Follow basic principles and learn how to be effective in time management6 min read
INTRO
Today I’ll be writing about a little bit different topic. Topic regarding very important skill, of any developer, manager and anyone who wants to excel in private or professional life should be acquainted with.
Since, previously in my life, I’ve been mostly unorganized person I’ve decided to take everything into my own hands. I’ve decided to get the most of my, available, time resource.
WHAT IS TIME?
Time is one of the strictly defined resources, which every one of us has in the same amount.
But the way we use our limited time resources is something that differentiates successful people from the rest.
How to handle time resources is not just important in our everyday job but also in our everyday life.
If you didn’t watch “In Time” movie with Justin Timberlake, please watch it. It’s a great movie showing, what would it look like if money would be switched by time as a means of a transaction.
Effects of good time management are visible in achieving better company results, creating a better working environment vibe, greater individual satisfaction, etc…
WHY IS TIME MANAGEMENT A SKILL GOOD TO MASTER?
Individuals with better time management skills are often the ones who need less attention when dealing with everyday company tasks, thus, making a greater impact on the company overall. As they are more prone to committing and achieving company goals.
What does it mean? Well, it means they are more productive, and effective in executing assigned tasks. They are less prone to stress, more focused, handle problems more easily, they more grow self-esteem, and make themselves more free time!
Having good time management skills means you know how to:
⦁ prioritize
⦁ plan
⦁ delegate
⦁ strike (to-do lists) out
Nevertheless, time management, as well as planning, are often tied with psychology strategies.
Which often requires individual to be clear-minded, persistent, resilient to side effects and able to adapt quickly when changes arise.
As you can see, I wrote “when changes arise” not “if“!
Because it’s not matter of time if something will arise but when will it arise.
SO WHAT IS TIME?
Time is a category that is hard to define, but in our reality, it’s a bunch of events tied together in a 24h structure.
- It’s not replaceable.
Once you’ve spent your time, it’s gone. No turning back! - Invaluable!
You can’t buy it or trade it as a physical good (though you can buy someone else’s time to achieve your own goals). - Not storable/stashable
You can’t accumulate it like money on a bank account
aaaaaaand YOU
- Never, ever, can’t have enough time
Stating above, of what time is, there is a high need for good time management skills. By being good in time management, we can fulfill our goals and be maximum productive as we can be.
Since time management is tied with own individual personality, it’s a must for an individual to know, how and when, will he or she, use own time and execute tasks. You should become like a Prince of Persia main character!
EFFECTIVENESS VS BUSYNESS
Effectiveness is key. Not busyness.
It’s more important to have 1 or 2 tasks done than be occupied with 5 or more tasks without completing any of them.
POSITIVE EFFECTS OF GOOD TIME MANAGEMENT
Time management requires good self-discipline to achieve positive effects like:
- less stress
- more tasks done
- focus
- more free time
- more opportunities
- better self-esteem
NEGATIVE EFFECTS
What are the negative effects of poor time management skills?
- missing deadlines
- inefficiency
- poor quality work
- poor self-esteem
- procrastination
- lack of focus and goals
PRIORITIZING AND DEFINING GOALS
A core principle of good time management skills is to know, how to prioritize and clearly define goals.
An individual should be able to set a realistic goal. Not the one which is too ambitious or on the other hand underestimated goal.
To achieve a clear vision of the end result, you need to set yourself a series of questions, which are going to define your goal at the end.
So you should take your time and pencil, then start writing questions like:
- What is my end goal? (live a happy life)
- How can I achieve a happy life? (have a family, be healthy, more income..)
- How to be healthy? (eat healthier, train, smile more often, etc…)
As you write things on a paper, it’s much easier to notice realistic goals you wish to achieve.
After defining goals, it’s time to prioritize. The key to prioritizing is not putting as many to-dos, but to distinguish important from less important tasks. Since there are a bunch of methods how to prioritize, one of my favorites is Eisenhower matrix.
I won’t delve into this matrix, just visit here for more info.
What I learned from this matrix is that one of the key parts of prioritizing is to learn how to say NO.
LEARN TO SAY NO!
By learning to say NO to a bunch of stuff you are motivating yourself, as well as focusing yourself, into achieving end goals.
So if you are focused and motivated enough your task is more likely to be completed with ease. Being proactive is a sign of a healthy mind.
Staying active means we will do each and every day at least 1% of our end goal tasks until we’ve finished it.
MULTITASKING IS THE ENEMY
Multitasking is the greatest enemy of focus and achieving end goals.
I learned that the hard way. Sometimes I’m still learning when I get distracted. So every day is a new struggle, a new fight against multitasking.
So, to stay focused and motivated, I highly recommend Pomodoro technique.
As with the Eisenhower matrix, I won’t delve into the Pomodoro technique either. The picture is self-explanatory.
EXECUTE AND MEASURE
After setting goals, prioritizing, and writing to-dos, it’s EXECUTION TIME.
By using the above techniques, you are getting sniper sharp, about executing your tasks and goals.
One of the crucial things to note is measuring and visualizing all success by steps. That way motivation stays high and your self-esteem grows.
As with anything in life, there are a bunch of obstacles we all encounter during our journey to our end goals.
So it’s important to be consistent, true to yourself and your goals, flexible when avoiding obstacles and you need to evaluate work in each step.
During evaluation time you can see clearly what you could have done better. That way you will be more prepared for upcoming tricky situations and less stressed.
GRAND FINALE
Since time management is so important in every aspect of our lives, no wonder each and every day a bunch of smart people related to the economy and psychology field is trying to get time management system even better.
Being good at time management is one of the key ingredients in being more effective, more productive, and more self-pleased.
So go and get your sh*t together!
Grab pen and paper, notebooks, apps, gadgets or whatever it takes for you to get your time management right!
Bend time by YOUR rules, don’t let the time passes by and folds You!!!