Time management:

Time management refers to the development of tools and processes that increase productivity
and efficiency.
But, in business, time management has morphed into everything from methodologies such as
Enterprise Resource Planning through consultant services such as Professional Organizers.
When e thin! of time management, e tend to thin! of personal time management, loosely
defined as managing our time to aste time less on doing things that e have to do. "o that e
have more time to do the things e ant to do.
Therefore, time management is often presented as a set of time management s!ills. The theory
is that once e master the time management s!ills, e#ll be more efficient, organized, and
happier.
Personal time management s!ills include$
%oal setting&
Planning&
Prioritizing&
'ecision(ma!ing&
'elegating&
"cheduling.
Time management tools, such as P)* softare and P'+s, have helped us to manage our time
more effectively. ,or instance, a P'+ can ma!e it easier to schedule and !eep trac! of events
and appointments.
Whether e use technological time management tools or plain old pen and paper, hoever, the
first step in effective time management is analyzing ho e currently spend our time and
deciding ho e ant to change, ho e spend your time.
Examples:
-ohn found that learning and applying time management s!ills made a huge difference to both
his productivity and the ay he felt.
Time management is an essential s!ill for effective people. )f e loo! at people ho are high
achievers in all al!s of life, from business to sport to public service and e.ll find that
they ere more efficient managing their time. )f e use these s!ills, e ill be able to
function ell even under stress. /ot only that, as e become master time management
s!ills, e.ll gain controls of our or!load, and say goodbye to the stress that comes from
overload.
The necessity of time management:
To achieve goals.
To feel a sense of control.
To reduce stress.
To allocate time to the important parts of our lives.
To feel a sense of balance.
To reduce effort.
To en0oy life.
To feel that e have choices.
To be efficient.
Time Management Issues:
The top four time management issues that, in combination ith one another, can do more to
!eep us from having, doing or being hat e ant and deserve.
They are$ ineffective relationships, a poor attitude, being flat out tired, and the eather.
1. Ineffective relationships- *ore than 234 of our personal productivity success has to
do ith effective relationships ith other people. ,riends and allies ill open doors for us
that ould ta!e a considerable amount of our effort. They can give us ords of
encouragement that lift our spirits during don, unproductive times. They can teach us
lessons that ould ta!e too much time otherise to learn.
)t.s not a suggestion that one ho does not have the good cooperation of other people
cannot be productive. They can, but not as productive as those ho en0oy positive,
effective relationships ith others.
5. A poor attitude. )t has been said that your attitude ill determine your altitude in life#s
successes. With a poor attitude e become discouraged and demoralized and our
performance goes don. *oreover, a negative person tends to repel positive people,
hom e need to boost us up, and they tend to attract other negative people ho ill
bring us don ith their stories of misery and failure.
6. Being flat out tired. Three out of four people claim that they are flat out tired all
throughout their days. Test this. +s! anyone, any time of the day these 7uestions$ 8+re
you rested98 8'id you get a good night#s sleep98 8+re you at the top of your game
today98 *ost ill reply, 8Oh, )#m so tired:8
"ome do not get a sufficient 7uantity of sleep. They simply stay up too late and get up to
early, burning the candle at both ends. "ome have medical issues that can be treated.
+nd many may be getting a sufficient 7uantity of sleep but not the 7uality. Their days are
filled ith so much stress and distress. Why9 Because they do not have the tools or
refuse to the tools to ta!e control over their days so as they try to sleep, that little voice
in the bac! of their heads is reminding them of all the unfinished items of the day and
about a string of future uncontrolled events and they ind up tossing and turning, not
getting the deep nutritious sleep that their bodies need every day to be as productive as
they might be.
;. The weather. The city in the <nited "tates that has the highest incidence of suicide is
"eattle, Washington. ) understand they have feer sunny days and more cloudy and
rainy days than most other places. )f you ta!e your on life, is that considered poor time
management9 That#s not meant to be a poor 0o!e. People all over the orld are
committing 8productivity suicide8 each day fussing over the eather and using it as a
reason to reduce their productivity. 8)t#s too cold:8 8)t#s too hot:8 8)t#s so rainy:8 8)t#s so
dry:8 When, all of the time, the eather is 0ust perfect, 0ust the ay it is.
)f e ere visitor from another planet listening to the media, e ould thin! e on earth
0ust invented sno storms, cold and heavy donpours hen they have been ith us
since the beginning of time.
Being aare of the eather is important, of course. )f locally it is to be icy you may
choose to stay indoors and a threatening hurricane may persuade us to evacuate to a
safer place. But to be obsessed ith the normal ranges of eather conditions is to only
steal aay from the opportunity to have a good and productive day.