Time Mngmnt Entrepreneurs - Part 9


Keeping It Real – Setting Realistic Goals With Your Time Management 
One of the best ways to not get discouraged with your time managing efforts is to be realistic about how you approach your list of things to do and schedule out time to accomplish them. This means understanding how long each task can reasonably be expected to take, how much concentration is involved, and whether or not you can work on another task at the same time without impairing the quality of your efforts. 
In some cases, it is relatively easy to combine necessary tasks and save time. For example, you may find that instead of making a trip to the supermarket and then moving on to a drugstore, you simply choose to buy groceries at a supermarket that has a pharmacy department. This effectively allows you to manage two tasks at one time, and still enjoy the same level of quality with each. 
However, not all situations are as simplistic as combining a couple of errands. At some point, you will be faced with tasks that require your full concentration and cannot be balanced with other tasks at the same time. The trick is to know the difference between the two scenarios. 
You can identify a task that will require your full and undivided attention by the following: 
The task requires attention to a great deal of detail. Projects of this type are usually best accomplished by themselves. For example, it is not a good idea to attempt to make client calls while you are posting payments to customer invoices. Because it is important to apply the right amount to the correct invoice number under the correct client account, you don’t need to be interrupted until the job is complete. Otherwise, your company receipts will be out of line, making it necessary to find time to isolate the origin of the problem and correct it at a later date. 
You are unfamiliar with the task. In general, it is not a good idea to attempt to multitask when learning to handle some new responsibility. In order to master the new task, all your focus should be on that task. This will help to keep the learning curve to a minimum and allow you to begin the process of integrating that new task into your daily agenda. Attempting to learn how to handle the task in a piecemeal fashion will only drag things out and put your further behind. 
The timing for the task is urgent. For example, your boss needs a report in time for his or her meeting right after lunch. Instead of working the report into your other and less important tasks, reorganize your schedule and make the report your priority. As soon as the report is done and turned in to your boss, you can get back to your other action items and continue on with your day. 
Sometimes, the issue is not so much figuring out how to arrange your tasks to best advantage, but setting reasonable time aside to accomplish each one. To an extent, this can be forgiven when you are first taking on a new task. After all, you’ve never done it before and must rely on second hand information to estimate the time you will need to do a good job. But failing to set reasonable time limits for tasks you have done for some time can make a good day into a bad one in no time at all. 
There are two different ways that people tend to get in trouble with assigning time values to specific tasks: 
  • They don’t allow enough time to complete the task properly. When this happens, one of two things is about to happen. First, the entire day may be thrown out of kilter because other tasks back up and create a bottleneck that cannot be addressed until you finish your current task. The other alternative is that you become frustrated and lose even more valuable time attempting to focus and get on with the task. Either way, your time management process will suffer.
  • They allow too much time for the task to be completed. There is no real value in allowing a half hour to do a task that you know will take no more than five minutes to complete. While it is important to always build in some spare pockets of time into your schedule throughout the day, keep it within reason. You will still be able to deal with unexpected events that crop up at the last minute by setting aside ten to fifteen minutes for that five-minute task. At the same time, you will use each hour to better advantage and get more done. Whether running a household or on the job, that is important.
    There is also the danger of trying to cram too many action items into a given time frame. Even the most efficient of time managers realize there are only so many hours in each day. Cutting corners in order to save time on various tasks may appear like efficient time management on the surface, but this approach can easily backfire. Tasks that are only half-done in order to move them out the door more quickly are much more likely to come right back. As a result, the time savings you created before is quickly gobbled up as you have to sit down and redo the task, this time without taking the short cuts.
While setting reasonable goals seems to come naturally to some people, others struggle with this part of effective time management. Here are a few suggestions that may help make it easier to evaluate each task and carve out an appreciable amount of time to devote to each item on your agenda. 
  1. Begin with a defined start and end time for your workday. What this does is immediately allow you to determine how many hours you can reasonably devote to getting things done today. When you have a job, this step is pretty much defined for you, since there is usually a specific time to be at work and a specific time to leave. However, even if the process takes place in a household, setting a start and end time will make it much easier to schedule your time realistically.
  2. Take a look at each task and attempt to prioritize them to best advantage. Any tasks that must be done by a specific time of day should take priority during the scheduling. For example, if you have three tasks that must be done before lunch every day of the week, schedule them as early in the morning as possible. This will automatically provide you with some extra time later in the morning if there is an unanticipated snag with any of the three tasks. The chances of still making your lunchtime deadline will be much better.
  3. Assign a time allotment for each task, based on all data that is at your disposal. For tasks that you’ve done before, you will have a personal knowledge of how long it takes to manage them effectively. However, for new tasks, you may have to depend on input from others to set up a realistic goal for completion. If the task is new to everyone, then you may have to set aside the amount of time you used in the past for a different but somewhat similar task. Demonstrate some flexibility with your time allotments, since different factors can influence how long it takes to manage different tasks, even ones you’ve done for years.
  4. Ask for input, but don’t rely solely on what others have to say. Since we’ve already established that proper time management involves being open to new methods and strategies, there is always the chance that a suggestion or idea from a third party will help you manage a task in a more efficient and timely manner. However, not every suggestion will be constructive, so don’t automatically assume it will work. By all means, take it, look it over, and maybe even give it a try. But if it doesn’t seem to have the potential to streamline the process and allow you to manage your time more efficiently, don’t be backward about rejecting the suggestion and explaining why it is not practical. For all you know, doing so will prevent someone else from getting bogged down because they implemented a process that is really not all that efficient. 
  5. E. Never stop evaluating the schedule you create. Situations and conditions change over time. What worked very well five years ago may not be the best option today. But unless you are willing to look into new options, this may slip right past you. In fact, others may fail to notice as well, especially if your usual schedule is still somewhat effective and does not disrupt others. But without this constant process of re-evaluation, you stand to miss out on some great tools that would help you manage your time to better effect. 
  6. While many of your time management goals are focused on the successful and timely completion of action items, a realistic approach to setting goals involves a little more than just getting things done. Don’t forget to include these elements in your goal setting as well: 
  7. Time to play as well as time to work. Without some rest and recreation, it is all too easy to begin viewing your daily activities as a repetitive grind that leaves you feeling dehumanized. While you want to get things done efficiently and on time, make sure you don’t do so at the expense of taking your lunch hour or getting away from work on time. Life is a lot more than simply having a finished agenda at the end of the day.
  8. Face the fact that some days will be filled with unexpected factors that no one could possibly have foreseen. No matter how well refined your time management is, there are times when it will have to be revised at the last moment. Accept this as the way things go sometime and do not see it as a failure on your part to effectively manage your time. Instead, see it as an opportunity to accept a challenge and come out on top at the end of the day. 

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