Time Management

							Time Management
 Is it a waste of time?
            Time Management
• Effective time management is a requirement of most
  occupations. Students have a significant degree of
  discretion as to how they utilise their time.

• Appreciating some of the issues related to the
  management of time is likely to be of benefit to students.

• The concept of time management can be addressed in a
  broad or narrow way, e.g. narrow could include time
  management of specific tasks or projects, broad can
  address the utilisation of time in general.
         Time Management
• Time is a resource and managing time is
  just the same as managing other
  resources; objectives need to be set in
  accordance with a set of aims. Progress in
  achieving those objectives is then
  monitored, decisions on deviations from
  the plan are made and any action that
  needs be taken is planned and
  implemented.
             Time Management
• Some observations on time are:
• Time is a finite and transient resource.
• You own your time. Your employer, the educational
  establishment , your family, etc all utilise your time. To
  some extent you sub-contract your time usually for a
  reward (payoff).
• Some of your time once sub-contracted is only your
  partially under your control, i.e. some of your time is
  then under the control of e.g. your employer or the
  course tutor etc.
• Perhaps you feel that you own all of your time, hardly
  any of your time, or some of your time.
            Time Management
•   One thing is quite clear with regard to time
    management and that is if it is to be successful then,
    one has to accept that you both own and have control
    over time and its utilisation.

•   If you accept that you can exert control over your time
    the next question is why should try to exert any control
    over it?

•   An answer to this question could be ‘so that I can more
    likely achieve my aims and objectives’.
           Time Management
• This leads us to the question ‘what are your
  aims and objectives’?
• The answer to this question usually requires
  some thought. In the strategic management
  approach before any long term goals and
  sometimes medium term goals can be set, you
  ought to decide what is/are your mission(s) or
  aims in life at least for the foreseeable future.
  The goals and objectives are then seen as
  means of living you life according to your own
  mission statement.
            Time Management
•   A key point in time management is the statement that ‘I
    am responsible for what I want to achieve’, other
    people and organisations are in supporting roles to
    help me achieve my objectives. This shouldn’t be
    construed as being egotistical, your goals can still be
    to help others. It's just that to exert some degree of
    control of time you need attempt to become its master
    (even though there’s some degree of self -deception
    here).

•   Often misquoted Pareto an Italian mathematician
    observed that 80% of value results from 20% of effort,
    and vice versa.
         Time Management
• Some actions that result in time being
  wasted:
• Having a lack of priorities.
• Poor communication.
• Poor delegation.
• Unclear responsibility.
• Indecision.
• Crisis management.
            Time Management
•   An inability to say no.
•   Being involved too much.
•   An inability to finish.
•   Lack of self-discipline.
•   Interruptions.
•   Difficulty in obtaining information.
•   Personal disorganisation.
       Time Management
• In my opinion the greatest time
  wasting activity is “Doing the
  wrong thing”
           Time Management
• Some ideas for enhancing your time
  management are:
• Define your goals and priorities, how long should
  you spend on each of them?
• Find out how long do you actually spend on
  tasks.
• Think of your life/projects as a tree with a central
  trunk (mission), major branches (key aims long
  term objectives)), minor branches (medium term
  objectives) and twigs (short term objectives) etc.
         Time Management
• Think also of time as a tree, broken down
  into key areas (time division multiplexing)
  again into branches etc.
• Utilisation of time and your goals can now
  be mapped onto each other and
  compared.
          Time Management
• Some hints for time management in a work
  environment are:
• Set up a fixed daily routine, schedule defined
  times for routine things.
• Do things that require maximum brain activity
  when you are at your best.
• Set deadlines for tasks.
• Do not postpone matters that are unpleasant,
  they’ll hamper your brain activity.
• Put everything that is not important.
           Time Management
• Fix definite times when you do not want to be
  disturbed.
• Do one thing at a time, but sequence your tasks
  appropriately e.g. you can start of one-task
  suspend work on it and start another task.
  You've got two tasks running but only working
  on one.
• Plan ahead.
• If you start a piece of work that can be finished,
  then finish it, or at least finish a defined section
  of the work, otherwise you’ll have to retrace your
  steps again we you re-start the work.
          Time Management
• Arrange to have sufficient breaks, but
  beware they are not replacement
  activities.
• Learn to say no, i.e. be assertive with
  yourself and others.
• If you are a student and since you spent
  most of your time studying, become an
  efficient learner. But that’s another lecture.