l 2?
6 Soft Skills
"711e bm:,, "'""ha s time .,()r every tr1mg .
Introduction
Yo u ca n't add any more hours to yo ur day
so lea rning to manage your rim e more effectively
wi ll hel p yo u plan your work more efficiently
and ensure deadlines are mer. Managing time
eftecrive ly is a particul arly crucial ingredient in
successful projects. It is importa nt to manage
both your personal and professional lives because
as much as you try to keep them separate they
cannot help but infringe upon one another.
Managing your own time will not only benefit
you bur those around you as well.
The busy man only can manage to do many
things, which seem to be beyond the reach of
ordinary persons. The life of great leaders teaches
us one lesson. They have to do many things in
spite of their busy schedule. The secret therefore
lies in scientific manage ment of time.
When a person says that he has no time,
what he really means is that he is unable to
manage his time properly. The idea of time
manage ment has been in existence for more
than 100 years.
The term time manage ment should not be
misunderstood as time can be managed. In fact
time can't be managed. By time manage ment
what we mean is we need to manage ourselves
according to the time.
Time manag ement is actuall y self-
management. The skills that we need to mange
others are the same skills that are required to
mana~e ourselves. Namely, the ability to plan,
orgamze , direct and control.
The 80:20 rule
Reference is made to the 80·20
• rue .
I o f time
management, wh ich is roo ted in what i· s Imown
as t h e Pareto Principl e.
. Vilfredo Pareto, an Itali an econom i st
discove red this prin cipl e in 1897 w h en I1e'
6 +
o served that 80 percent of th e land in England
(and every country he subsequently studi ed) was
/' I • J1
owned by 20 percent of th e populati on. Pareto's
th eo ry of predicta ble imbalan ce has since been
applied to almost every aspect of modern life.
1he 80:20 rule states that the relation ship
between input and output is rarely, balanced.
When applie d to work , it means that
approximately 20 percent of your efforts produce
80 percent of the results. Learning to recognize
and then focus on that 20 percent is the key to
making the most effective use of your time. Here
.are two quick tips to develop 80/20 thinking.
According to Pareto Principle, or the 80:20
rule, 80% of unfocussed effort generates 20%
of the results, The remaini ng 80% of results are
achieved with only 20% of the effort.
Take a good look at the people around you
Twenty percent of your colleagues, staff
and friends probably give you 80 percent of the
support and satisfaction you need. They are your
true advocates. Take good care of them. Likewise,
you can probably name several friends and family
members who would be there for you under any
circumstances.
Examine your work
Ask yourself, "What do I really want to do
with my life and my time? What 20 percent of
my work should I be focusing on?"
Here are some signs that will help you to
recognize whethe r you're spendin g your time as
you should:
You're in your 80 percent if:
+ You're working on tasks other people want
you to, but you have no investment in them.
+ You're frequently working on tas ks labelled
(( ,,
urgent.
+ You're spendin g time on tasks you are not
usu ally good at doing.
Activi ties are ta king a lot longer than you
expected.
+ You find yourself compla ining all the rime.

, e in your 20 percent if:
your
,r y'o u're engaged in activities that advance your
overall purpose in life.
,r You're doing things you have always wanted
o or that makes you feel good about
ro d
yourself.
+You're working on tasks you don't like, but
you're doing them knowing they relate to
some advantages.
+You're hiring people to do the tasks you are
not good at or don't like doing.
+You're smiling.
Sense of time management
Several years ago a fo reign clock
manufacturer who visited India w ith a view to
setting up an alarm clock factory returned to his
country giving up his idea. He said that there was
not enough time consciousness in India as yet to
justify manufacture of alarm clocks fo r another
20 years. This comment hurts our national pride,
but it is a fact. It is high time we develop time
consciousness.
Time is money
h d and materials are
Man, machine, met o But coday in the
· estment.
considered to b e an mv
Time M~nage~ent 2 27
contest of globalization, time is also conside ed. .
one of the prime investment factor I r asf
d d · n terms 0
ay-to- ay economic life, time is s·1n1plv money
Every delay eventually means loss of ,
,, money. .
"Time. is like an arrow, once 1-1 1eaves t1,e
bow, 1t does not come back''. l
. . _._.._,....l
---------- -- . . ..,., .........
Features of time ·
1. Time is an asset. It is an asset of fictitious
nature.
2. T ime is an opportunity. It is a chance given
toan ind ividual to create, innovate and
manufacture something.
3. Supply is li mited. Time is limi red in its
su pply.
"Time is very democratic i11 nature because t
it treats all persons absolute()' impartial(v ''.
Three secrets of time management
1. Value of time. Unlike money and m ateria l,
time once lost cannot be regained o r replaced .
Besides, time is a resource wh ich cannot be
substituted.
_ Time budgeting. More rhan money, rime is
2
co be budgeted properly.
Concentration. Concentration is doi ng o ne's
3. immediate duty on hand wirh proper care an d
attention. Such care and attention is poss ible
only when a person has co ncentration in what
he does.
 I 23 2 Soft Skills
oth ers have all ow ed the de assign me nts , pro jec ts an
ma nd s, pressures an d d ap po int me nts
res po ns ibi lit ies of life to do have to weed it ou t so tha t . '
mi na te the days. lts no t so jam-pack 'Yo u
It's tim e to mo ve from the Fi nd th e stu ff tha t's no t so ed
sec on d gro up . ess ential an d ca ·l
ba ck int o the first. Recla nee
im yo ur time. Cr ea te the m.
the life yo u wa nt an d ma ke
the mo st of the free 8 . Re -th in k y~ ur .ro ut in
tim e yo u have. It's no t ha e. Of ten we get
rd , tho ug h it does tal<e stu ck wi th ou r ro un ne : W
a lit tle bi t of eff ort an d dil e ne ed to find a Way
igence. ou t to ma ke the da y int ere
sti ng . Is there a bett
Choose the ones you can ap way of do ing things? Yo u, h
ply and give re t e cre ato r of youerr
them a try : life ma ke a ne w ro uti ne
tha t's mo re pleasan
mo re op tim al, mo re filled t,
l. Ta ke a ttm e ou t. Th is wi th thi ng s yo u love.
starts wi th tak ing
a ste p ba ck to tak e
a go od loo k at yo ur life. 9. Cu t ba ck on em ail . Ho
w oft en do you
You ne ed to blo ck of f at ch ec k email? Ho w mu ch
least an ho ur. Several tim e do yo u spend
ho ur s or ha lf a da y is be tte co mp os ing emails? If yo u
r. A wh ole da y wo uld sp en d a ma jor part of
be aw eso me . A we ek en d yo ur wo rk da y on em ail , as
wo uld be even mo re ma ny pe op le do, you
ideal. W ith thi s blo ck of are bo un d to ru n in sh or t
tim e, tak e a loo k at of tim e
yo ur life wi th so me perspec 10 . Le ar n to sa y no . If
tive. As k yo urs elf few yo u say "yes"
qu es tio ns like, Is it wh at to every req ue st, yo u wi ll
I have always wanted? ne ve r have any free
Ho w wo ul d I ge t to wh ere tim e. Le arn to say "n o" to
I have always wa nte d ev ery thi ng except the
to be? W ha t do I en
joy do ing , bu t do n't have essential requests.
en ou gh tim e to do? W ha
t thi ng s actually fill 11. Ke ep yo ur lis t to 3. W
up my day? Ar e the re thi he n yo u prepare
ng s I co uld dr op or yo ur daily to- do list, en su re
mi nim ize to ma ke mo re th at yo u list as many
time? as on ly thr ee M os t Im po rta
2. Fi nd yo ur ess en tia ls. nt Ta sk s yo u want to
W ha t is it tha t accomplish today. By ke ep
yo u love to do? M ak e a sh ing yo ur tas k list small,
or t list of 4-5 things. yo u en su re tha t yo u are
Th es e are the thi ng s yo u wa ge tti ng the important
nt to ma ke ro om for. wo rk do ne at sam e tim e no
t ov erl oa din g yourself.
3. Fi nd yo ur tim e- wa ste
rs. W he re do 12 . Do yo ur im po rt an t
yo u sp en d a lot of yo ur tim ta sk first. Of
e? Ta ke a close loo k the thr ee M os t Im po rta nt
at the se thi ng s an d really Ta sk s yo u choose for
thi nk ab ou t wh eth er the day, pic k the big ge st
the y're necessary? Fi nd ou on e, or th e on e you're
t if the re are ways to dr ea din g mo st, an d do
red uc e, mi nim ize or eli mi th at first. Do n't allow
na te these things. yo urs elf to be en ga ge d in
4 Sc he du le th e tim e. Take tin y tasks un til you
tim e to find ou t finish the im po rta nt on e.
wh at yo u wa nte d to do an It sta rts yo ur day with
d wh at yo u actually a sense of ma jor ac co mp lis
d id. Fi nd ou t the de via tio hm en t, an d leaves you
n an d en su re tha t it is wi th a lot of free tim e th e
no t ala rm ing . res t of th e day, because
the mo st im po rta nt th in g
is alr ea dy done.
5 Co ns oli da te. Th ere are ma
ny thi ng s yo u 13 . De le ga te . Yo u do
do th ro ug ho ut yo ur da y or n't ne ed to do
yo ur week. You ne ed ev er yt hi ng yo ur se lf. If
to co ns oli da te in or de ne ce ssa ry , sp en d a
r to save time. For ex am ple lit tle tim e tra ini ng th e pe
ins tea d of do ing a work on rso n to wh om you're
e or two a day, do the m de leg ati ng th e tas k, bu t
all in on e da y to save rim th at lit tle tim e spent
e an d energy. tra ini ng wi ll pa y of f in a
6
lot of tim e saved lacer.
Cu t ou t mc<.,trng'> You can, mi nim ize De leg ati ng allows yo u to
th e nu mb er of m ee tin gs foc us on the core casks
you hold an d att en d. an d pro jec ts yo u sh ou ld
Af ter all W arr en Bu ffe t ho be foc us ing on.
lds meeti ng on ly twice 1 ;.I. C nt ou t di st
a ye ar wi th his su bo rd ina ra ct io ns. I den tl·fy rhe
tes . diSt racters ar ou nd yo ur wo
7. ~c hc du l c yo ur .,< huJulc. rk sp ac e tha t di 5cract
If you have yo u fro m the tas k at ha nd
a he av ily pa ck ed sc he du an d try to eliminate/
le, full of me eti ng s, avo,'d t hem . 1h e dis tra cte
Iy,~
· g ar ou rs co uld be the pap ers
nd th at call for yo ur att
en tio n an d
ac uo n, em ail , the ph on e,
or coworkers.
 Time Man agement 233 ~
1 PI- - --.,j
5. Disconnect. TI1e biggest of distractions, · an hour pe1. da fi "
MJ
1 ( ,.
,tve twen ty-th ree h y or Me Time"
for most people, is the Inter n et. If you really f . d ours to sch I/
es,
.
your
ncn s, and your famil 6 oo colleg
be able to effectivel y com plete tasks '
wane to · ourself· y ut keep one hour rorc
disconnect your Inter net so you can really focus . Y
Ser certain times of the day for conn ectiv ity, and
onnect durin g those periods.
onIYC
16. Outsource. If you can't deleg ate, see
if you can outs ource. With the Inte rnet , we
can co nnec t with peop le from all over. You
c:ui oursource man y thing s, from smal l tasks
to checking email to lega.l work to desig n
and
cdiring work and more. That allows you to focus
rhe things you are best at, the thing s you love
0 11
doing , and saves you a lot of time .

17. Make use of your mor nings. Morn ings

are the absolute best times to sche dule the thing s
you want to do. Morn ings are great because your
day hasn't been filled with unsc hedu led tasks .
Duri ng this hour add a new dimension t0
Schedule your tasks in the morn ing, and it'll
your life. Read books ' learn a hobby, Iearn a
rarely get push ed back.
forei~n lang uage, develop comp uter skills, start
18. The work after work Time. Othe r tha.n a busmess, spen d time on health development
mornings, the time just after work is very useful etc. By takin g one hour per day of focused study,
for doing Essential thing s. Exercise, purs uing a.ny_ of you can beco me a world-class expert in a
the hobbies, goin g throu gh magazines, and so topic of our choice.
on can be done after the work time .
2~Establish a regular reading program. It
19. Your evenings. The time before you go can be JUSt fifteen minu tes a day. With that small
t~ bed is also very impo rtant , as it exists every inve stme nt of time , the average person will read
smgle day, and it's usually comp letel y your s to fifteen book s in a year. Also , consider taking a
sched_ule. Spend time with your family mem bers, Spee d Read ing course. It will help you to double
th e kids, their studies, hom ewor k coul d all be your read ing rate and comprehension. You can
done during this time. read wha t you have to read in half the time.
ZO. Lun ch brea ks. Lun ch brea ks are 3. Ove rloa d your days . Create a daily
another go Od oppo rtum.ty to sche dule thing s.
S actio n plan that includes not only the things you
_ome people like to exercise, or to take quie t "hav e to do", but the things you "want to do".
. Iunch breaks. Othe rs use this
. th e1r
times , du rmg
t' If you give your self one thing to do during the
.
ime to work o n an impo
· rtant perso nal goal or day, it will take you a.II day. If you give yourself
PrOJecr. two thing s to do durin g the day, you get them
Time ma nagement tips for students both done . If you give yourself rwelve things to
do, you may not get rwelve done, but you may
Here are som . h
out of ever d e tips to elp you get more get eigh t done .
and duri y ay, both your scho ol/ college day Havi ng a lot to do in a day creates a healrhy
. .
ng your perso na I time. Th ese tips can
increase sense of pressure on you to get focused and get
fl your success a n d h eIP you to have more
un along th it done .
eway.