Welcome back; it's great to have you here.
We discussed in-demand soft skills in 2023 last week, and time management was one of the top five on that list.
In today's post, I'll go into greater detail about it.
What is Time Management
Time management is organizing and planning how to allocate your time among various activities.
We all have the same 24 hours each day, but we don't all get the same results; this is time management. What is your time management strategy?
Time management is a difficult practice for many people because they have to implement it in their daily lives.
This is not just a skill for workers, though it can help them keep their jobs, but it is also helpful for everyone.
According to the American Psychological Association, 20% of adults are chronic procrastinators, something to be aware of when trying to improve productivity.
To do so, proper time management is essential, but, according to data from job sites such as Zippia, 82% of people do not have one.
This translates to the average worker spending around 31% of every workday on tasks with little to no value, not realizing that spending only 10 minutes planning the day can save 2 hours.
This is where the 4Ds of Time Management come into play.
The 4Ds of Time Management
Daniel Johnson developed the 4Ds of Time Management techniques for his 1991 book, Career Comeback: Taking Charge of Your Career.
The 4Ds are as follows:
- Defer It.
- Delegate it.
- Dump/Delete it
- Do it now.
Defer It
Most of the time, when we look at a to-do list for the day, we feel overwhelmed, and he doesn't have to be like that.
Not all tasks on our to-do list are urgent, and that's where deferring comes in. You can move these non-urgent tasks to another day, giving you fewer things to worry about and allowing you to focus better.
Going to the grocery store is an example of this if your groceries are not yet finished or can last for a few days.
Delegate It
Delegate it. Delegate those incoming tasks or responsibilities that you cannot do on your own to another person, who could be a freelancer, family member, colleague, or friend.
Depending on the circumstance, delegating these tasks will improve not only your performance but also your focus.
Dump/Delete It
Some tasks or responsibilities are completely irrelevant to us. This will improve your life in the long run because it will free up time for the things that are truly important to you.
This can be accomplished by going through your to-do list and assessing the usefulness of each task. Remove it from the list if it is no longer useful.
As an example, you could delete meetings that you don't have to attend.
Do It Now.
This section contains the most important tasks or responsibilities that you must complete, that require your full attention, or that have a deadline.
Starting to create a digital marketing plan for a new product your company wants to launch is one example.
Here are some advantages of time management.
- Stress reduction
- Reduced procrastination
- Improved Work-Life Balance
- Exceptional Productivity
- Increased energy
- Positive reputation among peers
- Clear daily goals
- An organised mind, enables you to think better
In conclusion, following these steps will reduce worry about time management, deadlines and getting queries from the boss.
It's okay if you don't get everything right the first time.
Instead of giving up or beating yourself up, try again; learn from your mistakes and make changes. And you'll get better at it over time.
Make sure to try out the 4Ds. If you do, please let us know by leaving a comment on this post. Remember to like, share, and subscribe to our blog. See you again soon. 🙂
1 Comments
Great
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