ACADEMY OF HEALTH SCIENCES, U.S.

ARMY AMEDD NONCOMMISSIONED OFFICERS ACADEMY BASIC NONCOMMISSIONED OFFICERS COURSE

TASK: Apply time management techniques.

APPLY TIME MANGEMENT TECHNIQUES

1-1. INTRODUCTION
a. Never Enough Time? Have you, at the end of the day, found yourself lamenting that your day had been "nothing but one crisis after the other?" How often have you attended a meeting and afterwards characterized it as "a waste of time?"

LACK OF TIME: THE BANE OF OUR EXISTENCE

"Don't bother me with that; I don't have time for it." "Here we are again, one more job to do, but no time to do it." "I wish I could spend more time with my family."
How often have you considered all the things you had to do and asked yourself where to start? We've all made such comments. We have all experienced crises and a lack of time. We have all attended worthless meetings, and often, because of a heavy workload, have not known where to start. In this chapter, we will identify problems that interfere with time management and discuss solutions for them.

b. Do You Put Your Time to Good Use? Some of us instinctively make good use of our time while others of us always bemoan the lack of available time. No matter how you use your time, the average person generally divides the day into three parts: one-third sleep, one-third work, and one-third utility time. To manage your time more effectively, you first need to know more specifically how you spend your utility (discretionary) time and what functions take up your time at work.

The day divided into three parts: 1. Sleep. 2. Work. 3. Utility (discretionary) time.
c. The Systematic Inventory of Time Usage as an Analytical Tool. The best way to get a handle on what actually takes up your time is to make a systematic inventory using some kind of daily calendar log, like the one shown below.

TIME MANAGEMENT

Managing our own time. Understanding time management. Detecting time robbers. Effective time management techniques.

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You might think you know how your time is spent. purpose of keeping the daily time inventory is to help you take But, the inventory could well reveal some As you learn to control a critical look at how you spend eye-opening surprises (patterns) about your time, you will come your time. your actual time usage. To make an to control your life. inventory, you need to keep track of what you do, hour-by-hour (or in blocks of time A. Laiken, if, for example, you spend 4 hours on a 1-2. CONTROLLING Time Efficiency Expert single activity.) Try to keep an accurate YOUR TIME log by making entries often (hourly or at least every few hours.) Keep a time Effective time management is inventory for a week or two. And then high on the list of most total up percentages of time spent per category. Your successful managers. Many people, from ancient categories can be as broad as the three mentioned philosophers to contemporary management gurus, above (sleep, work, utility.) Or it might be more have made comments on time, or the lack of it. informative to identify more major categories, such * Alan Lakein , a management consultant who as: sleep, work, play, self-improvement, family, etc. specializes in effective use of time, maintains that as You should choose the categories for time usage you learn to control your time, you will come to control according to what is important to you. (If you are not your life. Since most of us would like to have control married and family members live far away, for over our lives, we need to learn something about example, the category, family, would not apply.) How getting control of our time. What is so important you think you spend your time, and how you actually about time? Why is it special? It is absolutely the spend your time may differ to a surprisingly significant most scarce resource we have. Think about it. Time degree. is totally inelastic; it is irreversible; it is irreplaceable. Once you have wasted time, you will never get it back. As the figure below shows, you can replace some things in life, but you cannot replace time. You may be in for a surprise when you

see how your time is actually spent.

LOST FOREVER?
After you have totaled your percentages for time spent in each category, consider the categories that you spend "too little" or "too much" time. Think about ways that you could better balance your use of time for these extreme categories.

CAN YOU REPLACE IT? YES NO

Money Squandered...............X .......... ..... Think of ways you can restructure your use of time, so as to spend time on the activities that really count for you.
When thinking about ways to restructure your use of time, be realistic. You know that you can change the way you use leisure and off-duty time relatively easy. You cannot easily change the conditions imposed upon you by the work environment. It is important to understand that we usually cannot change conditions imposed by the environment. But you can change things about yourself, that are wrong such as work style or bad habits that waste time. Identifying the bad habits is half the battle. The next step is to change the behavior into something positive. The

Resources Wasted.................X .......... ..... Time Wasted ......................... ............ X ..

Time is the one commodity that cannot be replaced. If, you miss out on a vacation, you might reason that you can make it up later. But, time marches on. The moment lost, is irreversibly gone forever. The postponed vacation that you take at a later time is an
A. Laiken, How to Get Control of Your Time and Your Life, Wyden Press, 1973--the reference for this chapter.
*

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entirely different experience. You can never go back in time to take the earlier vacation. The circumstances, people, and events involved in vacation #2 taken at a later date will not be the same as the circumstances, people, and situations you would have encountered had you taken vacation #1, at the originally scheduled time.

not as expected, or bad location. Every NCO must understand the benefits of time management, yet at the same time recognize that it is not the total solution to all management problems. We cannot stop time, slow it down, or speed it up. It just keeps ticking at the same speed.

1-3. FREQUENTLY-ASKED TIME MANAGEMENT QUESTIONS

Question: Is idleness a waste of time? Answer: Not necessarily. We usually consider leisure time or time spent with the family as time well-spent.

Question: Does working hard equal working smart? Answer :Not always. Working hard but in the wrong direction i.e., on an unimportant or irrelevant task will NOT help you move toward your ultimate goal. Question: What payoffs result from better time management? Answer : You become more effective in your job and academic pursuits.

Time spent quietly contemplating the events of the day, can actually produce insight and solutions to problems. During so-called "idle moments," the creative subconscious is working behind-the-scenes to deal with problems.
Question: How do successful people make use of their time? Answer :They plan a time for work and a time for play, but while at work, successful people usually work efficiently. Question: Is effective use of time a prerequisite for success? Answer :Good use of time does not always equate to success. However, only few people succeed who don't know how to manage their time.
It is important to note that the efficient use of time is not the single solution to all management challenges. Know-how sometimes beats out efficiency. Many small businesses fail not for lack of efficiency, but various other reasons: underestimated costs, market

You achieve personal goals; have more leisure time. You reduce your stress level.
So, what do we do about it? Give up? No, we can learn to control time to our advantage.

1-4. COMMON TIME WASTERS

Let us assume we want to take charge of our time! How do we proceed? First, we identify the enemies of time and then we fight them. We call these enemies time wasters.

TIME WASTERS
Often, these are habits (behaviors) that cause you to waste time. There is disagreement about time wasters. (What I consider time wasted, you may think of as time well-spent.) Yet, there are many timeconsuming activities that almost all of us would classify as time wasters.
Consider the common time robbers listed in the three figures that appear on the following page.

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A PROJECT MANAGER SHOULD MANAGE, NOT DO. HOWEVER, THERE ARE MANY TIME ROBBERS:
* Incomplete work. * Job to be redone. * Waiting for people. * Failure to delegate. * Poor performance. * Changes without explanation. * Day-to-day administration. * Not using one's potential. * Lack of clerical support. * Late appointments. * Impromptu tasks. * Having to explain thinking to superiors. * Casual visitors. * Procrastination. * Proofreading correspondence. * Monitoring delegated work. * Lack of privacy. * Bureaucracy. * Too many people involved in minor decision making.

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MORE TIME ROBBERS:

* Setting up appointments. * Unclear job descripton. * Over-committed to outside activities. * Not enough trustworthy managers. * Vague goals. * Lack of technical knowledge. * Lack of leadership. * * * * * * * * Excessive paperwork. Over-educated for daily tasks. Work overload. Unreasonable time constraints. Poor communication skills. Meetings. Lack of reward. Crisis management--going from crisis to

crisis.

AND EVEN MORE TIME ROBBERS!

* * * * * * * Lack of discipline. * Disregard for the organization. Severe home constraints. * Overreaching. Constant pressure. * Unreliable support personnel. Poor salary. * Too much work for one person. Desire for perfection. * Large number of projects. Growing work load. * Budgetary problems. Lack of new taskings-justifying very existence.

On the preceding page, we identified many of the things that waste your time or what you waste time on. The immediate result of eliminating these time wasters is simply, better use of your time. We will now turn our attention to what saves time (time savers) and allows us to get more accomplished in a specified number of minutes.

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1-5. TIME SAVERS

a. Cutting Corners not Good Time Management. It is important to realize that cutting corners, that is short-changing a job simply for the sake of saving time, does not, ultimately, save time. You may end up having to go back and redo a botched job if you try to cut corners. On the other hand, soldiers often spend too much time on things which are inconsequential and not enough time on the truly important things that will accomplish the task. We all have a tendency to spend more time on the tasks we enjoy. But, what we like to do is not necessarily what we need to do to get the job done. b. Time Savers More Important than Time Robbers. Note, too, that time savers are more important than time wasters. Not to waste time is certainly important, but even if you cut out all bad habits, you still have not arrived at efficiency. You have only eliminated inefficiency. This is where time savers come into play. Through the proper use of time saving methods, you can increase your efficiency. You can get more done in the same amount of time or with identical effort. c. Know Thyself. To save time, you need to know something about yourself and your work patterns. When do you work best? The first thing in the morning, right after lunch, at night? When are you most subject to interruptions? (If you get interrupted at your peak efficiency times, your best hours will have been wasted.) Do you build some slack into your schedule in order to deal with the unexpected? At the start of each day do you prepare a Things to Do list, like the one shown in the next column ? This is a useful planning and self-assessment tool.

Determine your peak efficiency times. Determine when you get most interruptions. Build slack into your schedule for interruptions. Keep a daily "Things to Do" list.

Answer the questions in the Time Management SelfAssessment (next two figures) to determine your strengths and weaknesses in managing time.

TIME MANAGEMENT SELF-ASSESSMENT

Do you have trouble meeting deadlines? How long can you work before being interrupted? How many interruptions per day? How do you handle interruptions? How do you handle drop-in visitors or phone calls? How is incoming mail handled? How difficult is it for you to say no? How do you approach detail work? Do you do work that your subordinates should do?

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TIME MANAGEMENT SELF-ASSESSMENT (CONTD.)

* * * * * * Do you have sufficient time each day for personal interests? Do you think about your job when away from the office? Do you have a list of things to do? Are they prioritized? Is your schedule somewhat flexible? Do you have established procedures for routine work? If you need a large block of uninterrupted time, is it available?

effective and productive meetings? Consider the Meeting Guidelines shown below.

MEETING GUIDELINES
Prepare an agenda. Cover in order listed. Define specific purpose of meeting in advance. Determine desired outcome of meeting. A written plan. A decision. Shared information. Limit attendance to essential personnel. To ensure results. To prevent apathy and fatigue. Set and announce time limit for meeting. Don't allow anyone to dominate group. Every member should contribute. Otherwise, you've wasted their time. Critique the meeting. What went right and wrong? Read previous meeting minutes. If necessary, amend minutes.

1-6. MEETINGS
a. A Potentially Big Time Waster. Meetings are notorious for being time wasters. In a bureaucracy, such as the Army, we end up spending a significant portion of the workday in and out of meetings. Therefore, it is worth considering how this potential time waster can be handled more efficiently, both in the planning and actual running of the meeting. The next figure (see below) lists reasons why meetings generally fail.

MEETINGS FAIL BECAUSE THE PROJECT MANAGER:

Spends too much time on trivial items. Neglects to send out an agenda. Holds too many team meetings. Holds too few team meetings. Neglects to invite personnel with decision-making authority. Neglects to provide a copy of written materials ahead of time.
b. Notification of Meeting. Often you receive notification that you are to attend a meeting by phone from a clerk or secretary. This person invites you, provides the time and location, but otherwise has no additional details. c. Meetings Without Conclusions. All too often, a meeting will end without any clear conclusions reached. You leave the meeting feeling that you really did not need to be there because nothing was resolved. What can be done, then, to organize

1-7. ON BECOMING A BETTER MEETING PARTICIPANT

a. Be Prepared. There are a number of things that you can do in preparation for a meeting to contribute more efficiently and effectively to what goes on at the meeting. (See next figure.)

THE HABITS OF EFFECTIVE MEETING PARTICIPANTS

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Plan your schedule to be available at the appointed time and place. Designate and prepare your representative, in advance. Know what you want out of it. Take into account relevant facts, reports, etc. Consider what has occurred in your area of responsibility since the last meeting of this type. Plan to take notes.

b. Be an Active Participant. Woody Allen says that "ninety percent of success is being there." But in the case of meetings, this is not entirely true. Being there, that is, simply warming the seat, is not enough. For, you, as a participant, have a responsibility to help the meeting realize its stated purpose by being an active participant. (See the following figure.)

b. Handling a Crisis. The sensible approach to a crisis is to remain relaxed. Take consolation in the fact that interruptions and crises are normal and inevitable. Just deal with the crisis. Analyze the situation and identify critical consequences. Apply an appropriate problem-solving process. When the crisis is over, go back and evaluate results and plan to eliminate future similar crises through better planning. c. Handling an Interruption. The best way to sidestep interruptions gracefully is to plan for them. Let it be known that you have a policy of scheduled visits. This will discourage the uninvited visitor. Be assertive about ending conversations that are going nowhere. And, finally, make it a policy to ask for things in writing rather than by word of mouth.

DURING THE MEETING

Make your input at the meeting. If not, the audience cannot possibly consider your ideas. Take responsibility for: Keeping the meeting focused on its stated purpose. Staying within the allocated time. If the meeting flounders, complain. Take notes on items of concern. Prior to close of meeting, get the: Time, place, and purpose of the next meeting.
c. After the Meeting. It is your responsibility, after the meeting, to do a certain amount of follow-up to ensure that the desired outcomes of the meeting are, in fact, realized. See the figure that follows.

Schedule visits. End conversations. Ask for it in writing.

1-9. SETTING PRIORITIES

a. Importance of. Part of good time management involves setting priorities. It is important to set weekly, daily, and even, sometimes, hourly priorities. Any time there is a choice of things to do, you set a priority by making a decision about which task to turn your attentions to first. Not everyone is good at setting priorities. Some decisions about use of one's time may seem ill-considered when reviewed later. In general, though, you can expect the greatest and most immediate pay-off from setting daily priorities. b. When to Set Priorities. It is best to set your daily tasks in priority either the first thing in the morning or at the end of the work day. c. Determining Priorities. How do you determine what is important? Whatever has the greatest impact on the mission, either today or in the future, should have priority. d. Goals Affect Priorities. The way you spend your time (both work time and leisure) depends on your priorities. We frequently base our priorities on our goals. If you decide that your goal is a promotion, then spending time on professional reading or skillbuilding will be a priority.

AFTER THE MEETING

Report to your chain on the outcome of the meeting. Plan actions resulting from the meeting. Develop a possible agenda for the next meeting.

1-8. INTERRUPTIONS AND CRISES

a. Keeping Your Cool Under Stress. What if the carefully laid plans of your daily To Do List are derailed by an unforeseen event? We often have to set our best plans aside to deal with the unexpected. Interruptions, personal problems, or demands from a supervisor may cause us to radically revise our plans. How do we handle this kind of upset to your schedule without losing your cool or getting flustered, and thus, becoming ineffective?

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e. Imposed Priorities. Often, in the military, others dictate some of your priorities. For instance, the commander may give you a specific task to accomplish by the end of the day. In this case, your priority system will suddenly reflect the new input. Again, there is no need to get flustered. (Remember the saying about having the wisdom to accept the things that you cannot change.)

MORE ON EFFECTIVE TIME MANAGEMENT

*Know the weekly and daily energy cycles of your people. Assign work compatible with their cycle. *Understand productivity levels of your people. *Do not schedule overtime unnecessarily. Some employees may be "banking" to get overtime pay. *Monitor your own work. Can somebody lse do it? *Do not schedule meetings unless they are 15 necessary. Prepare for them.

God give us the grace to accept with serenity the things that cannot be changed, Courage to change the things which should be changed, And the wisdom to distinguish the one from the other.
The Serenity Prayer, 1934 Rheinhold Niebuhr

It doesn't mean that the additional tasker permanently paralyzes your system. However, the unanticipated project places a new priority at the top of your system, if only temporarily. If you think of your daily To Do List as a guide rather than a sacred tablet set in stone, you will be less likely to crumble when the unexpected happens.

1-10. WORK SMARTER, NOT HARDER

The central idea for controlling time is to work smarter, not harder. Use some of the techniques discussed earlier to take back much of the control others have on your time. Also, consider those listed in the next few figures. Remember the clock is ticking. Ultimately, as you learn to control time, you gain more control of your life and become a more effective person, manager, and/or leader.

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PROJECT MANAGEMENT PROVERBS

You can con a sucker into committing an unreasonable deadline, but you can't bully him (her) into meeting it. The more ridiculous the deadline, the more it costs to try to meet it. Too few people on a project can solve the problems--too many create more problems than they solve. What you don't know hurts you.
Source: Karzner, Project Management

SOME PROJECT MANAGEMENT PROVERBS

Projects progress quickly until they become 90% complete; then they remain at 90% complete forever. What is not on paper has not been said. Of several possible interpretations of a communication, the least convenient one is the only correct one. Murphy is alive and well-in your project. (If something could go wrong, it will.) You cannot produce a baby in one month by impregnating nine women.
Source: Karzner, Project Management

1-11. REFERENCE
How to Get Control of Your Time and Your Life, Lakein, A., Wyden Press, 1973.

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