How to Reclaim Lost Time and Increase Your Productivity
Lack of time often is not experiences because of the great number of tasks we have to do. But rather often it is a result of unpredictable and unjustified time losses. You may try to plan your day, prioritizing the daily activities. However, even those who mastered the art of making realistic plans are likely to complete only the half of the planned activities by the end of the day. “If I had at least a couple of hours more… “ . You may hear these words from the presidents of the global companies as well as from the managers and employees.
Among the factors that steal our time during the working day, we often see three major “time thieves”.
- Uninvited guests
- Unexpected phone calls
- and… you.
Uninvited Guests
These uninvited guests are sometimes your colleagues, who drop in “just for a quick word”. In fact they start with discussing some really urgent professional issue, then move on to gossiping about the secretary’s new haircut and boss’ mood.
Unexpected Phone Calls
Unexpected phone calls are another nuisance during your working day. Top leaders may entrust their secretaries with solving this problem and taking calls for you to return later. If there are urgent calls, you will have to interrupt your work and deal with those situations.But you can deal with the rest of the calls when it is convenient for you.
The Problem May Be You
The most important characteristic for focusing on your work is self–discipline. Create a deadline for yourself for each task you need to perform. Your precise determination to complete the task as soon as possible will help you stay on task.
You can get rid of these “time thieves” in different ways. The most harmless method is to set the so-called “quiet hour”, choosing the best time period for solving the piled up problems. A special notice on the door of your office may be a signal to those who want to disturb you. If you don’t have a separate room, ask the office manager to perform the function of informing co-workers of this off-limits time. Very soon everyone will be acquainted with your working schedule and they will learn to make an appointment with you in advance.
If you can’t manage to reduce your time losses, try to keep a diary where you will make notes why and how much time has been wasted. These notes will help you to find the hole where all the precious minutes flow. Then you can begin working on patching the hole and reclaiming your productivity.