Time Management

We can't turn back time so we need to value and manage our time well. Although effective time management requires patience and a lot of discipline, it will guide people towards the path of success. People sometimes feel that their time is not enough to accomplish everything they need to do. Their problem, however, is not the quantity of the things they need to accomplish but how well they use their time. People are not usually wary of the time they waste because they do not plan their work for each day ahead. That is the reason why planning and prioritizing tasks is a must.

Time Management Skills

The good managers are not always the one that spends the most time on the business but rather the one that knows the activities that contribute most to his/her development.

The trick for a productive time management is to organize activities and allot enough time for each. Here are a few tips on how to maximize time well.

Organise and Prioritise

Time Management only has to do with making up a good "to do" list and following through. Right? Not really. In Fact, time Management has a lot more to do with what we are NOT doing rather that what we ARE doing.

Good Time Management requires that we get what we "have to" get done but, more importantly, what we "want to" get done.

This requires balancing our lives in all of life's Seven Vital Areas: Health, Family, Financial, Intellectual, Social, Professional, and Spiritual. If we are out of balance on one (never mind two or three!) it is going to adversely impact on the other legs. This is why it is important that we organise and prioritise.

Time Management Tips

• First, know how to be in control. Plan the activities and the goals you wish to achieve everyday. Set your long term and short term goals and know how your daily tasks or work can contribute to your goals. Also, set deadlines and adhere to them. Review your progress and analyze how well you organized your time each day so that you can evaluate how you can further prioritize and manage them.
• Learn how to differentiate your leisure time from business time. Also, avoid bringing your either your personal or family problems to work. Develop a business routine for a more effective and efficient work.
  Third, decide on your own. Know how to prioritize your activities and adhere to your set deadlines. Know how to say no and do not be disrupted easily. Learn how to be flexible in case situations change so you can adjust easily.
  Fourth, keep a record or a journal of your meetings and appointments so that you won't forget them. Put your organizer in a place where you can easily see it.
• Be responsible. If you commit doing a task, make sure you accomplish it. Also, avoid doing multiple things at the same time. Do one task at a time. Try to do things right the first time you do it.
• Get enough sleep so that you will feel refreshed and energetic the next day. If you are always late for work, try to get up earlier. If your schedule becomes too hectic, relax and take a deep breath. Wait until your mind clears before you continue with your work. Also, don't forget to refresh your thoughts and your mind at the end of each day.
• Use tools that can help you organise and manage your time well. Time management tools include palm pilots, organisers, journals, or computer based organizers like Lotus Organizer and MS Outlook.

Although these basic rules and steps require a lot of discipline, it will eventually help you become a more efficient and effective person.