by Joseph Wardy

Created on: December 09, 2009

The introduction of time management into your working life is really a myth. How do we manage that which is completely fair to all in terms of 24 hours in a day? How do we save time when there is nothing to save and everything to spend?

As a former trainer who taught time management to thousands of professionals, it is a marketing ploy to call the skill time management and is used as a way to market participants into programs. What a professional manages are the event thatcomprise their time But who would attend a Seminar called Events Management? The whole day spent at work is a whole event comprised of smaller sized events throughout. Here are three suggestions on managing events effectively:

1) Start with the end in mind. Write down the purpose of your work day. If you can do this, you start with the conclusion and spend the day meeting the end in mind, Then, look at your calendar and separate into time vs tasks. Time are those events of larger time segments that you have no control over such as meetings and conferences. Add to these hours extra time. How many meetings end on time? And interruptions will always be there without any control. This realistically assesses how much true time you have for the smaller tasks or events.

2) Do a " To Do" Plus List. A To Do List is in of itself is haphazard listing of what must get done. Those who stop here usually go about their list either by 1) Completing each task in the order it was written down or 2) Look for those tasks that we like to do. Here is my suggestion: List tasks are connected to your purpose ( end in mind). Then prioritize them by an A or a B. A's are critically important and B's are important. To differentiate between the two, A's are tasks that have consequences if not completed or are related to your business values and goals.

3) Interruptions are event. Every interruption represents a coping skill and is not fully under your control. Consider the following: each interruption is an opportunity to practice communications skills and the lack of this skill results in "burning bridges". General suggestion: When interrupted and under duress, say something like,  I can give you one minute now or more time later. If they choose the latter, write in a time in your planner for them to observe. If your boss interrupts, tell him what you are working on and put the ball in his court.

Hopefully, one of these suggestions can work for you!

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