Time Management At Work
~~A lecturer at a university is giving a pre-exam lecture on time management. On his desk is a bag of sand, a bag of pebbles, some big rocks and bucket. He asks for a volunteer to put all three grades of stone into the bucket, and a keen student duly steps up to carry out the task, starting with the sand, then the pebbles, then the rocks, which do not all fit in the bucket.
“This is an analogy of poor time management,” trills the lecturer, “If you’d have put the rocks in first, then the pebbles, then the sand, all three would have fit. This is much like time management, in that by completing your biggest tasks first, you leave room to complete your medium tasks, then your smaller ones. By completing your smallest tasks first you spend so much time on them you leave yourself unable to complete either medium of large tasks satisfactorily. Let me show you..”
And the lecturer re-fills the bucket, big rocks first, then pebbles, then sand, shaking the bucket between each so that everything fits.~~
Mark Twain once said that, if the first thing you do each morning is to eat a live frog(do the most difficult things first), you can go through the day with the satisfaction of knowing that it is probably the worst thing that is going to happen to you all day long!
So scroll the page and get some ideas about how you can make peace with time. (At least try to)
Set your priorities:
Every morning you come to the office with many agendas in your head. While you may complete some successfully; shifting a few to the other day. So it’s very important that you differentiate between the priorities and important things- first come first. Know the difference between a meeting and an urgent meeting. Be thoughtful and try to take a different approach in solving things.
Routine:
Set your routine job in the way that doesn’t eat up your productive time. Checking email, delegating work to others, writing reports are something you have to do daily, so set your time table accordingly( you can save a lot of time on this)
Qualitative:
If you are a company that works closely with the clients then you are always on your toes. The client is the king and kings give orders that are always urgent! But always buy a considerable time to finish your project. Doing 7 things perfectly is always better than doing 10 things clumsily. Well, you would never like to do a same thing twice!
Work Smarter:
This is the mantra to be followed every time. Get the to-do list- finish one thing- take some time (buffer)-plan the other and switch to it. Hustling from task to task will leave you exhausted. Taking small breaks are always helpful. Working in team is always better than to do it all alone(If the scope of work allows)
Re Organize:
Sometimes it’s really a good thing to do. When you have the plethora of things to do and running short of time, just reorganize a few things that won’t feel bad if you pay attention afterward. Relax and start again.
Clutter:
This is the most irritating thing I come across in office. Few people have their workstation always cluttered as if they hold the most important job in the organization. If you feel this is the sign of a busy man then you are wrong. This is only giving an impression that you are not organized. An Organized table means a clearer mind. I always try to be in this focus.
Distraction:
If you are the one who gets easily distracted by the others around then god save you. I agree that distraction sometimes (while doing creative things) can add up to good result as it gives you better ideas but not all the time, especially when you are engrossed in something that needs special attention (creating policies or technical things)
Team:
When you are bound to work in a team, there ought to be clashes of interest and timings. If you are experienced in your work you would take less time than the newbie. Instead of showing your honed skills and know it all attitude, help the person to get through. Be a mentor and not a boss.
Negativity:
Negativity in the organization is fatal for the good business. It’s not the money that elevates a business but the employees of the organization. If they aren’t happy then expect the organization to stay wherever it is. Having an atmosphere that encourage freedom of work, appreciates creativity and where there is peer-to-peer interaction will make working fun.
Lastly, always remember and keep yourself reminding that your work is only a part of your life where you go back after a day’s work to your family and friends. Take the time to enjoy life, after all that’s what you earn for. A good attendance & attention is necessary so that one day you family doesn’t say “you are fired”.
