Time Management

It is rightly said “Time and Tide wait for none”. An individual should understand the value of time for him to succeed in all aspects of life. People who waste time are the ones who fail to create an identity of their own.

What is Time Management ?

Time Management refers to managing time effectively so that the right time is allocated to the right activity.

Effective time management allows individuals to assign specific time slots to activities as per their importance.

Time Management refers to making the best use of time as time is always limited.

Ask yourself which activity is more important and how much time should be allocated to the same? Know which work should be done earlier and which can be done a little later.

Time Management plays a very important role not only in organizations but also in our personal lives.

Time Management includes:

Effective Planning

Setting goals and objectives

Setting deadlines

Delegation of responsibilities

Prioritizing activities as per their importance

Spending the right time on the right activity

1. Effective Planning

Plan your day well in advance. Prepare a To Do List or a “TASK PLAN”. Jot down the important activities that need to be done in a single day against the time that should be allocated to each activity. High Priority work should come on top followed by those which do not need much of your importance at the moment. Complete pending tasks one by one. Do not begin fresh work unless you have finished your previous task. Tick the ones you have already completed. Ensure you finish the tasks within the stipulated time frame.

2. Setting Goals and Objectives

Working without goals and targets in an organization would be similar to a situation where the captain of the ship loses his way in the sea. Yes, you would be lost. Set targets for yourself and make sure they are realistic ones and achievable.

3. Setting Deadlines

Set deadlines for yourself and strive hard to complete tasks ahead of the deadlines. Do not wait for your superiors to ask you everytime. Learn to take ownership of work. One person who can best set the deadlines is you yourself. Ask yourself how much time needs to be devoted to a particular task and for how many days. Use a planner to mark the important dates against the set deadlines.

4. Delegation of Responsibilities

Learn to say “NO” at workplace. Don’t do everything on your own. There are other people as well. One should not accept something which he knows is difficult for him. The roles and responsibilities must be delegated as per interest and specialization of employees for them to finish tasks within deadlines. A person who does not have knowledge about something needs more time than someone who knows the work well.

5. Prioritizing Tasks

Prioritize the tasks as per their importance and urgency. Know the difference between important and urgent work. Identify which tasks should be done within a day, which all should be done within a month and so on. Tasks which are most important should be done earlier.

6. Spending the right time on right activity

Develop the habit of doing the right thing at the right time. Work done at the wrong time is not of much use. Don’t waste a complete day on something which can be done in an hour or so. Also keep some time separate for your personal calls or checking updates on Facebook or Twitter. After all human being is not a machine.

For Effective Time Management one needs to be:

Organized - Avoid keeping stacks of file and heaps of paper at your workstation. Throw what all you don’t need. Put important documents in folders. Keep the files in their respective drawers with labels on top of each file. It saves time which goes on unnecessary searching.

Don’t misuse time - Do not kill time by loitering or gossiping around. Concentrate on your work and finish assignments on time. Remember your organization is not paying you for playing games on computer or peeping into other’s cubicles. First complete your work and then do whatever you feel like doing. Don’t wait till the last moment.

Be Focussed - One needs to be focused for effective time management.

Develop the habit of using planners, organizers, table top calendars for better time management. Set reminders on phones or your personal computers.

Also Read : Common Time Management Mistakes

Which Leadership Style to be followed ?

Without an effective leadership strategy, it is believed, that the organizational strategies do not work. Best players in a team do not guarantee success without a great coach, similarly, work teams may not function effectively if leaders do not follow an appropriate leadership strategy.

To understand leadership styles here are three scenarios - Scenario 1 - A Teacher gives a question to the class full of students, however, solves it for them; Scenario 2 - A Teacher gives the question to the students and observes how students solve them; Scenario 3 - A Teacher gives a question to the students and moves around the class, observes the students, and helps wherever required. Scenario 1 was “Leading from the Front”, Scenario 2 was “Supportive Leadership Style”, and Scenario 3 was “Interactive Leadership Style”. Besides this the leadership styles / strategies could be based on personality traits like Directive Leadership, Structured Leadership, Intuitive Leadership, or Process Driven leadership.

Here are some tips while selecting leadership strategy / style:

• A leader must be aware of his / her personality traits and those of his team members / followers to understand which leadership style will be most effective.
• A leader may not adopt a consistent leadership all through his / her career. Situational Leadership helps addressing varied needs / expectations of the followers as he the leader adopts a strategy based on a situation he / she is in. In case a leader has a self-reliant team, he needs to be using a directive leadership style or lead form the front. He could instead delegate and provide inputs where necessary.
• A common mistake especially a lot of new leaders make is to copy established / well know leaders. Remember, each situation is unique and so are the followers. A leadership style which may be suited to a well known leader may not be appropriate for your team. Make no mistake here - do not try and imitate other leaders.
• A leader will never be afraid of trying new approach to solve a work problem or address a conflicting situation. It is quite a possibility that a leader adopts a style that is not by the book.
• A leader must keep enhancing his / her leadership skills. While on the job experience matters a lot, getting enrolled into leadership courses after detailed evaluation of the program and feedback of the participants will help implementing a leadership style more effectively.

It is often said that good leaders are born and not made; however, good leaders are those who are aware of their personality traits and also of their followers. They know which leadership style is to be adopted in a particular situation. Once this is done, there is a little challenge left for a leader to become a “good / great” leader.