Time management skills in the workplace

"Most of us spend too much time on what is urgent, and not enough time on what is important." - Steven Covey

Whether you're an experienced professional or a rookie, there will always be moments when you feel you need an extra hour or two to finish your tasks. It's impossible to be in control of every minute of your workday, but it's worth trying to rule most of the day while being the most productive you can be.

Time management skills are not easy to acquire, but they can significantly improve your career once you possess them. 

Please don't take it the wrong way: being busy all the time does not equal being productive. You must be smart in handling your work to be effective and perform well.

In the following lines, we will see what time management is, what skills are, the benefits of handling your time at work, and a concise but straightforward plan for better time management in the workplace. It’s an article both for employees and for managers.

Contents:

  • What is time management?
  • Time management skills
  • Benefits of having good time management skills
  • How to improve your time management skills?
  • Why are time management skills so essential?
  • 10 most common time management problems & solutions

What is time management?

Time management is the process of organizing and planning the way to spend your time on all activities. It’s the method that helps you prioritize your tasks to allocate the perfect amount of time to finish every one of your projects. Effective time management at work will increase efficiency and improve work-life balance.


Time management skills

1. Organization: Maybe the most important, at least in the top 3. Being an organized professional can take you very far since it can support preserving the big picture and knowing what is due and when. So when can we say a person is organized in the workplace? When they have a well-kept office, with all the supplies in order, when their calendar is always up-to-date when missing a meeting is not an option, when locating documents is not an issue, and when he/she decides to get organized with useful, relevant notes. You can even go as far as unsubscribing to unnecessary emails to eliminate distractions.

2. Setting realistic goals: it’s a needed skill because you can plan the whole work and prioritize tasks as needed by having an end goal. You should consider setting both short-term and long-term goals. Set goals that are achievable, realistic and measurable, to be able to track your progress.

3. Prioritization: you should do a “priority-setting” session every day or at least every week. For a good result, you need to know your power to work, your rhythm, if some tasks require collaboration with colleagues, therefore those may not be in your total control.

You can choose to start with small tasks that require little time and then get to the most pressing projects that require your full attention, focus, and devotion. Or the other way around. If you feel you have too many tasks per day, start analyzing: how many do you really need to get done on that precise day? Make sure you complete the most important ones.

4. Scheduling is crucial for handling your time at work since some tasks can only be done at specific times while others have pressing deadlines. Scheduling your day, week, and month will help immensely and will affect your activity and the activity of others. A good example of effective scheduling is dividing vast goals into milestones and milestones into little projects. You also need to be punctual in order to achieve a great level of scheduling.

Tip: Scheduling is also known as planning. This skill allows you to foresee all of the tasks needed to complete a project and save time. Planning is one of the time management skills that come naturally to us; that is why it is quick and easy when it's done right. Unfortunately, we lost our natural path, and we have been educated to overcomplicate things.

Related: We have recently published an in-depth guide on how to plan your day, that covers 7 steps: 1. Define goals, 2. List your tasks, 3. Prioritize, 4. Cultivate healthy habbits, 5. Use planning tools, 6. Act now, 7 Reflect and adjust.

5. Effective communication: another key skill in this time management game. Developing great communication skills will allow you to clearly present your goals and plans to your peers or managers. 

Also, learn to say no. It’s not wrong. You don’t always have to help others get your tasks done first. Just do it politely.

This skill will also help in delegating, which is the next desired skill.

6. Delegation: this applies mostly to managers, and it’s a very important skill. You can’t do it all alone, you need to focus on the strategic plans and projects and delegate smaller tasks to your team. You can even outsource some tasks to freelancers to free up your time if your staff is too swamped already. Make the most of your time.

7. Stress management: work shouldn’t be everything, so don’t forget about your mental health and general well-being. If you manage to handle stress positively, you will be at a higher motivation and productivity level. You can achieve this by taking small but constant breaks over the day or by stopping when completing big tasks and rewarding yourself.

Other examples of time management skills are:

  • Adaptability
  • Attention to detail
  • Evaluating
  • Conflict management
  • Compliance
  • Decision-making
  • Troubleshooting
  • Openness
  • Assertiveness.

Benefits of having good time management skills

There are so many benefits, and you will see that time management skills will positively impact your work activity day by day:

  • Increased productivity and efficiency: possessing good time management skills will help you get more done in less time and without affecting the quality of your work. You will prioritize your tasks, finish the ones with deadlines, carefully schedule, and be more effective.
  • Less procrastination: procrastination is a sensitive topic in the workplace, and it happens when you lose focus, maybe because you are tired or maybe because your goals are not clear. Deficient time management generates procrastination and a lot of distraction. Try to identify the causes of your procrastination to be able to stop it from developing every day.
  • Get work done on time: allocating a fixed amount of time to each task will surely increase your ability to complete them on time. If you have a clear plan for every project, every day, your brain will be focused, following that structure. So managing time well will allow you to deliver work on time.
  • Decreased levels of stress and anxiety: when you feel overwhelmed at work and tired all the time, you are more inclined to anxiety, depression, and all kinds of diseases. When you manage your time well, you will automatically reduce unnecessary stress and have a better confidence level.
  • More free time: with good time management, you also have more freedom to do more of the things you enjoy. Take up recreational activities that you enjoy, and spend more time with family and friends. All these will create the perfect work-life balance.
  • Opportunities for career growth: Being organized, punctual, and productive will allow you to gain a good reputation amongst managers. Leaders who are good at time management have better opportunities for promotions.


How to improve your time management skills?

Effective time management is not impossible to achieve. So here are five steps you should consider in your journey for improvement:

1. Plan ahead

Planning is not about following an extremely strict routine where you plan every minute of the day. It’s about knowing the right time for each task, and the deadline for each project to be completed, it’s about working smarter, regardless of your position or role.

2. Prioritize

There are many ways you can choose to use prioritization. For example, you can categorize tasks into urgent/non-urgent, important/slightly important, crucial for success/insignificant for success. Prioritization will allow you to understand that not everything you do is essential (for you, for the company as a whole).

3. Reduce or eliminate multitasking

Multitasking is one of the biggest mistakes you can make. You may believe you are good at everything, but by trying to solve all the work yourself, you will just become overwhelmed sooner than usual, and the quality of the work you perform will decrease big time. Make a list of the things you MUST do yourself, and the other can and should be delegated to other members of your team.

4. Use a time tracking system

Technology is our best friend! Using time tracking software is one of the most effective methods to manage your time perfectly. Such a system will allow you to track and manage time spent on every task. Absence management will also become a more manageable challenge for managers and HR professionals.

5. Identify your most productive hours

You should observe yourself to detect your most productive hours and then ensure you will take on the most important tasks during that interval.

We are all very different, so there is no perfect recipe. Some work better before lunch, others 1 or 2 hours after lunch. It depends. But finding that ideal interval may be key to better time management.

Discover ten additional time-management tips to boost your productivity and reach your goals faster.


Why are time management skills so essential?

Probably you are asking this question yourself right now. The answer is simple, and it lies in the definition of “ skill ”: an ability to do an activity or job well, mainly because you have practiced it.

Without proper time management skills, you cannot simply organize your time (even less as a manager) and structure your work in a way that allows you to accomplish your goals and observe your deadlines. Managing your time well enables you to be creative and proactive with your goals. When you have a specific time set aside to complete your tasks, you can also allow for time to look at the big picture for yourself and your company.

Get a handle on why managing your time effectively is important and what you gain from it by reviewing these eight reasonswhy time management is crucial:

  1. Time is limited. No matter who you are, where you are, or what you do, the day has only 24 hours. That applies to you and to your colleague who seems to do half of what you do. Twenty-four hours are also available for the former coworker who consistently accomplishes more than you and was promoted as a result. If you want to succeed, you have to acknowledge the importance of managing this limited resource.
  2. Accomplish more with less effort. When you take control of your time, you improve your ability to focus, and with increased focus comes enhanced efficiency, and you will cruise through tasks more smoothly and quickly.
  3. Improved decision-making ability. When you feel pressed for time and have to make a decision, you’re more likely to jump to conclusions without fully considering every option. Through effective time management, you can eliminate the pressure of not having enough time, and you will feel calmer and in control. When the time comes to examine options and make a decision, instead of rushing through the process, you can take time to carefully consider each choice, thus diminishing your chances of making the wrong decision.
  4. Become more successful in your career. Time management allows you to take control of your life. As you accomplish more each day, make more sound decisions, and feel more in control, people notice. Leaders in your business will come to you when they need to get things done. And that increased exposure helps put you in line for advancement opportunities.
  5. Learning opportunities are everywhere. The more you learn, the more valuable you are to your employer. And great learning opportunities are everywhere around you if you’ve got time to stop and take advantage of them. When you work more efficiently, you have that time. 
  6. Reduce stress. When you don’t have control of your time, it’s easy to end up feeling overwhelmed. Once you learn how to manage your time, you no longer subject yourself to that level of stress. Besides it being better for your health, you have a clearer picture of your time demands. 
  7. Free time is necessary. Everyone needs time to relax and unwind. Unfortunately, though, many of us don’t get enough of it. Having good time management skills helps you find that time. When you’re busy, you’re getting more done. You accumulate extra time throughout your day that you can use later to relax, unwind, and prepare for a good night’s sleep.
  8. Self-discipline is valuable. When you practice good time management, you leave no room for procrastination. The better you get at it, the more self-discipline you learn. Self-discipline is a valuable skill that will begin to impact other areas of your life where a lack of discipline has kept you from achieving a goal.


10 most common time management problems & solutions

Up to this point, you’ve learned that efficient time management enables you to work smarter, not harder, so that you get more done in less time. It also helps you balance your life by reducing, if not eliminating, stress and useless pressure.

Next, in this article, you will find out more about the ten time management mistakes we all made and even more pieces of tips we’ve all learned from. Save this list and get back to it whenever you feel your days are shorter 

  1. Being perfectionist

Perfectionism is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, perfectionists strive to produce high-quality work as well as show more discipline, engagement, and motivation. However, their high and inflexible standards and all-or-nothing mindset often cause stress, burnout, and anxiety that impair their performance.

Time management tips:

  • Get comfortable with imperfection. Diligence is a good trait, but sometimes it may take more of your time and effort than required. Attention to detail is also a great one, but it can be very time-consuming.
  • Reflect on your progress regularly. Review your performance on a weekly, bi-weekly, and monthly basis. Try being less worried about some of the tasks with little or no damage to the outcome.
  • Take some pressure off yourself. If you want to accomplish more in less time, allow yourself to be less perfect and concentrate and what’s important.
  • Ask for perspective and support. Show your work to your manager or supervisor regularly to learn if you are doing good, and if the current quality of work is sufficient; be ready to take criticism.
  1. Not being able to concentrate

Most of us have at least once experienced this state when we read a paragraph of text over and over and can’t get a grip on what it says. Or you need to write an article or prepare a report, but your mind is wandering, and unable to concentrate. Here are a couple of ideas on how you can get back on track

Tips for focusing:

  • Know your enemy. Identify workplace distractions that interfere with your ability to focus and be productive. Take a short assessment test by Harvard Business Review, learn which distractions damage your concentration most, and get some tips on eliminating them.
  • Take better care of your health. Sleep deprivation can disrupt concentration, memory, and attention. Regular workout improves concentration and attention. Meditation and mindfulness practices can offer multiple benefits, including enhanced concentration.
  • Use your peak performance time. Identify the most productive parts of the day and use them to perform the most demanding tasks. Don’t use peak time to process emails or make phone calls and use it wisely.
  • Take breaks.  They help you refresh your mind, replenish mental resources, restore motivation, and reduce decision fatigue. Spending time in nature alleviates fatigue. Even 10 minutes of exercise improves attention and performance.
  • Set daily goals. Our brains like short-term goals due to physiological reasons. When we succeed at something, our brain releases dopamine, making us feel more concentrated and inspired to experience this sense of accomplishment once again.
  • Practice single-tasking. Multitasking has many adverse effects on your concentration and performance: it slows down your progress, makes you prone to making mistakes, and stresses you out. Instead, focus on one task at a time. For even more concentration and focus, start a timer – it will give you the mental commitment to start working on the task.
  • Limit your Internet and social media time. In his article, Nicholas Carr highlights a dangerous tendency that most of us probably noticed but didn’t pay much attention to on social media and search engines narrow our attention span and our ability to focus.
  1. Ineffective scheduling

You can’t manage your time and focus if you prioritize the wrong things and invest time into tasks that return little or no goal-related results. Here are a few tips on how you can distribute your workload effectively:

  • Consider the Ivy Lee method. At the end of the day, write down the six most important tasks for tomorrow and prioritize them. The next day, start working on the most important ones.
  • Avoid the mere urgency effect. Humans are wired to choose urgent tasks with objectively lower payoffs over important tasks with more significant and long-term consequences. Prioritize tasks that are both urgent and important (see the Eisenhower Matrix above). Next, choose important tasks over urgent ones, which are ineffective in most cases.
  • Eat the frog. Mark Twain once said, “Eat a live frog first thing in the morning, and nothing worse will happen to you the rest of the day.” Do the most important or challenging task – the one you are most likely to procrastinate on and probably the one that can have the most significant positive impact on your life or project.
  1. Lack of Vision

There’s no need to master your time management skills if you don’t have a clear vision of where you are heading. Without a vision, you have little chance to create the results you want and feel joy and excitement to keep ongoing.

Time management tips:

  • Get a bird’s eye view. Think of how your tasks contribute to your personal or corporate goals. Maintain your focus on the result – it will bring you inspiration and energy to keep going. Adjust your vision, but never lose sight of it.
  • Create a backup plan. There’s always a possibility that things won’t unfold as expected. Think about best-case and worst-case scenarios, and prepare “Plan B” and “Plan C” to manage risks and problems with grace.

5. Not Tracking Time

You can’t improve your time management skills and approaches if you don’t keep track of your time. Time tracking sounds like a tedious task, but once you implement it into your routine, it will reveal unexpected trends and insights. When you analyze how many hours phone calls, emails, and distractions take, you can develop a more strategic approach to your time.

Time management tips:

  • Consider time-tracking software. Choose the one that meets your needs and doesn’t overwhelm you with a complicated interface and unnecessary features.
  • Review your performance regularly. Use Excel sheets, Google Sheets, timesheet apps, or time trackers with project management features to record time against the tasks and use your time logs to build reports.

6. Not Being Ready to Cope With Stress

Stress management and time management often go hand in hand. If you wait until the last minute to complete your task at hand and fail to plan and prioritize, you will more likely feel stressed. Not all stress is bad, but persistent exposure to stress can put your health and performance at risk. Time management tips:

  • Identify your stressors and develop healthy responses. Practice journaling for a few weeks to record your stressors, thoughts, feelings, and reactions. Review your notes to find patterns and look into ways to avoid or cope with stress: choose to exercise, do yoga, meditate, have hobbies, engage in favorite activities, and get quality sleep.
  • Set boundaries. Whether you work from home or the office, stick to your working hours and leave work at work. Avoid thinking about work and answering emails, and mute corporate chats and other work-related notifications on your smartphone at the end of your workday.

7. Doing Everything On Your Own

It doesn’t matter if you are an employee, a business owner, or a self-employed person, you can’t do everything independently. We all have 24 hours in a day and limited energy capacities as human beings. So if we push ourselves too hard, we are more likely to become stressed, less effective, and deliver low-quality results.

Time management tips:

  • Outsource. If you are a business owner or a self-employed person, consider outsourcing a part of your efforts. Weigh the opportunity costs, and you may find out that your time and energy are more crucial to your success than your money.
  • Automate your routines. Let’s say you are an HR manager, and you need to keep an eye on your employees’ working hours, time offs, reports, and vacations. There is time-tracking software that can do most of this work for you, so, again, consider the opportunity costs, and, most likely, you’ll make a choice towards its purchase. Automated routines will save weeks of your time in the long run.
  • Delegate. Consider delegating some tasks to one of your most reliable and detail-oriented team members. This way, they’ll learn some new skills and will be able to back you up in the future, while you will have more time on tasks that require your direct involvement.

8. Not Breaking Down Big Projects

Big projects look overwhelming and often lead to stress and procrastination. When you break them down into small digestible parts, individual tasks seem more approachable and doable. After you finish a small task, you will feel accomplished and motivated; your progress becomes more visible, and you’ll feel more productive and efficient.

Time management tips:

  • Break it down. Whenever you start a new task, break it down into steps that you can complete in 20-30 minutes, even if they look trivial.
  • Develop a logical sequence. The easiest tasks may seem more attractive, but you should better complete them in order, one by one, which will bring you closer to your project’s goal.
  • Review your progress regularly. When working on a big assignment, you may not always feel the progress. Try the solutions from the Checklist Manifesto book – break your tasks into an easy-to-follow, step-by-step checklist.

9. Not Conserving Your Brain Power

According to Nelson Cowan (Curators’ Distinguished Professor of Psychological Sciences at the University of Missouri), our average working memory capacity is limited to three to five items. Anything that exceeds these limits has a high chance of falling out of our brains. Knowing the limit of your brainpower is essential to keep your brain uncluttered to have more space, energy, and focus on accomplishing the tasks at hand.

10. Being Unmotivated

Motivation comes from the intention to work toward a goal. But every person’s motivation is triggered distinctively. Let’s see what else can fuel you with motivation.


Conclusion

After reading this article, we hope you are fully convinced of the importance of time management skills. By developing or improving these skills, you will create better habits, which will lead to a more productive and focused version of you.

Good time management promotes achieving bigger goals, reduces procrastination, and allows for smarter working every day.

"I must govern the clock, not be governed by it." - Golda Meir