Title: Getting Things Done: Time Management Tips
Author:
Section/SPIG: Health Administration
Issue Date:
Here is a useful list of suggestions for increasing your productivity and reducing clutter.
Don't fill up the filing cabinet. When setting up files, don't cram too much into each drawer. Leave plenty of space for expansion.
Interruptions vs. opportunities. Try to keep interruptions to a minimum, but don't be so obsessed with priority tasks that you miss out on something even more important. Recognize that any interruptions are opportunities coming at inopportune times. Allow time in your schedule to respond to these immediately - before the opportunity is lost.
Street Smart. Everything requires time. And time is a non-renewable resource in limited supply. When choosing what to do next, determine the investment of time needed and compare it to the benefits the completed task will provide. Mark H. McCormack, in his book, "Staying Streetsmart in the Internet Age" (Viking Penguin, 2000) uses this strategy to determine when he should say No. To quote him: "Everyday business decisions such as where I travel and whom I meet are guided by how much time they require of me and how much reward will result from the investment of time. If the time investment outweighs the reward, I'll usually say no to an opportunity to which other less time-conscious executives might say yes."
Voice mail vs. e-mail. Marjorie Brody, CEO of Brody Communications Ltd. suggests that if a message is longer than 30 seconds, it's probably better to send e-mail.
Keep e-mail brief. Don't go beyond one screen and keep sentences short, between 10 - 25 words. The shorter the sentences, the more readable the e-mail becomes.
E-mail training. Collect examples of well-written e-mail messages and post them on the Intranet so employees can use them for reference.
Exercise. Bob Adams, in his book, "The Everything Time Management Book", suggests that exercise be a part of everyone's schedule, even if it's only 10 minutes per day. He claims that the time you spend making excuses for not exercising is the time you could be using to exercise.
These tips were taken from several issues of Taylor's Time Tips, an electronic newsletter and used with permission of the author. Harold L. Taylor is the author of 'Making Time Work for You.' Subscribe to Taylor's Time Tips at <www.TaylorOnTime.com> .