Every time management skills training we conduct, we ensure we make people realize one thing. Even though they have come for a time management skills training, time is not actually something that can be managed.
Confused and bewildered how we can say something like that in a time management training itself? Well, because that’s the truth. You can’t manage time. It’s not one of those things that you can change the quantity or duration of by managing it better. It’s constant and the same for everyone. So, if time cannot be managed, then why do we conduct time management skills training and why does this term ‘time management skills’ even exist?
That’s because you don’t manage time, you manage yourself to make the best use of the time. Therefore, time management skills are actually self-management skills. And all boil down to how you manage yourself to make the most of the 24 hours that each one of us have each day.
Making the most of our Time
To make the best use of our available time, the first thing we need to have in front of us is the list of all the tasks that we need to complete. This would be your To Do list. The next logical step is to prioritize these tasks based on their importance, urgency and the time required to complete each of these. You can also add break times and keep enough buffer time for last minute alterations. Once you do this, you have your day planned in front of you and you can start with the first thing on your list.
And remember, keep reviewing and revising your list as your day moves ahead. You have to adapt and respond to the need of the hour, but only after checking whether it is really the need of the hour! If not, push those additional tasks that keep coming your way to next day’s To Do list. Or better still, delegate them if you can.
Slowly and steadily make this a habit. One that you practice every morning before your day starts or the previous night also. By practicing this every day, you will be able to manage your work and various other tasks in a better and more effective way. And soon you will have lesser workload, giving you scope to achieve more.
Some of you might be wondering why you would need to attend a time management training for learning this extremely simple technique? Because it’s actually not as simple as it sounds. And some of the nuances you will understand when you actually attend a time management training and create a To Do list for yourself. Not to mention the various other tools and techniques that you will learn there!