Kevin Vincent
Managing director of Vincent Consulting
www.vincentconsulting.co.nz
Time management for your business can be described metaphorically as the good oil of your business.
Oil is the essential life blood that runs through the arteries of cars and mechanical operations and without which, these machines would undoubtedly soon come to a grinding halt and fail.
Applied time management is the “good oil” that prevents the squeaking, creaking and tweaking that frequently arises during our often chaotic day to day existence.
By applying time management skills you can optimise your effort to ensure that you concentrate as much of your time and energy as possible on the high payoff tasks. This ensures that you achieve the greatest benefit possible with the limited amount of time available to you.
Here are some tips to assist you apply the “good oil” of time management.
Set goals
To start managing time effectively, you need to set goals. People tend to neglect goal setting because it requires time and effort. What they fail to consider is that a little time and effort put in now saves an enormous amount of time, effort and frustration in the future.
Plan your day
Prioritising what needs to be done is especially important. Without it, you may work very hard, but you won’t be achieving the results you desire because what you are working on is not of strategic importance.
Delegate
Delegation extends the results from what you can do, to what you can control. It frees time for more important tasks, allows you to plan more effectively, and helps relieve the pressure of too many jobs, too many deadlines, and too little time. Not only that, but it is one of the most effective ways of developing your staff. Improper delegation, however, is worse than no delegation at all.
Handle interruptions
Some jobs need you to be available for people when they need help – interruption is a natural and necessary part of life. In these cases, do what you sensibly can to minimise it, but make sure you don’t scare people away from interrupting you when they should.
Don’t procrastinate
To deal with procrastination, focus on the result of the task, not on the process. Tackle the most unpleasant job at the beginning of your working day and break down large tasks or projects into manageable chunks. Schedule each phase with both a start time and a finish time, and tick chunks off on completion.
