Time - are you maximising your returns?

April 2002

Dr Tom McConalogue
Dr Tom McConalogue is an independent consultant. As a member of the faculty of the Irish Management Institute he runs courses in Time Management. He has recently written a book on Time Management and is the author of numerous articles on the subject.

More and more people today are feeling the effects of pressure and stress at work and in their lives.

We operate in increasingly complex environments that require us to apply large amounts of knowledge in our day-to-day work activities. But how many people on their deathbeds will regret that they didn't work harder, take more work home or spend more time in the office? And how many in later life will feel remorse for how little time they gave to their families, their personal finances, to their ambitions or to their health?

Using time wisely

What makes time a difficult resource to manage and an impossible one to control are some of its unusual qualities. You will never have enough time to get everything done, you can't store it, and there is always less than you think. People who manage their time well realise that you don't have nine or ten hours in the day. If you take out of your day the time you spend on routines, distractions and queries you probably have less than two or three hours to be effective. And to use those precious hours wisely you have to do a few things.

1. Get a sense of direction into your day, week and month through having priorities and working to them. While many people have priorities they often lack the energy to pursue the bigger things as challenges.

2. Make time for important things. Most things get done if you give them time, like passing exams or developing relationships. And even if you are a busy person you can always find time for things you really want to do, as you discover when you get match tickets or the offer of a weekend in Paris.

3. Let go some of the routine and urgency in the day through better delegation. Although it is a subject in itself, one of the best places to delegate is into the waste paper basket by giving some things less time or not doing them at all.

4. Minimise the time wasters. While people complain about phone calls or e-mails most people feel a sense of loss when they are deprived of them for even an hour or two in the day. You may not be able to get rid of the time wasters altogether but you can minimise their contribution to your busy day.

Doing more with your time

Time is every bit as much a resource in your life as money, property, or equipment. What makes it a unique resource is that you can only manage it by using it wisely on the important things. While better time management is not a set of techniques for speeding up the work-flow there are a few simple things anyone can do to get a better return on their investment.

Keep a To Do List.

Most people keep lists of things they are trying to get done. It is tempting to start on the easy things in the hope that getting them done will leave time for the important things. Sadly it doesn't work that way - we always find more things to keep us from what we want to get done. The secret is to prioritise the list and get into the priorities early as a way of getting energy and to ensure you hit the important things at times of the day you have your best energy.

Do a Three Monthly Wish List.

It is easy to lose sight of the longer-term challenges and opportunities in your life or career. Get a sense and energy for where you want to go for the future by doing a list of all the things you could take on as challenges for the next few months. Pick three as priorities and break them into bite sized tasks as a way of getting started.

Diary time for yourself

We mainly use diaries as an ‘aide memoire’, in case we forget things. We also fill them up with commitments to others, and as such it is easy to become a slave to a full diary. Reverse the tendency to overcommit by blocking out time for your own projects, planning and relaxation. And where possible schedule your own commitments into the mornings.

Say ‘no’ a bit more often

Many people only learn how dispensable they are when they get sick. Test the value of some things that take up your time by delegating them to others, saying ‘no’ more often, or being more ruthless with interruptions or paperwork.

Conclusion

Time is one of the greatest gifts you can give to others. It doesn't matter how successful you are, what the key people in your life want is time. And time is also one of the best gifts you can give to yourself. What you get out of life is determined by where you put your time. Are you giving time to the things that are important to you - family, personal finance, ambitions, health? Are you getting a good return for the hours you are putting into your career? Are you getting less mileage than you should for all the running around you are doing? If so, consider whether you are investing it wisely. You can't control time but it can end up beating you.