How to efficiently manage the time?

Today, in the corporate world, the term 'time management' is used quite often. With the increasing demands in the market, efficient management of time becomes important to accomplish a task or goal in the allotted time with absolutely no error. Most of you have employed various strategies or techniques to succeed in managing time. Remember one thing! Unless and until you don't commit to change, you cannot yield the expected results. Also, time management is about you controlling the environment and not vice versa.

Your time management doesn't stop with planning, proper execution and monitoring should also be done. There might be a circumstance arise, where you have to coordinate with other departments. In such cases, you can be confident if you are good at time management. When a task or a project is assigned to you, break it into small, achievable goals. Set a deadline for each goal and come up with an efficient action plan to achieve it. If a task was not completed within the set time, analyze which is the hindering factor, whether it is the resource, skill, or external factors.

Organizing your work would prove to be beneficial in time management. For this, maintain a to-do-list (task list), categorize the work based on priorities, daily, weekly, and monthly. If you plan to perform a task at a specific time, stick to it. You can maintain the task list in a piece of paper, a not pad, or in your PDA, it is simply as per your convenience. Web-based task list applications are also available for this purpose. Strike out or check it off once you have completed the listed task.

Delegation is other important strategy in time management. It is true that you single-handedly cannot accomplish a task or project. You would surely have people to work with, and it is better to delegate some of the work to your team members. Now, you can focus on the chore works, rather than spending time on works of least importance. The person who receives the work is also benefited, as he/she can be equipped to move up in the ladder. Even, you get an opportunity to move up, when your sub-ordinate can take up your job.

If you are addicted to email, try changing your approach. If you have set automatic alert on receiving messages, then its time to deactivate it. This is because, mail checking could consume much of your work hours and delay your work. You can decide when to check mails, say once you log in, before or after lunch, and an hour before you leave for the day.