by Natalia Jones

Created on: October 01, 2009

Mastering time management strategies helps you to improve your performance at work but there is an even greater reward; the peace of mind to know that you are getting the job done right and on time.

The following tips will help you to claim your piece of satisfaction.

1. Set goals and targets. Monthly goals provide direction for your efforts. If you are not sure what you would like to achieve it is highly likely that you may be jumping all over the place and performing tasks at random. Goals give your work life a structure that makes it possible to manage both your time and your results. Targets are generally short term goals. They can be used to drill down your monthly goal to a weekly or even daily task that is easier to track.

2. Prioritize. Knowing how to prioritize is extremely important. You must be able to determine if one task is urgent while the other is important but not detrimental and so can wait. Prioritizing gives your list of tasks even more meaning and structure because it means that you can tell what your next action should be at a glance without spending valuable time starting another project only to realize that something else was more pressing.

4. Delegate. Each person must be able to define their High Payoff Activities (HPAs). These are the actions that contribute the most towards your overall goals. Everything else can be delegated, but these must be handled personally. Assigning smaller tasks to others gives them the opportunity to grow and frees up your time to work on your high payoff activities.

5. Listen to your internal clock. Everyone works on a different clock. Some are more focused in the morning, while others get their inspiration in the afternoon. You should assign your intense tasks for the time of day that you are usually the most productive, so you can make the most of your productivity.

6. Don't multitask. Doing more than one thing at a time may be great for circus performers, but unless your job is to juggle knives while walking on the back of an elephant to elicit high pitched screams from a thrilled audience, you should probably focus on one thing at a time. Attacking one task at a time ensures that you give the job your full attention and minimizes the risk of rework and so saves time in the long run.

7. Finish what you start. You should try to adopt a 'one touch' system. This means that you should not start a project if you know you will not be able to finish it in the time you have left, but rather attempt something smaller to fill the time. This means that you will not waste time getting reacquainted with the task but can start fresh and then move on with momentum.

8. Plan for the next day today. This means you should end each day with a planning session for the following day. There may be no bigger time saver than waking up to an already prepared plan.

Incorporating time management strategies into your everyday working life takes dedication and effort because they may not come naturally, but they definitely pay great dividends over the course of your career. If you want to become an expert in your field and be as marketable as you can be, mastering time management techniques can give you the edge you may need to stand out from the crowd.

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