10 October 2024
A day is supposed to have 24 hours in it so why are there never enough? On average, we waste about two hours every day thanks to silly, often needless, distractions. In fact, studies have shown that when we’re at work we’re sidetracked every 10 minutes. Interruptions really add up, especially because it takes us a while to get back into the zone afterwards. Here we reveal how to apprehend the biggest time thieves.
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Clutter. We cling to possessions for a multitude of reasons – comfort, sentimentality, fear and an inability to make decisions. But it takes forever to find anything in a sea of stuff. Adopt a systematic approach to keeping order through out your home and workplace, decide what you can’t do without and get rid of the rest.
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Multi-tasking. Writing a presentation, getting ready and making lunch simultaneously is the kind of juggling act that’s lauded as unique skill by those that think they have it. The worst thing you can do is spread your focus too thin. You should only do one thing at a time. Make a list of all the stuff you intend to do but never get round to it. Select one from the list, then make two resolutions: firstly, that you will concentrate on this one project until it is complete; secondly, that you will not start the others until you have finished the first task. You will be amazed how quickly you get things done.
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Doing it yourself. If you want a job done properly, do it yourself, is something most of us are guilty of muttering. But sharing the load saves hours. Try a delegation technique called ‘tell, show, do’. Tell them what you want doing, show them how to do it, then let them to do it themselves. Give people a chance.
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Needy friends. Apply the 80:20 rule. Needy friends may make up around 20% of your social network, but they take up 80% of your time demands, lengthy phone calls and general clinginess. These friends are generally selfish and lacking in confidence. This insecurity means they lack empathy. So while they need people around them, you have to fit in with their schedule. They can’t cope with straight rejection so, instead, you have to manage expectations. Get in there first when arranging a get-together, so it’s on your terms not theirs. Boundaries are the only way to making these kinds of friendships equal.
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Shopping. Most of us aim to pop to the shops, getting in and out as quickly as possible, especially in supermarkets. But retailers employ all manner of tricks to slow us down and keep us spending longer. Aside from doing it all online, the best way to pick up the pace is to decide on a budget before you leave home and write a list, which you must not deviate from. It sounds boring, but it’s the only way.
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To-do lists. Assumed you were being super-efficient by writing a lengthy to do list every morning? Sorry, but you’re not. There is always big chunk of stuff that gets transferred from day to day without ever getting done. While a to-do list is an open list of things we might do that day, what we need is a closed list of things we will do. The aim is to cross every item each day. Once you have decided what’s going on your will do list, do not add to it. Anything new that comes in can go on tomorrow’s list.
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Meetings. Pontificating, brainstorming, blue-sky thinking, call it what you will, but isn’t the average meeting usually a colossal waste of time? Apparently so, according to a survey of UK company bosses, who say three out of four meetings are un-productive? Get out of them where possible. Use a technique called "begging forgiveness". After the meeting, say, “Sorry I couldn’t make it. Has anyone got the minutes?” Then point out the positive reasons why you weren’t there, showing them anything constructive you’ve done in the meantime.
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Other people’s emergencies. It’s tempting to leap to whichever colleague or client shouts the loudest but what you’ve got to remember is that their emergency doesn’t have to be your emergency. Avoid instant fire fighting by pausing, and then telling (or emailing) the person who has interrupted you that you’ll get back to them shortly. Stop and think. Can you spare the time? Does it have to be sorted out now or will tomorrow do? Will you do it or can someone else? Call the person back and calmly explain our plan. You retain control of your time, and, nine times out of 10, the person will be satisfied with your response.
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Email notifications. Pop-up alerts and beeps announcing the arrival of a new email breaks our focus on the task in hand, so we have to work out where we were before we can resume at the original speed. Close your email application when you are not dealing with messages. Set aside time to respond to emails and make sure your put a time limit on it. Sort emails into urgent, important and routine. Clear the existing urgent emails in your time limited without addressing any new ones until next time.
- Search engines. Googling may seem the quickest route from A to B, however a survey revealed that 52% of people don’t click through to a result after typing a search into Google. In other words, they haven’t found what they’re looking for. It’s not necessarily the search engine’s fault, but how we’re using it. The key is to be specific using several words in the search, rather than just one. If you’re looking or a particularly phrase, put it in double quotation marks. Also take advantage of the ‘search within a search’ option at the bottom of the page to filter out results.
This leadership article..
was prepared for participants on our acclaimed 10/10 leadership development and mentoring programme. Whether you are a first-time manager or an experienced leader, straightforward, practical advice on best practice is hard to find. Until now. To find out how you and your team can benefit, please contact us.
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