particular day/time) and block time in your diary.

Step 5: Put the rest of the events in the diary but ensure that they are valuable and important to you.

Step 6: Now - Don't try to put all your tasks into your diary. No.

In this step, you will review your diary and try to find as much free time as possible. Try to renegotiate some commitments, try to cancel a few meetings and try to make them flexible catchups.

Step 7: Keep all your tasks in a to-do list or a queue.

Step 8: Keep scanning your task list and do whichever you feel like completing, take up and finish it.(enjoy the freedom and empowerment)

Step 9: Review your day before going to bed, celebrate your accomplishments and continue and refine your system as you progress.

Step 10: Once in a while do a gratitude exercise (if not part of your routine already). Reflect and refine your approach.

The trick here is to have as much free time in your diary as possible and respecting your needs and energy level.

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Share if you have any other ideas / feedbacks on this approach. If you want to discuss or like some support then please get in touch.