Time Management

....
Narrator, Mahabharat Serial

Objective
To help you introspect and find
clues to improve your time management &
thereby enhance effectiveness

Time management : What is it?

Doing the Right things and not setting Things right
In control of Life, not driven by circumstances
Enjoying JOURNEY of life: every day of it, not waiting
for a perfect day in future
Having right balance in wheel of life

Time Management
To get most output within given resources
To get time for important issues in life
To feel fairly satisfied , secure & on top of
things
And thereby enjoy stress free life

Time Management
The issue is not Awareness but Action
The Action happens when we say
I cant live with this any more.
I need to find an answer fast

Common Problems
I am very busy. The second crisis comes in before the first
has finished
I wish I have more than 24 hours per day so that I can get
more things done
The system overloads me with work. There is no time to
breathe

I dont feel I have achieved anything this year/in my life

I dont have control on my life. Things pile one on top of
the other

Where are You..

20% people feel they are short
of time. They feel so concerned that
they self find answers to Time Mgmt

10% people feel they are short

of time. They realise this and
are keen to get help and see
how they can improve Time Mgmt

70% people feel they are not short

of time. Though they dont mind
listening to someone. And then
tell him why all that is impractical

Balance your life

Family

Finance

Health

Work

Balance in Life is
important
Recognize each aspect of
life
I am not getting enough
time for family/personal
life because of Work
80% of day is spent at
work

The "Three Ps" of Effective Time

Management

1. Planning.
2. Procrastination.
3. Priorities.

PERSONAL GOAL SETTING

PLANNING TO LIVE YOUR LIFE YOUR WAY

I Dont Have Time!

Have you ever thought to yourself, But I dont have time
to set goals! Im too busy working!

In the long run, its one of the most effective time-saving

strategies you can pursue.
It simply isnt possible to maximize the use of your time if
you dont have a clear idea of what youre trying to
accomplishboth short term and long term.
Carving out a small amount of time each week to devote
to reviewing your goals can work wonders for providing
the focus you need to allocate your time productively.

Why Set Goals?

Goal setting is used by top-level athletes, successful
business-people and achievers in all fields.
Setting goals gives you long-term vision and shortterm motivation.
It focuses your acquisition of knowledge, and helps
you to organize your time and your resources so that
you can make the very most of your life
You also raise your self-confidence, as you recognize
your own ability and competence in achieving the
goals that you've set.

Starting to Set Personal Goals

You set your goals on a number of levels:
First you create your "big picture" of what you want to do
with your life (or over, say, the next 10 years), and
identify the large-scale goals that you want to achieve.
Then, you break these down into the smaller and smaller
targets that you must hit to reach your lifetime goals.
Finally, once you have your plan, you start working on it
to achieve these goals.

Define Your Lifes Key Areas

Career - What level do you want to reach in your career,
or what do you want to achieve?
Financial - How much do you want to earn, by what
stage? How is this related to your career goals?
Education - Is there any knowledge you want to acquire
in particular? What information and skills will you need
to have in order to achieve other goals?
Family - Do you want to be a parent? If so, how are you
going to be a good parent? How do you want to be seen
by a partner or by members of your extended family?

Define Your Lifes Key Areas

Artistic - Do you want to achieve any artistic goals?
Attitude Is there any part of the way that you behave
that upsets you? (If so, set a goal to improve your
behavior or find a solution to the problem.)
Physical - Do you want good health deep into old age?
What steps are you going to take to achieve this?
Pleasure - How do you want to enjoy yourself? (You
should ensure that some of your life is for you!)
Public Service - Do you want to make the world a better
place? If so, how?
Spiritual Do you want to achieve Nirvana

Goal Setting Example

Financial - Buy a House/Car

Career - Be a manager
Pleasure - Go on Europe Tour
Artistic Learn Guitar

Setting your goals

Must be Concrete
Must be Measurable
Must be in Writing
Must be Achievable
Must be Deadlined
SMART Goals (Specific, Measurable, Achievable,
Relevant, Time Bound)

CONVERTING GOALS INTO

ACTIONABLE

Breaking Goals into Smaller Actionables

Career Goal- "To be managing editor of the magazine that I
work for."
Five-year goal: "Become deputy editor."
One-year goal: "Volunteer for projects that the current
Managing Editor is heading up."
Six-month goal: "Go back to school and finish my
journalism degree."
One-month goal: "Talk to the current managing editor to
determine what skills are needed to do the job."
One-week goal: "Book the meeting with the Managing
Editor."

EIGHT COMMON GOAL SETTING

MISTAKES

Common Goal Setting Mistakes

Mistake 1: Setting Unrealistic Goals
Mistake 2: Focusing on Too Few Areas
Mistake 3: Underestimating Completion Time
Mistake 4: Not Appreciating Failure

Common Goal Setting Mistakes

Mistake 5: Setting "Other People's Goals"
Mistake 6: Not Reviewing Progress
Mistake 7: Setting "Negative" Goals
Mistake 8: Setting Too Many Goals

Procrastination
Procrastination is the Art of putting
things off

Procrastination What is it?

To voluntarily delay an intended course of action
despite expecting to be worse off for the delay
(Piers Steel)
Put off intentionally the doing of something that
should be done (Merriam-Webster Collegiate
Dictionary)
To postpone doing something, especially as a
regular practice (Encarta World Dictionary)

Cycle Timeline
Panic & Stress Set In
Deadline is Set
False Sense of Security

There are 2 weeks

until the assignment
is due.

II

I have plenty
of time.

Time Passes

III

I will get started soon,

I only work well under
pressure.

IV

Oh no! The
assignment is due
tomorrow!

Typical causes of procrastination

Internal Forces
Note that four of the causes (those in the
shaded boxes) are primarily inner rooted.
They arise, for the most part, from the
procrastinators psyche.

Is procrastination embedded in your

personality?
If you answer yes to any of the following questions, you may
have the tendency to procrastinate embedded in your
personality:
When you were in school, did you usually cram before a
test?
Do you often put off returning a call to someone you
dont like, even if its important?
Do you wait until you have dental problems to see your
dentist?
Have you had an unintentional late finance charge in the
last three months?
Do you wait until a deadline

External Forces
Even if you usually dont procrastinate, your
environment can impose procrastination on
you. Figure below gives, in the clear unshaded
boxes, the four typical external reasons for
procrastination.

To overcome procrastination:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.

SWAP.
Perfection is not always Good
You do not work best under pressure.
Define exactly what needs to be done.
Prioritize the Task.
Divide the cake- tackle the job in smaller steps.
Decide the dead line.
Eliminate interruptions.
Reward yourself

SWAP
You cannot be good at everything
Know when you can exchange work with a
fellow colleague
Take part of project work which you know you
would enjoy

Perfection is not always Good

Good Enough is Good Enough-Stop trying to make

things perfectly as you will end up never doing

it.
Get it right the first time Plan the work so
well that you will make the least mistakes. This
also saves time.

Making the Best Use of Time

Decide that you dont have to please everyone.
Let godont be a perfectionist.
Resist the temptation to do small, insignificant tasks
too well.
Outsource what you can.

You do not work best under pressure Timing

Knowing when not to work is as important as
knowing when to work.
Save the easiest tasks for the end of the day.

Am I trying to Tick when my Body

Wants to Tock?
Circadian Rhythms Circadian rhythms are internal biological
clocks that regulate many functions and
activities, including sleep, temperature,
metabolism, alertness, blood pressure, heart
rate and hormone levels and immunities.
About every 24 hours our bodies cycle
through metabolic and chemical changes.
These Circadian Rhythms are reset by
sunlight each morning.
Whether you are a Morning Person or a
Night Owl is determined by these cycles.

Maximize your Efficiency

Work With Your Body Cycles-not Against Them
If we learn to listen to our
bodies, we can work with
these natural rhythms
instead of fighting them.
We can make more
efficient use of our time by
scheduling certain
activities at certain times
of the day.

Cognitive Tasks
8am - 12 noon*
Cognitive, or mental,
tasks such as reading,
calculating, and problem
solving are performed
most efficiently in the
morning.
*If you are a Night Owl, shift these times about 3-4 hours later in the day.

Short term memory

6 am - 10 am
Short term memory tasks
such as last minute
reviewing for tests are
best performed early in
the morning.

Long term memory

1 pm - 4pm
Longer term Memory tasks
such
as
memorizing
speeches and information
for application are best
performed
in
the
afternoon.

Manual Dexterity
2 pm to 6 pm
You are most efficient at
tasks involving the use of
your hands such as
keyboarding and carpentry
in the afternoon and early
evening.

Physical Workouts
4 pm to 9 pm
Because of Circadian Rhythms it is best to engage in
physical activity in the evening when your large muscle
coordination is at its peak.
Studies show you will perceive the workout to be easier in
the evening.
Exercising about 5 hours before bedtime improves the
quality of sleep.

Prioritizing - The ABC System

A tasks: Critical and time-sensitive
B tasks: Important, but slightly less
time-sensitive than A Tasks
C tasks: Not time-sensitiveyet
D tasks: Optionalnice, but neither
important nor time-sensitive

Urgent Important Matrix

Urgent

Non-Urgent

Important

Do it now
A

Unimportant

Delegate or do it
later
C

Timetable it or
later
B
Dont do it
D

Conquer Procrastination
Why is C fever as common as the cold?
The A tasks may :

Produce minimal endorphins

Be too lengthy
Be too difficult
Be too threatening because of the possibility of
failure
Be too threatening because of the possibility of
success

Its All about Endorphins The Feel Good Hormone

Develop a Conditioned Response to the Tasks you
Procrastinate
Set a goal to complete a task/project
After completing the task, reward yourself with
something that is pleasurable for you
The body releases endorphins- the feel good
hormone
Over time with repetition, you will come to associate
feeling good with completing a task/project
You wont procrastinate as much

Eating the Elephant

Question:How do you eat an
elephant? Answer:One bite at a
time.
Theres great wisdom in this venerable
saying. Overwhelming responsibilities
or projects that seem indigestible
the very kind we often dangerously
procrastinate onbecome easier to
deal with when we nibble away at
them one bite at a time.

Break It Down

Divide and Conquer Procrastination

A father gave his son a bundle of sticks and asked
him to break it. After the boy struggled, the
father took the bundle, untied it and broke one
stick at a time.
We procrastinate because the A tasks seem too
lengthy or too difficult
Divide a lengthy task into smaller, shorter parts that
seem easier to complete
Divide a forty page chapter into 10 page sections
Reward yourself after completing each section.

Managing Interruptions
If no one asked questions we wouldn't have
jobs.
Anticipate the most common questions.
Try closing your door or arranging your office
to discourage drop- ins.
If all else fails, hide.

Reward yourself
Pre-decide some sort of reward for the work
you have been procrastinating
Higher the Priority Higher the award
Celebrate even small completions

Benefits of Overcoming Procrastination

Peace of Mind
Feeling strong

Taking charge of your life

Feeling competent

Experience personal freedom

Eighty Six Thousand

Four Hundred
Picture this:
Each day your bank deposits

$86,400 in your checking

account.
Theres just one catch.
You have to spend it all in one
day.
You cant carry over any
money to the next day.

What would you do?

DUH?
Youd spend it all,
Right?

24 hours per day

X
60 minutes per hour
X
60 seconds per minute
=

86,400 Seconds

Every Second Counts

Spend every second in an efficient and
productive way
If you fail to use the days deposits, the loss
is yours.

To Realize the Value of:

ONE YEAR, ask a student who failed a grade.
ONE MONTH, ask a mother who gave birth to a
premature baby.
ONE WEEK, ask the editor of a weekly newspaper.
ONE DAY, ask a daily wage laborer with kids to feed.
ONE HOUR, ask the lovers who are waiting to meet.
ONE MINUTE, ask a person who missed the train.
ONE SECOND, ask a person who just avoided an accident.
ONE MILLISECOND, ask the person who won a silver
medal in the Olympics.

Decide to be on top the situation

rather than be part of the mess

Wish you all the Best