Client Information
Time Management Tool for Clients
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 Important and urgent Urgent but not important Important but not urgent Not important and not urgent
Action Do immediately Planning and monitoring (see page 2) Delegate (see page 2) 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.
388 Roncesvalles Ave, Suite 200 Toronto, ON M6R 2M9 T 866.226.9262 F 416.588.9235 www.banyanconsultants.com
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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
388 Roncesvalles Ave, Suite 200 Toronto, ON M6R 2M9 T 866.226.9262 F 416.588.9235 www.banyanconsultants.com
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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 intray 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
388 Roncesvalles Ave, Suite 200 Toronto, ON M6R 2M9 T 866.226.9262 F 416.588.9235 www.banyanconsultants.com
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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
388 Roncesvalles Ave, Suite 200 Toronto, ON M6R 2M9 T 866.226.9262 F 416.588.9235 www.banyanconsultants.com
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Work Log Goals: 1.
4.
2.
5.
3.
6.
Time 8-9
Purpose
Activity
Evaluation
9-10 10-11 11-12 12-1 1-2 2-3 3-4 4-5
Instructions 1. 2. 3. 4.
Complete your log every day for the next five days. Enter the day and date Complete the goals. What goals have you set for the day? 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.
388 Roncesvalles Ave, Suite 200 Toronto, ON M6R 2M9 T 866.226.9262 F 416.588.9235 www.banyanconsultants.com