Here is a quote – I am not absentminded. It is the presence of mind that makes me unaware of everything else.
—GK Chesterton
Let us take an example. You are working on a project that will decide your fate as a professional. You are reeling under immense pressure and your deadline is fast approaching. In this scenario, you are dedicating all your effort, yet you have to attend a meeting that is unnecessary. Attending such a meeting can dilute your focus to a certain extent, which you could better utilize for your project.
For effective time management, it is necessary to avoid or find ways to avoid regular interruptions at work. The best way to do away with such distractions is to make sure that you are not repeating activities that led to wastage of time on your previous workday. Well, there is no denying the consequence of hallway conversations, emails, or unscheduled phone calls, since these invariably consume much of your precious time. You cannot stretch the day; thus, wasting time on these interruptions may prove too stressing to you.
Identify and conquer your distractions
Free yourself from distractions by creating an Interrupters’ Log where you can access the validity of the interruption. Interrupters’ Log helps you with a clear idea of the ways you could have pre-empted major interruptions, such as holding routine meetings with people, which would save you from this hassle. Nevertheless, it would be grossly inappropriate to consider valid and urgent interruptions as something superfluous or unneeded. Rather than sidelining them, it makes better sense to deal with them.
Consider interruptions as ‘Contingency Time’
Accept only those tasks that you can do in your free time. Like modern-day managers, you, too, have to juggle this other work around the interruptions. The key to controlling interruptions is to know what they are and whether they are necessary and to plan them in your daily schedule. Scheduling regular check-in times for your subordinates, colleagues, or anyone who talks to you most often, is a good idea. Request them to keep a running list of things that they need to discuss to eliminate unnecessary meetings. An open-door policy is fine, but you should restrict the number of visitors.
Time management is all about distinguishing between what is important for you and what simply lures you into useless activities. No one who looks forward to accomplishing a goal can afford to waste time in such activities.
