CLIENT - Time Management Tool

Client Information

Time Management Tool for Clients

388 Roncesvalles Ave, Suite 200 Toronto, ON M6R 2M9 T 866.226.9262 F 416.588.9235 www.banyanconsultants.com

Time Management Tips

Here are some tips to improve your time management. To gain insight into your activities, it

is recommended that you keep a log for a number of days. If you know how you spend your

time, you can identify why you are short of time. In the chart below are a number of tips to

help you spend your time more effectively. Use the tips that are best for you

Introduction

Use your head to think, not to remember. Paper is a better tool for memory than

your head; you should write down everything you need to remember. Remembering

takes energy that you could be using for thinking.

Buy a notebook or diary for planning and prioritizing. Make sure your notes are

specific: include dates, activity lists, deadlines, priorities, personal notes of meetings,

notes of conversations, etc. Cross off completed items and add new items. The same

notebook can be used to store phone numbers, names, appointments, etc.

List of activities: on a blank page create a numbered list of all the activities that you

need to complete now or in the future. If possible include deadlines.

At the start of each morning, or at the start of each week, look at your list. Add any

new activities, determine the time they will take to complete and schedule them over

the day/week. Cross off any activities completed.

After a period of time (e.g., one month or one week) put uncompleted activities into a new list and assign them a new number.

Priorities

An activity may be important or unimportant, urgent or not urgent. Important is essential

for your job. Urgent means that the activity has an impending deadline. People tend to

immerse themselves in urgent but routine tasks while important but not urgent activities

are not planned. Consequently, you have to rush the important activities. The following guidelines may help:

Activity Action

Important and urgent Do immediately

Urgent but not important Planning and monitoring (see page 2)

Important but not urgent Delegate (see page 2)

Not important and not urgent Don’t do

Planning

Schedule important non-urgent tasks in the quiet times. Every job has its busy and its

quiet times. Use the quiet times for activities in which you do not want to be disturbed.

Make a plan of your day, identifying quiet and busy times. What time of the day is it

best to perform your important but not urgent tasks?

At which point in the day are you most effective? When are you able to be most

focused? These are the times to perform your most intellectual work that requires

concentration.

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At the ends of each day plan for tomorrow. If you think today about tomorrow, you can

start your day effectively. When there are urgent demands you have missed you can

schedule them in for tomorrow.

Plan your breaks. Set the number of hours for yourself and stick to it.

When you are not completing tasks, it is likely that you are trying to do too much.

Schedule less work in.

Complete similar tasks in a row. Alternating tasks may seem fun but costs you time and

energy. Most of your energy is lost in starting tasks, not in their execution. Complete one task at a time.

Delay

Get that unpleasant, challenging, urgent and difficult task to the fore!

The following approach might help:

Analyze why you postpone the task.

Divide the task into smaller steps.

Estimate the time each step takes.

Put the steps in the right order and write them in your notebook/diary

Start at the part of these ‘unpleasant tasks’ you enjoy best (dislike the least).

Allocate only 20 minutes each for the remaining parts

Work until the job is finished

With the step by step approach you can see your progress. This can help to motivate you.

Delegate

Many newly self-employed people tend to want to do everything themselves. If you are

going to delegate you must have confidence in the other person. The ultimate responsibility for the work will lie with you. Here are a few tips to help you delegate your work:

Start with relatively simple things to delegate

Increase the level of difficulty gradually.

Support and guide colleagues to whom you delegate work

Make sure your colleagues have sufficient knowledge to undertake the delegated tasks.

If not, ensure that training and support is provided

Do not criticize too severely during this time. Nobody learns anything without making

mistakes.

Make sure that the tasks are not too urgent, especially if the level of difficulty is high

Take the time to explain to your colleague why you are delegating and what you expect

of the work. Give clear instructions

Telephone

Identify telephone-free time when you do not answer the telephone. Make sure that

someone does answer it and that they accurately record any messages

Start your telephone calls with purpose. By being direct you can save time. You can also

use email, letters, memos and faxes

If you are completing an important task and you are disturbed by the telephone, ask the

person if they can call back later. That way you are polite and retain control of your time

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Use the telephone when it can replace a visit or other correspondence. Think in advance

about the points that need to be discussed. Schedule your telephone calls in a row. Be

brief and to the point

Office

Try and complete your paperwork in one sitting. If you pick something up from your in-

tray try and complete it immediately. This prevents you from repeatedly going through

the same pile of paper or creating new piles

An untidy desk creates distractions. To combat this, you can buy paper trays and label

them as follows: ‘in-tray’, ‘still-to-do’, ‘miscellaneous’ and ‘out-tray’

Use a tray for all in-coming post and sort it in order of priority.

Never put anything back in your ‘in-tray’; once you have removed it, complete

the action

If there are pieces in your in-tray which you are not able to complete, move them

to your ‘still-to-do ‘ tray

Make sure your in-tray is regularly emptied, preferably at the end of each day

Use your ‘still-to-do’ tray for work you haven’t completed yet.

Use your ‘miscellaneous’ tray for the temporary storage of documents that you

are unsure whether you need. Remember to sort this tray regularly Keep all papers in the trays, with the exception of the papers that you are working on.

Cleanup

Reserve the first half hour each morning for sorting and filing. Develop a storage

system. Throw away what you are never going to use and file the rest. Make a note in

your diary/notebook if there are any deadlines for the documents

Use a hard drive to file and store electronic documents. Create directories for the documents

Time-Consuming Tasks

Identify solutions for reducing the time spent on insignificant, time-consuming tasks

such as administration

Determine whether a number of tasks can be performed efficiently in less time by a using a new approach

Do Not Disturb

Continue your work if someone disturbs you. In doing this you are clearly indicating that

you are being interrupted. You could also try standing when a colleague arrives at your

desk. By standing you encourage the other person to come to the point more quickly.

Another tip is to go to the desk of a colleague you want to speak to; this way it is easier

for you to leave at your convenience

Block out hours (or half hours) to have meetings or conversations with colleagues,

preferably on fixed days and at fixed times

Post

Reduce the length of time you spend on your post. Check each piece and make a

decision: 1. Whether you need to do something about it; 2. Whether it is important; and

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3. Whether it is urgent. If something needs to be done, place it in the appropriate tray.

If it is important and/or urgent, make sure you plan action in your schedule. If it isn’t

important, put it in the dustbin. Avoid having piles of paper on your desk. If you pick it up, deal with it; don’t return it to the same pile

Email

Only open your email 2 or 3 times a day If you can, give short answers

Meetings

Determine who needs to be at the meeting and the result you want from it

Ensure you have a proper meeting room

Make a schedule/agenda

Determine the purpose and time needed for each agenda item

If necessary, incorporate a break

Replace ‘any other business’ by requesting attendees to submit agenda items prior to

the meeting

Start and finish promptly at the stated times

Ask everyone to take their own notes. Collect these at the end and use them to create

the meeting minutes

As the Chairperson you need to have good listening and summarizing skills

Laughter can help improve the atmosphere

Write suggestions on a flipchart, whiteboard or blackboard

Identify concrete actions for every agenda item: who, what, when?

If you run out of time add the remaining agenda items to the next meeting’s agenda

Writing

Identify for yourself the time of day at which you write most effectively. Create

conducive conditions, e.g., close your door and switch off your email and telephone

Start thinking about the purpose of your report (or other writing), and draft/plan a

structure. Identify how long you have to write the report. Who is the report for? What do

you need to include in it? Having written your draft structure, give yourself a few hours

or a day away from it so you can read it again with fresh eyes. Read through the draft,

making changes where necessary, and start your final version. Having completed your

final version, read through and make changes. Finally, ask someone to proofread your

report for you

Always incorporate a clear introduction into your reports, clearly stating the intention of

the report and how it is structured. Take note of feedback from others on your writing

style

Reading

Read documents quickly the first time to give you an overview.

What information do you need from this paper and how are you going to use it?

Try not to read aloud as this will slow you down Try not to go over the same piece again and again

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Work Log

Goals:

1.

4.

2.

5.

3.

6.

Time Purpose Activity Evaluation

8-9 9-10 10-11 11-12 12-1 1-2 2-3 3-4 4-5

Instructions

1. Complete your log every day for the next five days.

2. Enter the day and date

3. Complete the goals. What goals have you set for the day?

4. Complete your log during the day. Be precise and record all activities, phone calls,

breaks, meetings. Purpose: indicate which goals the activities help you to achieve. Evaluation: this helps you to provide an assessment: ‘going well’, ‘difficult’, ‘boring’, etc.

Documents

CLIENT - Time Management Tool