Custom essays on The Importance of Time Management

According to Messmer (2000), the best way to start your time management program is “to spend at least 10 or 15 minutes at the start of every day creating a simple “to do” list. Setting priorities before diving into your daily challenges will help keep you on target. (p. 41)
I will use two methods that help to set priorities: ABC analysis and Pareto analysis.
ABC analysis ranks tasks depending on the level of their importance and urgency. The tasks that are marked as urgent and important should be made in the first place.
Pareto analysis claims that 80% of tasks can be completed in 20% of the time. The remaining 20% of tasks will take up 80% of the time. And also, I need to mention that “the 80-20-rule may be applied to increase productivity: 80% of the productivity can be achieved by doing 20% of the tasks.” (Tracy, 2004, p.101)
According to recommendations, I will use a simple notebook that will help to improve my ability to manage the workload effectively. The daily “to-do” items will be written there; these tasks will be prioritized and allotted with the appropriate amount of time.
I would also consider reassigning some of my tasks to other people, if it’s possible.
The next recommendation is to split the tasks into smaller stages.
Besides it, according to recommendations of both Messmer (2000) and Tracy (2004) I’m going to take an advantage of my peak “efficient” hours. I know that my most productive time for intellectual work is in the evening. Therefore I’ll plan the papers and the other things that require the brainwork for the evening time.
Other tasks, for example, business visits or negotiations will be planned for the day time.
Another important factor is distractions, they need to be controlled. You have to be able to limit the phone calls and meetings for a certain amount of time in order to focus on one substantial task.
I should mention that time management authors advice their readers to take “small breaks throughout the day, because it helps to “recharge” and stay productive”. (Messmer, 2000, p. 41)
It is advisable to control the process of any business meeting. The goals of the meeting should be defined and participants should be fixed on the subjects and respect time limits.
It is also not recommended to multitask. It’s really critical to keep this in mind, because in our modern lives we multitask. “In reality, it’s difficult to do two tasks simultaneously” and effectively. (Neely, 2007, p.20)
To sum up, I will definitely apply time management advices mentioned in this paper to my everyday life and hopefully it will help me to become much more effective and efficient person.

References
Messmer, M. (Jun, 2010). Effective Time Management. Business Credit. 102 (6): 41.
Neely, M. (May/Jun, 2007). Management against Time. Industrial Management, 49 (3): 20
Tracy, B. (2004). Time Power: A Proven System for Getting More Done in Less Time Than You Ever Thought Possible. American Management Association: 1-101
Realistic Time Management Tips to Deal with Heavy Workloads. (Jan. 25, 2011) Manila Bulletin. n.a.