So Your Day is a Waste of Time?
Looking at that headline, you might say, "My day is not a waste of
time! I'm very organized. I know exactly where I'm going and what
I'm going to do." If you truly operate that way, then you're in the
minority. Most people become frustrated with days that aren't as productive
as originally intended. Put simply, we would prefer to get more done.
The purpose of this report is to identify America's Top 10 Time-Wasters.
They may not match your list exactly, but I trust many items on the
list are also common with you.
Crisis Management - Ever feel that you're leaving a trail
of unfinished projects, unreturned phone calls, unread mail, partially
completed reports? Sometimes crises are imposed by others; boss, clients,
etc.. More often, crises arise from a job we left unfinished to work
on another unfinished task. Another term for crisis management is
"fire fighting." Even more insidious is the crisis caused by failing
to make a decision or take an action that would have prevented the
crisis in the first place! In a court of law, you might be found guilty
of arson, setting fires that must be extinguished later. Most of this
is really caused by losing focus of true priorities. Learn to tell
the difference between "urgent" and "important".
The Telephone - We spend about 2.5 hours each day on the phone,
averaging 12-14 calls a day. About 20% of that time on the phone is
wasted. The most common culprits are wandering phone calls, long distance
weather reports, forgetting some of the important issues, or calling
every time we think of the next topic. On average, an unplanned phone
call takes 5 minutes longer than one that has been planned. Planning
a phone call can be as easy as a 30 second outline of what you want
to say or ask. Without those few seconds of planning, you're costing
your company an hour a day. As for incoming calls, 68% of phone interruptions
are less important than what they interrupted. We have been trained
since childhood to answer the phone when it rings. Instead, block
some quiet time to concentrate.
Lack of Priorities - We accomplish the most when we know exactly
what we want to accomplish. Unfortunately, too many think goals and
objectives are yearly items and not daily considerations. The result
are days spent majoring in the minors. Plan your day.
Trying To Do Too Much - Many of today's high performers seem
to have a common thread: the "Superman/Superwoman" ideal; i.e., Taking
on everything and trying to get it done by tomorrow. Success or failure
seems to be measured by the state of busyness. We know that we can't
do justice to everything at once and we often don't have perspective
of all we have going on. It's like tossing another ball to the juggler...33
at once for the average busy executive. Focus on what counts.
Drop-In Visitors - The five deadliest words in today's office
are "Do you have a minute?" Everyone's the culprit, colleagues, clients,
family, friends, superiors, subordinates... they all want a piece
of you! Close your door, work at home, hide, or just say "No".
Ineffective Delegation - Good delegation is a key skill for
managers, yet the average manager spends 45% of their time on tasks
that could be done by a staffer. "I can do it better and faster",
you say. Sure you can, but ultimately, you are judged on what you
can cause to happen, not just what you can do on your own. As a general
rule of thumb, in non-critical cases, if another person can accomplish
a task 80% as well as you, delegate.
The Messy Desk - Do you have "desk stress?" Is your desk or
credenza piled with pending and unfinished work? The average businessperson
spends 3 hours each week looking for things plus 2 hours being distracted
by the stuff laying around. Do you still use the 'archaeological-dig'
method of filing? Does your peripheral vision keep everything in mind,
causing constant distractions? Are you always saying "I know it's
here somewhere!" Put it away, file it, delegate it or trash it. The
most effective people work from a clean desk.
Procrastination - The big "P", the "thief of time", is not
decision making but decision avoidance. "I'll take care of it when
I get a round TUIT". The average employee spends 45 days a year procrastinating;
stalling, holding on to projects, redoing reports, putting it off
till a better time. There's even a Procrastinators club. Their newsletter
is called "last month's newsletter". By reducing procrastination,
you can substantially increase the available time in your day. Do
it now.
Inability to Say NO! - What a unique idea! Those around you
will give you all the work you are willing to take. This is true in
both our business and personal lives. Some of the most stressed people
around can't say no to the next fund-raiser, the next committee, the
Little League, the church, etc., etc., etc. Politely, but firmly say
"No".
Meetings - The typical manager spends 17 hours each week in
meetings plus 6.3 hours getting ready for those meetings. Nearly a
third of that time in meetings is wasted. That works out to be about
six full weeks of your year of useless meeting time. You've seen the
symptoms: hastily called meetings, no ending time stated, no agenda,
no official record of what was done or said, no followup. If even
one hour per week is saved, it could mean two additional effective
work days per year!
The paradox of time is that if we slow down to think and plan, we'll
have more time. By paying attention to your time wasters, you just
may "find" an extra four to five hours per week to enjoy the things
most important to you.
It's your life. Don't waste it.
© 1997 - 2002 BizSuccess All rights
reserved. No duplication
About the Author...
Gary Lockwood is Increasing the Effectiveness and Enhancing the
Lives of CEOs, business owners and professionals.
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