TIME MANAGEMENT CONCEPTS AND APPLICATIONS Presented by William P. Cullen Jr. Audit Manager

Everyone is concerned about time or the use of time Everyone is concerned about time or the use of time. If you’re like most people you: Never have enough time to do everything that you need to do. You are literally swamped with work and personal responsibilities, projects, stacks of magazines to read and piles of books you intend to get to one of these days. There are a multitude of projects that you want to get accomplished …only if you had the time. If you come away with only one thought today “Make sure that you are working on the right thing”.

Thirty years ago there were only a handful of books that referenced the concept of “Time Management”. Today there are hundreds, if not thousands of books, planners and time systems all designed to improve time management. I’ll be discussing concepts from three (3) different books: The Effective Executive, Peter Drucker First Things First, Steven Covey Eat That Frog, Brian Tracy

“One of the very worst uses of time is to do something very well that need not be done at all”

Peter Drucker emphasizes the difference between effectiveness and efficiency. Effectiveness is ensuring that you are working on the right thing while efficiency focuses on performing that task in a productive manner. He suggests that the starting point is to keep track of your time for one week notating all the meetings, phone calls, report writing that you do. Only after you know where your time is spent can you be efficient in organizing or allocating your time.

“Before you begin scrambling up the ladder of success make sure it is leaning against the right building”

Steven Covey discuses the difference between the clock and the compass. The clock represents our commitments appointments, schedules, goals activities …how we manage our time. The compass represents our vision, values, principles, mission direction – what we feel is important. Our struggle to put first things first can be characterized by the contrast between two powerful tools that direct us: (1) the clock and (2) the compass And when we sense a gap between the clock and the compass. We felt that we were “responding to crises”; “putting out fires”; or “not having time to do what we should be doing.” Steven Covey has defined four generations of time management. Each generation builds on the one before it and moves toward efficiency and control.

FIRST GENERATION Is based on “reminders” and “go with the flow”. Keep track of the things you want done with your time- write the report; attend the meeting; fix the car etc. This generation is characterized by notes and checklists. If tasks are not accomplished today you put them on the list tomorrow.

SECOND GENERATION This one is focused on planning and preparation. It’s noted for calendars and appointment books. It promotes efficiency, personal responsibility and achievement in goal setting, planning ahead and scheduling. If you are in this generation you make appointments write down commitments, identify deadlines and note where the meeting will be.

THIRD GENERATION This is referred to as planning, prioritizing and controlling. You’ve probably spent time introspectively clarifying your values and priorities. You may ask yourself “What do I want”. You’ve set short term and long term goals to attain these values. Sometimes characterized by a wide variety of planners and organizers- electronic as well as paper based.

FOURTH GENERATION The fourth generation is a people paradigm. Leadership first; Management 2nd. Effectiveness first; efficiency 2nd. Purpose first; structure 2nd. Vision first and method 2nd. This “people focus” creates an entirely different way of “seeing” and presents a different approach to life. When you “see” in terms of interdependent reality you see the importance of time spent in activities such as building relationships, creating shared vision and clarifying expectations. We also see that much of what we do in traditional time management is efficiently hacking at leaves instead of effectively working at the independent root.

Covey also has identified eight (8) different management approaches to time management… GET ORGANIZED – assumes problems are caused by lack of order in our life. Can’t find things. In most cases the answer lies in a system, a filing system or in and out box. WARRIOR - the focus is on the protection of personal time to focus and produce. The time warrior realizes that if we don’t do something to fight back the system will become an avalanche that will bury us alive. Protecting your time can be done through insulation, isolation and delegation. THE GOAL APPROACH (ACHIEVEMENT) – This approach says “know what you want and focus your efforts to achieve it”. It includes long-term, mid-range and short term planning and goal setting, visualization, self-motivation and creating a positive mental attitude. THE ABC APPROACH (PRIORITIZATION) – “You can do anything you want, but not everything”. It instructs to concentrate your efforts on your most important tasks first.

Covey’s eight (8) different management approaches to time management continued… THE MAGIC TOOL APPROACH (TECHNOLOGY) – is based on the assumption that the right tool; i.e. – the right calendar; the right planner; the right computer program will give us power to create quality in our lives. The basic assumption is that systems and structures make us more effective. THE TIME MANAGEMENT 101 APPROACH – is based on the paradigm that time management is essentially a skill – like accounting – in order to function effectively we need to master basic skills in (1) using a planner or calendar; (2) creating a to do list; (3) setting goals; (4) delegating; (5) organizing; (6) prioritizing. THE “GO WITH THE FLOW” APPROACH – Getting back to the natural rhythm of living will open our lives to the spontaneity and serendipity that’s natural to our being. It’s based on philosophies of Eastern cultures and biological research. THE RECOVERY APPROACH (SELF-AWARENESS) – The basic paradigm is that there are essential flaws in the psyche as a result of environment, heredity, scripting and other influences that manifest themselves as self-defeating or dysfunctional time management behaviors. The solution is seen in recovery from the psychological and sociological deficiencies that create the time management problems.

TIME 1ST 2ND 3RD APPROACH GENERATION   Get Organized X Warrior Goal (Achievement) ABC Magic Tool Time Mgt 101 Go with the Flow Recovery

“Doing more things faster is no substitute for doing the right thing”

You’ll not only get more done faster but get the right things done. There is an old saying that if the first thing you do each morning is to eat a live frog, you’ll have the satisfaction of knowing that it’s probably the worst thing you’ll do all day. Using the “eat the frog” metaphor for tackling the most challenging task of your day—the one you are most likely to procrastinate on, but also probably the one that has the greatest impact on your life. “Eat the Frog” shows you how to zero in on the critical tasks and organize each day. You’ll not only get more done faster but get the right things done.

21 TIME MANAGEMENT IDEAS SET THE TABLE – Decide exactly want you want. Write out goals and objectives before you begin. PLAN EVERY DAY IN ADVANCE – Think on paper. Every minute you spend on planning you can save 5-10 minutes in execution. APPLY THE 80/20 RULE - 20% of your activities will account for 80% of your results. Always concentrate on the 20%. CONSIDER THE CONSEQUENCES – Your most important task and priorities are those that can have the most serious consequences on your life or work, Focus on these. PRACTICE CREATIVE PROCRASTINATION – Deliberately put off those tasks that are of low value so you have time to work on what counts. USE THE ABC METHOD - Before you work on a list of tasks, take a few minutes to organize them by value and priority. FOCUS ON KEY RESULTS AREAS – Identify and determine those results that you absolutely, positively have to get done and work on them all day long. THE LAW OF THREE – Identify the three things you do in your work that account for 90% of your contribution and focus on them.

21 TIME MANAGEMENT IDEAS continued… PREPARE THOROUGHLY BEFORE YOU BEGIN – Have everything you need at hand before you begin. Assemble all papers, material, number etc before you start. TAKE IT ONE AT A TIME – You can accomplish the biggest and most complicated job if you complete it one step at a time. UPGRADE YOUR KEY SKILLS - The more knowledgeable and skilled you become at your key tasks, the faster you will finish them. LEVERAGE YOUR SPECIAL TALENTS – Determine what you are very good at doing, and throw you whole heart into those specific things very, very well. IDENTIFY YOUR KEY CONSTRAINTS – Determine the bottleneck or choke points, internal or external, and focus on alleviating them. PUT THE PRESSURE ON YOURSELF – Imagine you have to leave work for a month and work as if you had to get all you tasks completed. MAXIMIZE YOUR PERSONAL POWER – Identify your periods of highest mental and physical energy each day and structure your most demanding tasks around these times.

21 TIME MANAGEMENT IDEAS continued… MOTIVATE YOURSELF INTO ACTIONS – Be your own cheerleader. Focus on the solution not the problem. GET OUT OF THE TECHNOLOGICAL TIME SINKS - Use technology to improve the quality of your communication but don’t be its slave. SLICE AND DICE THE TASK – Break down large, complex tasks into manageable pieces. CREATE LARGE CHUNKS OF TIME – Organize your day around large time frames where you can concentrate to do important tasks DEVELOP A SENSE OF URGENCY – Make a habit of moving fast on your key tasks. Become known as a person who does things quickly and well. SINGLE HANDLE EVERY TASK – Set clear priorities, start immediately on your most important task and then don’t stop till it’s done.

GALILEO… “You cannot teach a man anything; you can only help him to find it within himself”.

CONCLUSION… The key to happiness, satisfaction, great success and a wonderful feeling of personal power and effectiveness is for you to develop the habit of eating your frog first thing every day when you start work. Fortunately, this is a learnable skill that you can acquire through repetition. And when you develop the habit of starting on your most important task before anything else, your success is assured. In his book The Greatest Salesman in the World, Og Mandino gave 10 steps to success. The first being “I will form good habits and become their slave.” Personally, I view time management like I view being organized- you never really get there...just constant improvement and striving to be better. Taking control can create a sense of reverence for the stewardship of life and time-for moments, days, weeks, years and seasons we have to live, love, learn and leave a legacy. We feel a sense of reverence and gratitude for the freedom we have to make choices concerning the way we spend our time.