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Its rarely possible to be 100% efficient, 100% of our workday. We need breaks and working with others means we need time and space for that collaboration to happen. But oftentimes, a needed break or interaction can balloon into an unneeded time suck that leaves you feeling frustrated that you didnt accomplish what you actually needed to get done. So how do you identify when youre spending way too much time in an area and then eliminate that waste so that you have more time for whats most important? As a time management coach, heres what Ive found to be the most effective ways to make this happen. Identifying your time sucks Honest awareness: Sometimes you already know exactly whats stealing your time. You just need to be honest with yourself and willing to address it. Do you know that you just cant resist checking your email every time a new message indicator pops up? Do you know that you think you can just watch one YouTube video and then seemingly the next second you realize youve watched 10? Do you know that you can never just send a quick text to your best friend, it always becomes a 20-minute text conversation? Write down what you already know is taking more time than it should during your day as a commitment to admitting it and fixing the issue. Automatic monitoring: Once youve recorded what you already know, one of the easiest next steps is to look at the automatic monitoring already in place on your phone. Most phones will give you a weekly report of where you spent time on different apps. You may think that youre not scrolling that much on Instagram, but the data may tell a different story. You can also set up automatic reports of your computer usage if you find thats an issue in addition to your phone. Personal time tracking: A third way to identify your time sucks is through personal time tracking where you can make note of where your time is going both on and off the screen. I typically recommend tracking your time for at least two days, but if you want to do a more thorough analysis, document it for a week. This can be done on paper, in an Excel document, or by using tools like Toggl or Timeular. My clients sometimes prefer the software options because of the ability to see consolidated reports. But if you find them overwhelming, its completely fine to keep things simple. If you complete the above three steps, youre starting to get a clear picture of where your time might be overinvested. Then its time to take action. Here are some tips on eliminating, or at least reducing, the three biggest time sucks in most peoples days. Eliminating Your Time Sucks Screen time Some screen time can be a nice mental break. But if your data shows that you have more than 30 minutes of personal screen time during the workday that doesnt fall into designated times off, like your lunch break, then youre probably spending too much time in that category. If you cant handle social media or news sites, put the nuclear option on your device so that youre completely blocked from viewing them outside of scheduled times and have no option to undo the choice. You can also add online shopping sites or TV or movie sites like NetFlix or Hulu to the blocked list. If you work from home and are a gamer, considering locking up your controllers in a timed box so that you cant even think about beating the next level. Communication In addition to screen time, inefficient communication can be a huge time suck in your workday. In fact, I see it as one of the biggest time wasters among people who are working much longer hours than they would prefer. To start, youll want to reduce or eliminate any scheduled meetings that dont actually need to happen. There are many times where an email could suffice instead of a meeting. For example, when people contact me who I dont know asking for a 15-minute meeting to explain something, I always reply by asking them to send over more information in written form. That way in less than a minute, I can scan what they sent and decide if it merits a conversation, and my workflow isnt interrupted by unnecessary meetings. If youre in an office environment, beware of the drive-by meetings. They can be super useful, but they also can be productivity destroying. If you really need to focus and have a door, close it. If you dont have a door or people open your door spontaneously, put up a sign and/or put on headphones. Some of my clients even go so far to set up office hours, which are times when theyre OK with drop-in chats. Outside of those office hours, they request that people schedule a meeting. And finally, email and other asynchronous communication tools like IM or Slack can consume massive amounts more time than needed if you let them. One of the best ways to reduce time in these areas is to have designated times you log in and batch reply to all of the new messages, such as at the beginning, middle, and end of the workday. If thats not permissible, at least give yourself a few spaces throughout the day to get focused work done by turning off notifications and if needed, putting up Do not disturb. Disorganization A final category of time suck during the workday is plain disorganization. You can waste so much time by being lost or losing items. Start with a plan: I encourage all of my clients to make daily and weekly planning a ritual so that theyre clear on their priorities and always know what to do next. But if thats too overwhelming to start, at least write down the three most important things to accomplish for the day. That simple act can dramatically increase your progress on your most critical tasks. Leverage your energy: If youre a super morning person, purposefully block that time from meetings, spend minimal time on email, and get your hardest tasks done first. If youre barely awake until 10 a.m., do the opposite. Start slow responding to others and having a few meetings, and then block off 3 p.m. and later for your own work. Failing to organize your tasks around your energy levels can leave you frustrated because you have the time but not the mental capacity to get hard work done. Organize your environment: You dont need office drawers worthy of a Pinterest post. But you do need to be able to find what you need when you need it. If your physical disorganization or electronic disorganization is causing you to waste needless time searching for things, take some time to get yourself in order. Sometimes that looks like spending a couple of hours purging your desk and filing things away. Other times, its best to work on a few papers or folders a day until you have sufficient organization. Your time will rarely be 100% utilized. But by following these tips you can dramatically reduce the time lst on time sucks so that you can invest it in what matters to you most.
Category:
E-Commerce
Welcome to Pressing Questions, Fast Companys work-life advice column. Every week, deputy editor Kathleen Davis, host of The New Way We Work podcast, will answer the biggest and most pressing workplace questions. Q: Help! None of my coworkers have kids and dont understand what its like.A: No two peoples lives are the same and people with all kinds of family structures have issues that pull their time and attention away from work. That said, few things in life are as schedule-disrupting as being a parent.In an ideal world, your boss and coworkers wouldnt need to be parents themselves to understand things like needing to miss work when you have a sick kid or having a hard out each day at daycare pick-up time. Also, in an ideal world the school day and calendar would align better with the typical work day. We are obviously not in an ideal world, and unfortunately resentment between parents and coworkers without children is common. Here are my suggestions to deal with it. Suggest changes that would benefit everyone Most parents cant make 8 a.m. meetings, as thats prime time for getting the kids out the door and to school. You know who else hates 8 a.m. meetings? Just about everyone. Rather have your colleagues resent you for being exempt from attending, suggest to your manager that morning meetings get rescheduled for after 9 a.m.The same goes for taking time off for lifes unexpected problems. You have to leave work when your kid is sick or when theres a snow day, doctors appointment or a recital. But everyone has things pop up, whether its their own dentist and doctor appointments, or the needs of their relatives or pets. If you’re in a leadership position, you can help foster a culture that recognizes that lifes obligations sometimes need to take priority over work. If youre not in a leadership position, you can be the change you want to see by happily covering for your colleagues when something comes up. Hopefully the next time your kid gets pink eye theyll remember the time you took over for them when their dog had to go to the vet. Call it out If you feel like youve made a good faith effort to prove how you’re a team player, have demonstrated that you are just as productive as the non-parents on your team, and have offered solutions and you still feel resentment, you might want to be direct and talk to your coworker or manager about it. As with any difficult workplace conversation, you can still enter it with a collaborative mindset. Theres a problem and you are going to solve it together. You are not on opposing teams. As with other workplace disagreements, it can be helpful to approach the conversation with curiosity. Try something like: Ive noticed a lot of comments about my schedule. Is there something thats causing an issue for the team or workflow that Im not aware of? If there is an issue youre not aware of (like a domino effect of work falling on one person when you leave), once its out in the air you can problem solve. If theres not an actual issue, just vague resentment, calling it out might force the person to address their own bias, or at least be the start of a conversation that can lead to more understanding. Want some more reading on working parents? Here you go: Im the CEO of a family tech company. Heres how Ive created kid-friendly work hours The school year used to favor working parents, but not anymore 4 simple ways leaders can better support working parents How longer school days benefit working mothers
Category:
E-Commerce
Welcome to Pressing Questions, Fast Companys work-life advice column. Every week, deputy editor Kathleen Davis, host of The New Way We Work podcast, will answer the biggest and most pressing workplace questions. Q: Help! None of my coworkers have kids and dont understand what its like.A: No two peoples lives are the same and people with all kinds of family structures have issues that pull their time and attention away from work. That said, few things in life are as schedule-disrupting as being a parent.In an ideal world, your boss and coworkers wouldnt need to be parents themselves to understand things like needing to miss work when you have a sick kid or having a hard out each day at daycare pick-up time. Also, in an ideal world the school day and calendar would align better with the typical work day. We are obviously not in an ideal world, and unfortunately resentment between parents and coworkers without children is common. Here are my suggestions to deal with it. Suggest changes that would benefit everyone Most parents cant make 8 a.m. meetings, as thats prime time for getting the kids out the door and to school. You know who else hates 8 a.m. meetings? Just about everyone. Rather have your colleagues resent you for being exempt from attending, suggest to your manager that morning meetings get rescheduled for after 9 a.m.The same goes for taking time off for lifes unexpected problems. You have to leave work when your kid is sick or when theres a snow day, doctors appointment or a recital. But everyone has things pop up, whether its their own dentist and doctor appointments, or the needs of their relatives or pets. If you’re in a leadership position, you can help foster a culture that recognizes that lifes obligations sometimes need to take priority over work. If youre not in a leadership position, you can be the change you want to see by happily covering for your colleagues when something comes up. Hopefully the next time your kid gets pink eye theyll remember the time you took over for them when their dog had to go to the vet. Call it out If you feel like youve made a good faith effort to prove how you’re a team player, have demonstrated that you are just as productive as the non-parents on your team, and have offered solutions and you still feel resentment, you might want to be direct and talk to your coworker or manager about it. As with any difficult workplace conversation, you can still enter it with a collaborative mindset. Theres a problem and you are going to solve it together. You are not on opposing teams. As with other workplace disagreements, it can be helpful to approach the conversation with curiosity. Try something like: Ive noticed a lot of comments about my schedule. Is there something thats causing an issue for the team or workflow that Im not aware of? If there is an issue youre not aware of (like a domino effect of work falling on one person when you leave), once its out in the air you can problem solve. If theres not an actual issue, just vague resentment, calling it out might force the person to address their own bias, or at least be the start of a conversation that can lead to more understanding. Want some more reading on working parents? Here you go: Im the CEO of a family tech company. Heres how Ive created kid-friendly work hours The school year used to favor working parents, but not anymore 4 simple ways leaders can better support working parents How longer school days benefit working mothers
Category:
E-Commerce
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