TOP
FIVE TIME MANAGEMENT MISTAKES
By:
Dr. Donald E. Wetmore
In my
thirty years as a Time Management speaker and consultant, I have observed a lot of
what we can and should not do to increase our daily results. Time management is
not necessarily working “harder”, but rather, “smarter”.
And to
accomplish significantly more in our days, we need not increase our efforts. As an
example, in a horserace, the first horse may earn a $50,000 purse and the second
horse may earn a $25,000 purse. The first horse gets twice as much money as the
second horse, not because it ran twice as far or twice as fast. It was only a
“nose ahead” of the competition.
So it is
with our daily results. We need not run twice as fast or put in twice the effort
to significantly increase our daily success. We only need to be a “nose ahead”
of where we already are. We are all productive in our days. We would not survive
the demands of this world if we were not. The real challenge is how much more
productive can we become?
A lot of
our Time Management has to do more with what we are not doing rather than what we
are doing. Sometimes our mistakes and omissions will keep us from running at a
full pace.
Here are
the Top Five Time Management Mistakes we should all avoid to help us to increase
our daily success both on and off the job, in less time and with less stress.
1.
Start
your day without a plan of action.
You will begin your day by responding to the loudest voice (the squeaky wheel gets
the grease) and spend it in a defensive mode, responding to other people’s and
events’ demands. The tail will wag the dog. If there is a void of leadership in
your Time Management life, someone will fill that void, not that others are bad
people, but others will take all of your time if you let them. You will have
worked hard but may not have done enough of right things. Time Management is not
doing the wrong things quicker. That just gets us nowhere faster. Time Management
is doing the right things.
2.
Get
out of balance in your life.
Our lives are made up of Seven Vital Areas: Health, Family, Financial,
Intellectual, Social, Professional, and Spiritual. We will not necessarily spend
time every day in each area or equal amounts of time in each area. But, if in the
long run, we spend a sufficient quantity and quality of time in each area, our
lives will be in balance. But if we neglect any one area, never mind two or three,
we will eventually sabotage our success. Much like a table, if one leg is longer
than the rest, it will make the entire table wobbly. If we don’t take time for
health, our family life and social life are hurt. If our financial area is out of
balance, we will not be able to focus adequately on our professional goals, etc.
3.
Work
with a messy desk or work area.
Studies have shown that the person who works with a messy desk spends, on average,
one and a half hours per day looking for things or being distracted by things.
That’s seven and a half hours per week. (“Out of sight-out of mind.” And the
reverse of that is true too, “In sight, in mind”). And, it’s not a solid
block of an hour and a half, but a minute here and a minute there, and like a
leaky hot water faucet, drip, drip, drip, it doesn’t seem like a major loss, but
at the end the day, we’re dumping gallons of hot water down the drain that we
are paying to heat. If you have ever visited the office of a top manager,
typically, that person is working with a clean desk environment. Many would
attribute this practice to that person’s access to other staff members. While
there may be some truth in that conclusion, in most cases, if we went back some
years in that person’s career, they probably were working with a clean desk back
then which gave them the focus they needed to become promoted to where they are
today.
4.
Don’t
get enough sleep. Studies show
that nearly 75% of us complain on a regular basis, all throughout our days, that
we are flat-out tired. For most people, they get the quantity of sleep, but they
lack the quality of sleep. Their days are filled with so much stress, they are out
of control, working harder but maybe not smarter, that it’s difficult to get a
full night’s sleep. (For some, they simply do not allow for a sufficient
quantity of sleep.) If you will plan your day, then work your plan, you will get
more done, feel a higher sense of accomplishment, and experience less stress and
enjoy a more restful night’s sleep.
5.
Don’t
take a lunch break. Many do
not take a lunch break, working through that time period in the hope that it will
give them more time to produce results. Studies have shown it may work just the
opposite. After doing what we do for several hours, we start to “dull out”.
Sure, we can work through lunch and be productive, but that is not the issue. The
issue is “how much more” productive we can be. A lunch break, even a short
fifteen-minute break, gives us a chance to get our batteries all charged up again
to more effectively handle the afternoon’s challenges. We are then less likely
to procrastinate a few of those difficult tasks that, in the long run, will make a
positive difference in our personal productivity.
If these ideas were helpful, we have prepared an
additional article entitled, “Top Five Best Time Management Practices”. It’s
free. If you would like a copy, email your request for “top five” to: ctsem@msn.com
Dr.
Donald E. Wetmore
Professional Speaker
Productivity Institute
Time Management Seminars
127 Jefferson St.
Stratford, CT 06615
(203) 386-8062 (800) 969-3773
Fax: (203) 386-8064
Email: ctsem@msn.com
Visit Our Time Management Supersite: http://www.balancetime.com
Professional
Member-National Speakers Association
Copyright
1999
