time management. what’s my motivation? what clear goals do i have in mind to manage my time...

Time Management

What’s My Motivation?

• What clear goals do I have in mind to manage my time better?

What’s Holding Me Back?

• Level 1 – Technical Errors• Tasks have no “home.”

• Your space is disorganized.

• There is an absence of planning time.

What’s Holding Me Back?• Level 2 – External Realities

• Other people’s chaos.

What’s Holding Me Back?• Level 3 – Psychological Obstacles

• Unclear goals and priorities.• Conquistador of crisis.• Need for perfection.

Making Time Tangible

• Multitasking slows you down.• For most people, working in a scattered

way makes it difficult to get on track, stay on track, and finish all that’s started.

• Multitasking makes it very difficult, if not impossible, to estimate accurately how long it takes to get things done.

Time Saving Tips

• Email & Alternatives

• Understand NLP for Business Writing


• How long will it take?• The difference between good and bad

time managers is asking this pivotal question.

• Underestimating this will make us take on more than we can handle.


• Making more accurate estimates.• Consider transportation and “staging”

time before the actual task.• Are there preliminary tasks that must be

done before the “main” task?• Should you reserve some time for an

imperfect first result?• Are there follow-up tasks that need to be

done to “completely finish” the job?


• Making more accurate estimates.• Will you most likely need some “stewing

time” to think out issues or methods?• Will you most likely have an interruption

or two during the work?• Will you need to add break, lunch,

dinner, or other refreshment time?


• Notice how other people estimate time and learn to “convert” their time to yours.• If a co-worker always says they need 5

minutes for a quick meeting, and it always takes ½ hour, then budget, or make allowance for the ½ hour.

• If you can, give an estimate of the time you have for an impromptu meeting, to set an up-front boundary.


• Break larger tasks down into smaller tasks!

Quick-Start Program

W rite it down

A dd it up

D ecide

E xecute your plan

Quick-Start Program

• Write it down• Find a type of planner or system that

you like and use it.• Use a planner that will let you assign a

to-do to a date(s), not just a long list of things to do.

Quick-Start Program

• Add it up.• Look at each day and realistically

estimate how much time in the day these tasks will require.

Quick-Start Program

• Decide• You’ll most likely have more tasks than

you can do in some days.• Choose to:

• Delete• Delay• Diminish• Delegate

Quick-Start Program

• Procedure to delegate• Present the job

• Explain what needs to be done.

• Be available for input and advice.• Let them know where you are.

• Review and evaluate the result.• Demonstrate respect for the time and effort

they have put in by reviewing the work, providing feedback, and expressing your gratitude.

Quick-Start Program

• Execute your plan.• Plan your work, then work your plan.• Make a commitment to do your adjusted

task on the days(s) you’ve planned.

Killing off the paper backlog

Killing off the paper backlogAssess the backlog:

Organize the paper into three categories• To act on• To file• To throw away


Add up your To-Do’s1. Look at each piece of paper and

decide:a) What is this document?

b) What is the next action required?

c) How long will it take me?

2. Total all the time needed.


After Adding up your To-Do’s• Apply the four D’s

• Delete• Delay• Diminish• Delegate

• Try to reduce the “active” pile to about 1/3 of the original pile.


• Toss whatever you can

• Schedule / delegate anything left over.

Improve your filing system.

• Your files should be physically accessible from your workstation.

• Label flies as you work on them, so you know where to file later.

• Schedule daily time for mail, reading, and filing.

• Don’t take work home if you’re really not going to work on it.

Analyze – Tuning in to who you are

• Choosing the right planner for you.• Take your time to select the right

planner for you.• Take the time to master the planner’s

features and customize it.• Make it the one and only place to record

your appointments and to-do’s.• Use it for your personal and

professional information.


Choosing the right planner for you.• Paper or Digital?


• Understanding your unique relationship to time.• Take an assessment of what is working

well for you.• Take an assessment of what is not

working well for you.• Assess your time-management

preferences.• Identify your energy cycles.


• Understanding your unique relationship to time.• Track your time for two weeks.• Identify each thing you do with one of

your life categories.• Count up the totals for each category.• Divide each total by 168 to determine the

percent of a week you spend on each category.

• Evaluate if you are spending your time in the ways that you want.

Strategize – Designing the life of your dreams

• Create a time-map• A default “template” of how you desire

to spend your weekly time to support the activities that will lead to fulfilling your goals.

Strategize – Designing the life of your dreams

• Adjust your time map until you can answer “True” for all of the statements below.• My time map reflects my big-picture goals.• My time map includes time for all the

categories I want to get to.• I am able to concentrate on my chosen activity.• I am doing my activities at the right times for

me.• My schedule makes me feel balanced and

energized.

Attack – The SPACE Formula

• Sort – Group potential activities and tasks by category and goal.

• Purge – Eliminate the excess, the duplicate, meaningless, ineffective, cumbersome.

• Assign a home (specific day/time) to the tasks you decide to do.

• Containerize tasks to keep them in the time allotted.

• Equalize – refine, maintain, and adapt your schedule to your changing needs.


• For every task that crosses your path answer these questions.• Which of my big-picture goals will this

help me achieve?• Map distasteful tasks to the “best” big-

picture goal/life category when you can.

• Where in my schedule does this task belong?

• How long will it take?


• Purge• Delete

• For time• To reach more important goals• Learn to say “No”

• Diminish• Find a more efficient way• Sufficiency is “good enough”


• Purge• Delegate

• Don’t feel “too busy” to delegate• Don’t feel guilty to delegate• Don’t feel “ashamed” to have to depend on

others.• Don’t think you’ll make yourself dispensable• Delegate to the most expert available• Delegate to an equal• Delegate to a beginner


• Purge• Delay

• Conscious delaying is not “procrastination” when you choose it willfully and with commitment to accomplish it.


• Assign a Home to Each Task• Leaving the timing to chance leads to

reactive modes of coping. You will not feel control and confidence.

• Setting specific days, start and end times leads to proactive modes. You will feel control and confidence.

• If you are unable to find a “home,” you will know instantly that a task or activity will throw your calendar off balance.

• You will have a clearer sense of priority when there are strong conflicts.


• Containerize• Conquering procrastination

• If your procrastinate only on some tasks, your problem may be technical.

• If you procrastinate on most tasks, it’s most likely psychological.

• What to do?• Trust your instincts.• Focus on your goal.• Do a different step.• Break it down.• Impose a deadline.• Combine it with something you like.


• Containerize• Lateness for meetings

• If your lateness is for different amounts of time, your problem may be the inability to judge durations.

• If you are late for the same amount of time, it’s most likely psychological.

• What to do?• Improve your time estimating skills.• Avoid the “just one more thing before I go”

syndrome.• Find your motivation – what rewards your lateness?• Understand how your lateness affects others.


• Containerize• Interruptions

• Do not schedule yourself so tightly you can’t tolerate interruptions.

• If your job requires you to handle a large volume of phone calls, you may need to allow six hours of unplanned time each day to take care of them (p. 252).

• Let people know when you’re available.• Use voice mail when appropriate.• Schedule time to read and respond to e-mail.


• Containerize• Interruptions

• Create “quiet time” for yourself.• Avoid eye contact.• Turn off instant messaging.• Schedule regular meetings for

communication.• Honor the decisions you have made.

• You have thoughtfully worked out your plan, you need to respect it for it to work.


• Equalize• Monitor your schedule daily.• Make more major tune-ups bi-monthly• Major life changes require re-visiting

your Life Categories and Maps.• During crises, try to step back, take in

the big picture, and make the best adjustments you can.

• Use the SPACE formula to triage the immediate situation.


• Equalize

• Plan your work and work the plan.

• Forgive yourself for failures.• Be kind to yourself and others.• Don’t beat yourself up when you don’t

succeed. Learn and go on!

time management. what’s my motivation? what clear goals do i have in mind to manage my time...

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