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Time management

There are four things to take into account as you manage your time more effectively.

 

1. Your own activity preferences - which is your best time of day?

 

Most people have a more effective time of day, they may be "morning people" or they may really come alive later in the day. Get clear about your best time, and plan to do the more challenging or significant activities then.

 

2. The things you actually need to do - what are the priorities, how do you manage them effectively?

 

It's important to have a basic plan about what needs to be done, in the day and in the week, and how important each item is - not only important in the moment, but also in terms of its long term effects. You need to include the 'people' issues in your plan as well as the tasks, so as to keep everyone working at their best.

 

3. The "time-wasting" activities you may have to be involved in - how can you make them more useful?

 

You may have to do things that don't fit into your plan or your priorities. In most cases you can make them valuable by for example getting to know how different people operate, making connections, or even just thinking about useful things.

 

Be aware that sitting and fuming about the waste of time is probably the most time-wasting thing you can do.

 

4. The importance of being realistic about what you can achieve.

 

When starting a new new role as a manager it's easy to work too hard, to get very stressed, to lose sight of what's achievable, in your anxiety to prove yourself in these first months. A priority list can certainly help with this; noticing your own stress and anxiety is also important; and if need be you should talk to your own manager about your workload.

 

An informal 'risk assessment' is worth doing if you're overloaded. For each activity on your list, write the ansers to these questions: "What's the worst thing that can happen if I don't do this?" and "What's the worst thing that can happen if I do it quickly and incompletely?" When you have done this, consider what the item with the most acceptable risk is ("the least worst possible outcome").

 

This will help you decide what can be realistically left out at least for this week. Working with a high level of stress is ineffective and will do you no good in the long run.