Managers Essential Time Management Tips

When in a senior and/or management role time can be a finite resource, and if not managed properly you can soon start to impede on work-life balance.

Adopting the right time management techniques allows you to achieve more in the workplace. Additionally, it helps you strike a better work-life balance that’s conducive to overall wellbeing. If you’re struggling to allocate your time efficiently, here are some tips you may benefit from.

1. Create an effective email process

You may never reach Inbox Zero in a management role, but you can approach your emails in a way that gives you more free time. How you achieve this may depend on the industry you work in. An effective approach could involve allocating time to check your email each day and refusing to look at it between those periods.

However, if you fear that this could result in you missing an important email, there is an alternative. Instead, address emails according to whether or not they need your attention immediately. As a result, you won’t spend all day firefighting your inbox and you won’t miss anything important either.

2. Black out periods

Getting anything done can feel impossible when your staff are encouraged to interrupt you at will. An open door policy whilst encouraged, can also have a negative impact on your own productivity. As such, one of our best time management tips is to create a sterile period in which you close the door to get it done.

During your blocked off hours, work on big projects in a place that’s free from distractions. It can take up to 23 minutes to recover from a distraction. You may be amazed at how much time you regain when you contain the time people are able to interrupt.

3. Make the most of unsociable hours

Although it isn’t healthy to work around the clock, you should consider whether you can use unsociable hours to your advantage. Many people find that their best thinking and planning happens early in the morning. In fact, early risers often cite embracing waking hour productivity as one of their best time management tips.

In addition to this, don’t shy away from using your evenings resourcefully during busy periods, whether this is time to prepare a to-do list for the next day, or preparing your work bag the night before. While it isn’t advisable to always work late into the night, taking some preparation time when a big project is about to reach its conclusion can make perfect business sense and set you up for success.

If Recruitment & Labour Hire is taking up the bulk of your time, we’re here to help. With 23+ years of experience in helping others maximise the hours in their day, we’re confident we can do the same for you. Contact us to learn more.