Time Management

Chapter 1 - Thinking About Time Management & Using the 80/20 Rule

Thinking About Time Management

Thinking About Time Management text

Have you ever found yourself halfway through a workday and then you say to yourself, "Have I done anything today? "I mean have I done anything important with my time today?"

It's very common for us to question that because we're not really good at managing time. It's unfortunate because, you know, I think the single-most precious asset we have in our careers, maybe in our lives, is time.

Every minute that passes by, well, that's a minute you can't get back. We waste time every day in all kinds of ways.

Sometimes we focus on the wrong work, or the right work at the wrong time. Or maybe we put too much time into personal issues or socializing. The list is long.

The point is, we're so bad at managing our time, there's an entire industry that has grown up around us to help us use time more effectively.

Think about it. The time management industry is massive. Every year individuals, teams, and organizations spend millions of dollars trying to harness the use of time. You know, there's got to be a better way.

Let's think about what it means for you to get clarity in the middle of the chaos that is your entire day. Now, the time management industry is well intentioned, and they have a lot of good tools, but they also ironically take up a lot of time.

I want you to get focused, be more thoughtful and intentional about how you approach your day and I'd like to talk about a simple way to make that happen. A very simple approach that just might transform your day.

 "...the single-most precious asset we have...is time."

"Sometimes we focus on the wrong work, or the right work at the wrong time."

"A very simple approach that just might transform your day."

Using the 80/20 Rule

Using the 80/20 Rule text

So let's start thinking about what it means to allocate your time more effectively at work everyday.

I want to offer three simple ideas that will change how you use your time everyday to make yourself more productive.

Now, the first rule is very straightforward. It's something I often call the 80/20 rule. It's a very simple idea.

The idea goes like this. All work is not created equal. You have to look at every task, every person, every project, and ask yourself this. Is this bit of work something that absolutely is interesting and important to the level that it's strategic? That it'll move us forward as a team faster? Or is just work that's gotta be done? That's the 80%.

The strategically important stuff, that's the 20%. And if you don't take the time every single moment you engage a new bit of work to ask yourself, is this an 80%er or is this a 20%er. You're libel to spend way too much time over investing in the 80%.

I want to give you a couple of things to think about. You should never invest more than half of your time, 50% in the 80% pile.

If you ever feel pressure to spend too much time on that pile of work you just gotta do, but you know it's not strategically important, here's what you need to start thinking about. How can you automate? Outsource or delegate that work?

Automate it. Is there some tool you can use like Microsoft Excel or maybe Access to make that thing go faster every time you have to do it.

Or delegate. Maybe there's a direct report or someone on staff that can take care of that. By the way, delegating could be simple tasks, like putting together a PowerPoint slide. Maybe the first draft could be done by somebody else.

Or, you can outsource completely. You might be able to find a vendor that can take care of an interesting number of tasks that you're working on, because that's their core competency and it frees you up to get focused on things that really matter. That's it.

That's rule number 1. When you look at work, be intentional, thoughtful, and conscious. Ask yourself, is this a 20%er or an 80%er?

Then you'll start allocating your time more effectively.

"All work is not created equal."

 "How can you automate? Outsource or delegate that 80% work?"

  "Ask yourself, is this a 20%er or an 80%er?"

Chapter 2 - Your Einstein Window

Finding Your Einstein Window

Finding Your Einstein Window text

Do you ever find yourself at work, looking at your to-do list, and saying to yourself, man where do I begin?

We've all been there. And we know the first part of the answer, it's the 20%, that's the what.

Now I want you to start thinking about the when, I like to call it your personal Einstein Window. That's the period of every day where you have your little mental peak, right where work feels almost fun, problems feel, no problem at all. Work flies off your desk. You feel the most positive, the most in tune, in the moment. Capable of doing next to anything. That's a great feeling. That's why I call it the Einstein Window.

Now everyone has it at different times. Early in the day, midday, late. I don't know what it is I know what it is for me. Its the same everyday, its early in the morning. I love to get to work early before others show up. I get my coffee, I get situated at my desk, I look at my to do list and I start thinking in term of the 80-20. I function at a high level early in the day, every single day, and I try to protect it as much as I can.

For you, it's the same. You might know exactly when that window happens. If you don't, spend some time in reflection, because knowing what to work on is just step one.

Step two is being very clear about the time of day your brain is truly prepared to work on that 20%, that's your Einstein Window.

"...Einstein Window...the period of every day where you have your little mental peak..."

 "...the time of day your brain is truly prepared to work on that 20%..."

Protecting Your Window

Protecting Your Window text

Even if you know when your Einstein window happens, you have to go a step further and make sure to protect that window. You have to do what it takes to give that time integrity and focus.

Now unfortunately, we don't always do that. We've already mentioned how sometimes we spend a chunk of that vital Einstein window on lesser important tasks. That's a big no no.

But we don't stop there. Sometimes we do something even worse. We very often say to people, yes. When in fact, sometimes, we have to say no.

It goes like this. You're sitting in your office. You're working on something of interesting, importance. And then, a colleague or your boss walks in, and they ask for your help. Hey, can you read this report, and tell me if you find any errors, or some version of that.

Now, what do most people say when that happens? Almost always, they say, sure, okay, yes. And you can't do that all the time. We do, but we shouldn't.

You can still be nice to someone, helpful, by saying no, if you'll help them later. Just try this the next time you're really focused on something important. And a well-intentioned person comes in. And interrupts your train of thought, just look at them and say, yes I can help you, but not right this moment. Quickly look at your calendar and tell them something like this, two o'clock I'll come see you, we'll knock that out. Is that okay? Almost always, they're going to go, sure, and walk away. And do you know what you've just done? You've minimized the interruption to your most important thinking time for the day. Only ten seconds was required for you to validate your colleague, send them on their way and get back to what you are doing.

So we can't focus on the 80% during that window and we can't say yes to everybody all the time.

You know, there is another trick I really want to share with you. And that's to find a way to get away from your normal office space. It's kind of funny. Offices seem oddly designed to maximize disruptions. Instead of what we really need, which is maximizing deep thought. So, if people are in offices, you know, sometimes they should close the door. Open door management's a wonderful idea, but sometimes you need quiet time to really think. If you work in a cube, sometimes get up, walk away and find an office that's not currently filled. Or maybe a conference room on the other side of the building that no one is using. Sit down, close the door, and enjoy the silence to keep hammering away on the 20% during that Einstein window.

You might even go a step further. Think about all the things that distract us at work. I want you to try and make sure they don't distract as often as they could. Some obvious examples, Think about your cell phone. We love it when we hear that thing chirp, but if you want to maximize your cognitive capacity during the Einstein window, you've gotta take little chunks of time with your e-mail program and your smart phone, and turn em off. I promise you the world won't end, if for 30 minutes, you turn them off and get focused.

Stop allowing distractions to take you away from deep thought during your Einstein window.

"give that time integrity and focus."

"We very often say to people, yes. When in fact, sometimes, we have to say no."

"yes I can help you, but not right this moment."

"close the door, and enjoy the silence to keep hammering away on the 20% during that Einstein window."

Chapter 3 - Communicating Your Availability

Communicating Your Availability

Communicating Your Availability text

When people look at you at work, what do they think? Do they think you're always available, it's okay to always walk over to you and interrupt what you are doing? I don't know the answer to that question, I do know you should be thinking about it, and maybe you should go a step further.

Start getting proactive about broadcasting your availability. Find some ways to let people know how open you are to being interrupted.

Let me give you one interesting example, I saw on a consulting engagement. I found some people who understood this idea and they wanted to find a colorful way to show people in the office where everyone was in terms of time management and urgency. So this what they did. They came up with a color coded system. Every person in the office, outside of their cube, had a little piece of velcro. Everyone would put up, throughout the day, as needed, the color that represented their availability. So, for example, they used red, green and yellow.

When you walk up to someone's cube and you see the green square sitting outside the cube, you knew that life was okay. It's okay to stop in unannounced and speak to someone and interrupt what they're doing, not a really risky proposition.

However, if you walk up to their cube and you see yellow, well, that means use caution. They're busy, it's not a dire emergency but you need to be thoughtful before you just walk in and interrupt what they're doing. So let's reserve this now for really important interruptions, or maybe your boss with the terribly important task. That's what you do when you see yellow.

Then, they were allowed, on occasion, to put the red square outside their cube. And that meant danger, stay away, I am working hard against a tough deadline, and if you're going to interrupt me, wow, it better be an emergency, a fire that must be put out right now, otherwise, stay out.

Everyone learned how to use those cards to broadcast out to everyone what their status was, whether or not it was okay to interrupt them.

That example may or may not work precisely for you. But it gives a great example. I want you to start thinking not only about how to use your time and the Einstein Window effectively by focusing on the 20%. I want you to go further.

Reduce those distractions and then take the final step and make sure to start broadcasting to everyone what you're real availability is. When you do that, you'll know what it means to protect the integrity of that Einstein Window.

"When people look at you...Do they think...it's okay to...interrupt what you are doing?"

"Find some ways to let people know how open you are to being interrupted."

"...start broadcasting to everyone what you're real availability is."

Conclusion

Conclusion text

I want you to think about putting all three of those rules together. Everyday, your focus should be putting them together.

It's one thing to understand that you've gotta focus on the 20%, the really important work. It's another thing to think about that window of time, your Einstein window, where you know, mentally, you're the most agile, the most effective. It's yet again another thing to think about how you protect that window.

When you put all three together, it's amazing how your productivity will go to the next level, bringing you all kinds of new successes, because you learned how to manage your time.

"When you put all three together, it's amazing how your productivity will go to the next level"