ONE of the most valuable and important personal resource humans have is “time”, yet it is always mismanaged.
With the lives of most average Malaysians currently spent stuck travelling to and from the office, it is important to appreciate the concept of time and how to utilise it.
Time management is often fumbled, even from the early days of schooling and through higher education, and if it snowballs into being a bad habit, lack of time management will greatly affect workplace performance and productivity for most professions today.
Time management
This is macro- and micro-managing your time when it comes to work, which also allows the management of free time afterwards. At work, proper and timely execution of work allows one to work smarter, rather than harder.
Intelligent use of time allows days to be planned well ahead, and if something occurs out-of-the-blue, a person will be able to quickly course-correct and adapt.
Benefits of time management
> Meet deadlines effectively
Like what it says, there is no need to rush deadlines at the last minute if time was managed properly leading up to that deadline.
Dedicating specific amounts of time for specific tasks allows deadlines to be met, sometimes well ahead projection.
> Increased performance
An effect of the first benefit, quickly knocking off tasks before deadlines allows one to slow in other tasks at work due to the suddenly freed up time.
Additionally, as tasks naturally lessen, time isn’t wasted attempting to figure out what to do next. It just flows into view naturally.
By working smarter, you will also easily identify any “flaws” that affecting performance over the repetition of most tasks.
> Improved work quality
Ever handed in an assignment, task or anything job-related at the last minute or even past the deadline? Other than the obvious reprimanding from employers, did you notice the lack of quality from bumrushing a job?
Time management in any workplace leads to high-quality work, which translates to more added value in your employment.
> Decreased stress and work overload
This doesn’t really need an explanation. Working smarter allows one to navigate around the pitfalls of job-induced, added stress, whether from submitting poorly done work or late submissions.
Stress will also bleed into overall work conditions and your personal life.
> Work, life balance
Arguably the most crucial benefit owed to better time management is you will be able to increase the chasm between your work and personal life.
By not spending an unnecessary amount of time at work playing “catch-up”, you will have more time for your personal life, in every capacity.
Tips on time management
> Time awareness
Understand that for most people, there are 168 hours in a week. During idle time or free time in between dedicated time towards family, friends and work, use these to complete small tasks.
> Prioritise by importance
Not all tasks are equal. Sometimes tasks at work take precedence over menial tasks at home, and at work, there may be more important tasks compared to others.
> Plan ahead
Go into each day with a plan on how to tackle everything that needs to be done, which was preferably planned the night before. For those with lesser responsibilities – such as single people – try planning for the entire week, the week before.
> Track everything
Like how people go grocery shopping with a list in hand as to not waste time, have a way of tracking what needs to be done in the day, and in what order these should be done in. The goal is not flounder your way through each day, but to do it as strategically, with surgical precision
> Rest
Don’t forget that in the middle of all the time micromanaging, you deserve gaps dedicated to relaxing.
