Top 10 Tips on Effective Time Management

With so much to do to keep the business going, it’s easy to fall back to our old habits of staying in the office longer in the evening to get everything done, and even come in at the weekends just to ‘catch up’.

However no matter how much time we spend working, there never seems to be an end to the list of things that need to be done.

Consciously we may be saying to ourselves, the business isn’t going so well so I’ve got to work longer hours. If I work longer hours it will come right again. Sound familiar?

But unconsciously we know that working longer hours won’t make a difference to the business in the long term. We know we should be doing things better, smarter, prioritising, planning, developing.

We know it’s the right thing to do, however it’s easier to do what we’re comfortable at – working harder and longer.

You may not be doing this yourself, but I’m sure you know some people that are. So let’s remind ourselves of some of the habits we need to instil in ourselves to really be productive and motivated to bring the business forward.

Your top 3.

Having a long to-do list is really only a ‘wish list’ of all the things we would like to get done. We can’tdo everything at the same time. So out of your ‘to do’ list, what are the top three things you need to get done today? Ask yourself this question every day. Tackle those items first before you get into any routine tasks. If at the end of the day you’ve completed your top three, how will that make you feel compared to looking at the long list of items you didn’t get done on your to-do list.

Say no.

Anyone can say YES. Saying YES is easy. People like us when we say YES. We avoid confrontation or argument. But our YESs also account for a lot of stress, overwhelm and disappointment. If we cannot say No, what value does our Yes really have?

Zone your diary.

Have you ever noticed you have meetings throughout the week with a lot of time wasted in between? By zoning your diary you categorise your activities into particular days of the week. So for example all your meetings will take place on say Tuesday and Wednesday, on Monday you do administration and so on. Work out what works for you. But by zoning your diary you save a huge amount of time and your planning becomes a lot easier.

Three activities.

A lot of people find themselves going into feast and famine income cycles. When business starts to dry up, they carry out a lot of marketing activities and then business starts to come in. When business starts to come in, we get busy and forget about the marketing hence what leads to a feast and famine income cycle. There are 3 activities that we must be doing every week – Selling/Chargeable Work, Marketing and Administration. By working on these three activities every week we avoid the dreaded cycle while also making sure our administration work doesn’t build up.

Delegate.

Out of everything that you have on your to-do list, what are the items that can be delegated. Out of everything that you currently do, what could be delegated or outsourced.

Stop procrastinating.

Procrastination is usually a bad habit that needs to be broken.  Try to identify why you are procrastinating: Are you afraid of failing?  Are you a perfectionist and only willing to begin work if every little element is in place?  Are you easily distracted?  Once you identify why, now start to break down your tasks into smaller easier tasks.

Schedule breaks.

It is important to take a break when you need one.  During your break try to stretch or take a walk.  This will help clear your thoughts so you are ready to start your tasks with a fresh and clear mind.

Value your time.

At €1 per minute, a three-hour meeting of three managers costs €540. Justify the value of such time just as much as you would an external spend of €540.

Limit distractions.

When you need to work on a big project or tasks that are really important, turn off your phone, close your door, and get focused for the amount of time you set aside to work.

Evaluate.

How are you spending your time.  Keep a diary of how you are spending your time for a few days.  See what tasks you could spend less time on and what tasks need more attention.  You may not realise how much time you are spending doing tasks that aren’t that important.