Time Management: To Do or Not To Do?

H. Hal Futhey
President
QPA Training and Consulting

I usually devote this newsletter to technical issues on quality assurance topics. I’m going to deviate a little in this one to talk about a problem I hear from my clients more than any other single issue. Well, except for complaining about customers. "Time Management versus Workload".

“I always have too much on my plate.” “There is not enough time in a day.” These are familiar refrains to my ears. In fact you may be saying to yourself, “Do I have time to read this right now?” As a consultant and trainer, people often tell me things they feel they can’t say to their associates and supervisors. And correctly so.

First, nobody likes a whiner and I mean nobody. Although the person making the statement may be stating the facts they can be perceived as a whiner/complainer. However, because my role is to help a company improve its operations and bottom line, I must improve the way work is done. That requires helping people get more out of their efforts and that requires them to tell me about the work. That brings me to the subject of this newsletter “Time Management and The Not To Do List”.

You may have heard the old cliché “An emergency on your part does not automatically constitute one on mine.” Unfortunately today, in many instances, it does. One of the reasons is we are in constant touch with everyone, all the time. We are being bombarded with information by an endless stream of communication. Cell phones, high speed internet access, Wi-Fi, PDAs, text messaging, instant messaging, on and on.

The latest marketing study conducted by Direct Marketing Association shows the average working person receives approximately 3000 new pieces of information everyday. Yes! 3000.
Marketers of course want us to believe this is a good thing. The problem is ‘always available’ has become the norm. And, it’s not good. Why? Because someone else's problem can instantly become your problem. They don’t have to work it or solve it on their own. They pass it along and spread it out everywhere like a cow patty. Why would anyone risk making a lone decision about anything, when everyone else is just an instant message, email or cell phone call away? However, if you’re a control freak and must make every micro decision, carry on by all means.
 
A quick glance at how these new communication services are being sold and you’ll see imagery depicting young, happy executives tapping away at the keyboard while at the beach or in the garden. In the distance we see friends and family supposedly playing and communing happily. People walking or bike riding with a Bluetooth device stuck in their ear. They’re smiling and chattering away. Life can’t get any better. Everyone doing what they love. At least that’s what the marketing people want us to believe.

Let’s take a look at the reverse scenario: Friends and family playing happily in your office while you work. Do you reckon you’ll get much done? Nope. Me neither. You’ll be distracted and certainly won’t be concentrating on your work. Okay, how do we find our way out of this scenario?

The solution requires us to follow a well worn path. Although the path is overgrown with instant communications underbrush, it’s still there. The path of time management!  I’m astounded at the number of people I work with who don’t make themselves a “To Do” list everyday. I actually had a fellow tell me he didn’t have time to make a list. Now that’s just wrong.
Don’t stop reading yet…because I’m going to add a little different twist to our list. Oh, it will have the usual components, as well.

Let’s forge ahead. When preparing a "To Do" list you should also consider the things you should not be doing during your day. It's fine to have a well planned to do list each day, but if you are easily distracted then it will be the things that you are doing in-between completing your list that will be the big time wasters.

First, it must be a paper list of some type. You can create the list in your personal management or calendar software, but you will print it to carrying with you. Do not use your PDA or cell phone. These distract our attention when picked-up and fooled with. I use a 3” x 5” index card. When I finish a task I scratch it out lightly. It gives you the feeling of accomplishment.

"The Must Do List"

Okay, let's get clear about what is really important and what must be done during the day. Try to only have one or two really major tasks that you have to do for the day and make them an absolute priority. Obviously you will have more time to do other things during the day, but the "Must Do List" is the list that has to be done before you even think about leaving the workplace. This requires us to use a method to prioritize all the things that need to be done. Maybe you use the target completion date or time. Perhaps it’s the severity of the consequence if it’s not completed today. It could be the importance of the person or customer. Hey, maybe it’s a combination of them all.

"The To Do List"

After you are clear about a couple tasks that must be done, list several other jobs to do of lesser importance. These tasks should be done only after you have completed your "Must Do List". That doesn't mean that they should be taken lightly or treated as a wish list. List a sensible amount of tasks to complete and perhaps, an extra one or two things to challenge yourself. But do not go overboard with way too many things as you will only be setting yourself up to fail each day by never completing all your required tasks. I’ve heard some people say if you finish all the jobs on your to do list, it wasn’t long enough. Bullcrap! If you finish the jobs on your list you can always add more. Or, you could relax a minute without any distractions. Let your brain take a short break. Gather your thoughts and relax.

"The Must Not Do List!"

Now that you know what should be done, work out what should not be done, or what should be given the least priority. These are the tasks that we find ourselves doing when we lose focus or have a lapse in concentration during the day. Things like checking your email every 10 minutes, checking statistics too often, surfing the web, watching hourly news reports, or whatever it is that you do to escape from your real work! Portable communication devices are an escape mechanism. You need to control them and not let them control you.

You can also use some of these focus distracting tasks as a method of motivation. For example, after completing a "Must Do List" task you could reward yourself with 15 minutes of surfing the web or writing/responding to email.

Most people that are actively trying to increase their productivity are aware of the importance of a "To Do" list, but many people don’t include the "Must Not Do" list. For those of us with wandering minds or restless feet it's easy to get distracted and caught up in doing very low priority jobs while our highest priority jobs continue to pile up. Get clear about what you should be doing and what you shouldn't be doing to get the most out of each day.

A little time spent early in the day planning your lists can stop a lot of wasted time during the day.

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