How Good is Your Time Management?
If there was ever a time when you needed to be organised, prioritised, and in control of a time, surely it must be today? So, with that being said, how would you rate your time management? Do you always get things done that you set out to do at the start of every day, or do you find yourself getting side-tracked, delayed, or becoming despondent that your to-do list keeps growing?
Here are seven questions to help you determine whether you have good time management skills or not. If you can answer “ALWAYS” to at least 5 of these questions, then you most probably have good time management. If you can’t, then the good news is that learning how to manage your time is going to have significant benefits to your personal productivity.
- I always write a plan of what I hope to do in a notebook at the start of each day. [ALWAYS] [SOMETIMES] [NEVER]
- I create small blocks of time in my calendar to work on important projects and significant tasks throughout the week. [ALWAYS] [SOMETIMES] [NEVER]
- I turn off my email notifications (up until noon), so I’m not distracted by an email coming into my inbox that is most probably not urgent. I do check email regularly, but I’m not a slave to my inbox. [ALWAYS] [SOMETIMES] [NEVER]
- I write down a list of things I need to get done in a spiral notebook or similar at the start of every day and work through my list. I feel a sense of achievement when I can cross major tasks off my list. [ALWAYS] [SOMETIMES] [NEVER]
- I make sure I do not get sidetracked or interrupted by low-priority events before 12 o’clock every day at work. [ALWAYS] [SOMETIMES] [NEVER]
- When I’m interrupted I’m comfortable telling colleagues I will catch up with them later, as I have an important task I am in the middle of completing. [ALWAYS] [SOMETIMES] [NEVER]
- I leave contingency time in my calendar to deal with unexpected events. [ALWAYS] [SOMETIMES] [NEVER]
So, how would you rate your time management? Are you in control of your time or would you say that the events at work often end up controlling you?