Time Management

Shailendra Singh, Ph.D.

Indian Institute of Management Lucknow
Shail@iiml.ac.in
The importance of work-life balance

• To maintain your mental health (reduce stress)

• To ensure your physical health and wellbeing
• It increases productivity
• Become a more rounded individual
• You only get one life!
Procrastination
• Procrastination : Putting off the doing of something
intentionally and habitually.
• If you suspect yourself; ask yourself – why am I putting this
off?. If there is no reason. Do it. Do not confuse reason
with excuse.
• PROCRASTINATION is world’s number one time waster.
Banish it from your life. There is no time like present to do
any work.
 Steps to
managing your time well
• Prioritize tasks
• Get Organized
• Overcome procrastination
• Let go of perfectionism
• Manage disruptions
• Avoid taking on too much
Organizing: The to-do list
• Helps you prioritize
• Helps you overcome procrastination
• It’s a critical starting point
• not a stand–alone tool
ABC of Prioritizing

1. Write to-do list

2. Review list: Break large tasks into smaller tasks
3. Prioritize by ABCs
4. Delegate those tasks more appropriate for someone else
5. Schedule your day (week). Assign a deadline for each task.
6. Consider your daily cycle (most demanding tasks when you are
most focused/ energized)
A Priorities
• Urgent AND important
• Support a long term goal
• Support others you work with
• Ask: What terrible thing would happen if I
didn’t do this today?
• Only top priorities get A category
B Priorities
• Important but not urgent
• Mild consequences for not doing this (e.g. some may be unhappy or
inconvenienced)
• Time (waiting period) usually elevates to A or drops to C
• Never do a B task when there is an A task the needs to be finished
C Priorities
• Not important or urgent
• Sometimes are not important but are urgent
• No consequences for not doing this
• Nice to do
Prioritization Grid (Covey)
URGENT NOT URGENT

A B
Deadline Paper due next month

Important
Presentation tomorrow Planning
Scheduled at work Some calls or requests

Pick child up at daycare Rejuvenation time

C C
Not important

Interruptions Trivia
Disruptions Busy work
Some calls Time wasters
Friend asks favor Gaming, Facebook
Overcoming procrastination
• Recognize that you are procrastinating
• Evaluate and diagnose your procrastination: e.g. reasons, what parts
of the task,
• Take counter-measures against procrastination:
• use to-do list
• break large tasks into smaller parts
• schedule specific times to do things you are mostly likely to put off
• address reasons (e.g. don’t like the task, hard to start, fear of failure)
• reward yourself for starting and finishing
Managing disruptions
• Disruptions are often urgent (at least in the mind of the person
presenting them) but not important
• Identify recurring interruptions and distractions
• Keep a log
• Learn to say no: Be polite but assertive
• Other tips: Establish available/not available hours, turn off IM Chat;
use Outlook to identify uninterruptable time
• Set limits with necessary interruptions
• e.g. I have five minutes, I can do this tomorrow
More disruption diffusing tips
• Remind yourself: Your Availability ≠ Your Importance
• Develop phrases that deflect the “Got a minute?” intrusion to a later
time
• Use “modified” open door policy
• Consider working in another location sometimes
• Configure your office so your desk faces the door
• Stand up on the entry of intrusive visitors
• Schedule meetings in other person’s office
Learn to say “No!”
Avoid the temptation to socialize when you’ve scheduled
work.
If friends ask you to join them last minute, decline
outright, but ask if you could get together later in the
week.
Socializing is important when you don’t have other things
to worry about!
Study somewhere you won’t be tempted to chat, watch
movies or YouTube, or use social utilities like Facebook.
Texts are a major distraction.
Managers Time

• Planning is key managerial function but

research shows that less than 5% of
management time goes on planning.
• Pareto Principle : Twenty percent of your
time will produce 80% of your productive
output. Can you afford not to manage at-
least that 20% ?
• Parkinson’s Law : Work expands to fill the
time available for it. Beware !
Pareto Analysis
• 20% of tasks or a person’s efforts will produce 80% of the result
• Tasks that generate the greatest return should be completed first
• Prioritizing tasks is critically important because
small business owners usually juggle many
priorities
Time Wasters: Meetings
• Meetings are potential time wasters.
• Meetings are necessary evil; distractions from one’s regular
work.
• Try to say ‘No’ to a meeting where you are not required.
• Agenda should be definite. Every one should receive the
agenda and relevant papers well in advance.
• There should be a finishing time for meeting.
Boss/Chairperson
• Call only those who are involved
• Have a written agenda and circulate to all along with supporting
papers
• Do not over-pack the agenda
• Agenda should not have ‘Any other item’
• Start on time
• Stick to agenda
• Beware of ‘Hijackers’
Invitees
• Come prepared (with facts and figures)
• Come on time
• Talk to the point.Do not try to divert the discussion
• Do not try to hijack the meeting
Summing UP
Performance, health and happiness are grounded in the skillful
management of energy” Jim Loehr & Tony Schwartz

• Managing Time = balance

• Allows you put energy towards things you value
• Short-term and long-term goals
• Reduces stress
Thank You