I'm sure we've all had the experience of having a certain block of time available, and our to-do list tasks or goals that we want to accomplish in that time frame, only to turn around at the end of that period of time to have the frustrating experience of not getting nearly enough done that we thought we could. What happened? Where did all the time go? This can be in our personal / family lives, our jobs or our businesses.
Many of the frustrations of this are due to our expectations of what we can accomplish in that amount of time too high, and unrealistic. When we can look at it more objectively, it can reduce stress in our lives, and give more of a sense of accomplishment when we do reach our goals.
Say you have 6 hours available to do a certain project. Prioritize the tasks you want to tackle, with number one being the top priority. Now figure in your typical day, what percentage of that time is typically going to "putting out fires" If approximately 1/3 of your time is this type of work / situation, deduct that amount of time and your original 6 hours minus 2 hours of putting out fires, will give you 4 working hours.
Now, consider the average interruption will take about 8 minutes to deal with before mentally you're back where you were before the interruption. How many interruptions are typical in your day? Let's say you get 10 interruptions, 80 minutes. Now subtract those 80 minutes from your 4 hours, now you've got a little over 2 hours left to try to accomplish what you thought you actually had 6 hours to do. Is it any wonder why we didn't get as much done as we had hoped? I believe this will reduce frustration just knowing this, and will allow us to plan our day with much more realistic goals. If something is added to our to-do list, then something else must give to make room.
There are some things that can be done to help however. Just looking at this may help you pin point sources of time wasters. Is there anything that can be done to minimize the need to "put out the fires"? Are there any types of preventative actions that can be taken to at least reduce it?
What about interruptions? Can a phone voice mail be used instead of answering the phone? Then when you do need to return calls, do them as a group, one right after another. What about email? Do you have to respond to emails during this time frame? Again, try to lump like tasks together, when you do need to email, handle it all at once instead of the second they hit your inbox.
Then realize, what you thought was your 6 hours, in reality were perhaps a little over 2. Attack your to-do list with your highest priority, then give yourself a pat on the back for working your best with those 2 hours you had, and that in reality, you did fill 6 hours, and perhaps have a better understanding of where it went. Knowing this will help reduce the stress and frustration of trying to accomplish what may not be possible, and give your planning a more realistic approach.
By Valerie Garner-Mother, grandmother and candlemaker / owner of Joyful Designs in Soy. She loves to write on a variety of topics with a warm, and engaging style. http://www.joyfuldesignsinsoy.com
expert residential cleaners Park Ridge ..If you have spent any time at all working at... Read More
Choose to be HappyHappiness is a choice. You can choose... Read More
According to a Miller Heiman 2003 Sales Effectiveness Study, over... Read More
Q. I have several projects going at once -- but... Read More
"I never seem to have any time for myself. What... Read More
Let's say that you have a software project that's under... Read More
There is an old way of goal setting and a... Read More
How many people do you know who are so busy... Read More
Does it ever feel like there is never enough time... Read More
"Can you find four extra hours in your day?" a... Read More
When is the best time to plan your day? Well,... Read More
There are times, when I am driving in my car... Read More
We all face decisions that involve doing things that affect... Read More
And when you finally sat down to eat breakfast, was... Read More
The most powerful resource that we have is time. Everything... Read More
Microsoft wanted to know how individuals around the world were... Read More
Do you wish you could work less and play more?... Read More
I'm sure we've all had the experience of having a... Read More
Time is inelastic. Despite what some of us persist in... Read More
One of the issues most often raised by my clients... Read More
Many folks tell me that they just don't have time... Read More
Such an innocuous little phrase, yet when you are hard... Read More
Do you believe that the best way to deal with... Read More
We are all born equal! We all have the same... Read More
Today, it is hard to open an e-mail newsletter, a... Read More
green cleaning service Park Ridge ..Everyday, in life, we are bombarded with 101 tasks that... Read More
Friends, colleagues, and clients are all telling me that one... Read More
One of the most challenging situations people face when planning... Read More
How many times have you remarked to someone that there... Read More
Whether you're a new business owner or if you have... Read More
Do you believe that the best way to deal with... Read More
Why Read?It's been said that there are three kinds of... Read More
Years ago when I started in this business, it seemed... Read More
Work brings together people of different characters and behavior, and... Read More
Work life balance is the new Holy Grail; that search... Read More
How do you know what's the best use of your... Read More
If you are like most moms I know you think... Read More
Does choosing which time we do an activity really make... Read More
Last week I had the privilege of spending some quality... Read More
"If you control your time, you control your life" -... Read More
Recently I was working with a new client who had... Read More
One of the issues most often raised by my clients... Read More
* If you were paying you to prioritise emails over... Read More
Time is our greatest and most precious asset. Time is... Read More
A year and a half ago I was introduced to... Read More
I used to think video game addictions were a joke... Read More
Tring ? Tring the alarm rings?but did you fail to... Read More
It's 6:00 a.m. I'm awake. I'm pumped! I'm ready to... Read More
We don't realize many things we do until we draw... Read More
Increased productivity, the ability to get more value for our... Read More
Time Management |