To learn and share helpful tips on time management To apply time management skills to improving productivity and maintaining personal effectiveness

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International Association of
Research Scholars and Fellows
18th Annual IARSAF-IITA Symposium
23-24 March 2015

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DEALING WITH
TIME
MANAGEMENT
CHALLENGES
24 March 2015
Lade Oke
IITA-HRS

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“All you have and all you have ever had is the
everpresent moment. Choose to be your best
and make the most of it.”
Rosalene Glickman
“There is nothing so useless as doing
efficiently that which should not be done at
all.”
Peter F. Drucker

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“You will never find time for anything. If you
want time you must make it.”
Charles Buxton
“Don’t let the fear of the time it will take to
accomplish something stand in the way of your
doing it. The time will pass anyway; we might
just as well put that passing time to the best
possible use.”
Earl Nightingale

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To learn and share helpful tips on effective
time management; and
To apply time management skills to
improving productivity and maintaining
personal effectiveness;
LEARNING OBJECTIVES

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We have 168 hours in a week. How much time (in hours) do
you spend on the average in a week on:
1. Work/Research
2. Studying/Reading
3. Attending Classes
4. Commuting
5. Eating & Meal preparation
6. House chores
7. Family
8. Friends/Partner
9. Exercise/Having fun
10. Sleep
 WHY DO WE NEED TO MANAGE TIME?
AN EXERCISE ON TIME ANALYSIS

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Time is a resource that needs to be managed efficiently and
effectively; “Your greatest resource is your time.” Brian Tracy
“Time is really the only capital any human being has, and the
only thing he can’t afford to lose.” - Thomas Edison
“Time is the most precious element of human existence.”
- Dennis Waitely
“Time is the most valuable thing a man can spend.”
- Theophrastus
“Time lost is never found again” Benjamin Franklin
“Time has the same value in every culture, and offers us the
same opportunity to make the most of it.” Rosalene Glickman
And I wish to add this: “Our ability to manage time efficiently
and effectively is in direct proportion to our personal and
organizational productivity and well-being.”
WHY IS IT NECESSARY TO MANAGE TIME?

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These are some of the things we say:
Everything is urgent;
Time is too short;
“The bad news is time flies. The good news is you’re the pilot.”
– Michael Altshuler (a motivational speaker)
I am too busy.
I am overwhelmed. I do too much (research, study groups, meetings
with scientists/professors, reading, analysing, writing, editing, etc.)
I have no time for myself, no social life. I work late.
I am stressed meeting work deadlines. Etc.
MANAGING TIME – THE CHALLENGE

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1. Be aware: Be conscious and mindful of time. Acknowledge you
have a challenge managing your time.
2. Take a decision: Ask for help. Consciously do what you know you
should do to effectively manage your time. Peter Turla identified a
challenge many of us are facing: “I know what to do to better
manage my time, but I’m not doing it”.
3. Learn how to establish priorities: Know your priorities in the
workplace and in life. “Managing your time without setting priorities is
like shooting randomly and calling whatever you hit the target.” –
Peter Turla. Also regularly review and adjust your priorities.
4. Learn how to plan ahead: It always helps. You are no doubt aware
of the famous quote: “People don’t plan to fail; they fail because they
don’t plan”. However, know that there is no use making fantastic
plans without implementing them.
DEALING WITH THE CHALLENGE: WHAT WE CAN DO

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5. Draw up schedules and follow them as closely as possible: It
is advisable to make your to-do list the day before. Doing your list
in the morning means some minutes are already lost.
6. Make the most of your time: Work with speed and accuracy.
Try to accomplish much in a short time. “Those who make the
worst of their time most complain about its shortness.” – La
Bruyere
7. Don’t get overwhelmed: Pat Brans (2013) suggests, “The best
way to solve this problem is to focus on achieving just a few
things. Prioritize and learn to say no to anything that is not on
your short list”. He adds that, “to minimize this feeling, try jotting
down all the things that can be done tomorrow. Put that list in a
safe place, and don’t think about anything on the list until
tomorrow”. (Pat Brans is founder of Master The Moment, a new
approach to time management and personal effectiveness)
DEALING WITH THE CHALLENGE: WHAT WE CAN DO

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8. Do not waste time. Spend it wisely: “Time lost is never
found again.” – Benjamin Franklin
9. Do not procrastinate: Poor time management has been linked to one
of the causes of procrastination. Avoid putting off work as much as
possible. There is wisdom in the saying, “Never leave till tomorrow that
which you can do today.” “You delay, but time will not”, says Benjamin
Franklin. However, know that intentional delay, known as productive
procrastination, is allowed and can be helpful (Tara Kuther)
10. Deal with perfectionism: The perfectionist is fastidious (caring a lot
about small details and wanting everything to be correct and tidy), and
will certainly have problem with managing time. The good about the
perfectionist is that he/she has high standards and a fine attention for
detail, and the bad: he/she fixates on every facet of a project and can’t
set priorities. (Amy Gallo, Harvard Business Review, 2011). Harness
the best of perfectionism. Someone has advised that it is better to
“strive for progress, not perfection”.
DEALING WITH THE CHALLENGE: WHAT WE CAN DO

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11. Be less reactive, and more proactive: Being reactive means
you’re in the fire fighting mode, always dealing with emergencies,
and most times operationally focused. Spending more time thinking
things through and setting direction will enable you to manage your
time more effectively.
12. Learn to say ‘No’ to things that do not contribute or that you
cannot reasonably handle within the time frame: If you say ‘NO’
to some things that do not contribute to your Key Result Area (KRA),
you will be able to say ‘YES’ to more important things.
13. Practise effective delegation: Delegation is very helpful if you have
some direct reports and you know their specific capacity. However,
beware of overloading a motivated and productive colleague. You may
be creating time management challenges for this type of colleague or
student. While it is good to share the load, it is bad to abdicate.
DEALING WITH THE CHALLENGE: WHAT WE CAN DO

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14. Manage interruptions and distractions: Some are pleasant and
positive (serendipity), but it pays in the end to remain focused.
Someone defined interruption as ‘an external force ... that breaks
your attention’. Friends, relatives, colleagues should not be allowed
to make unreasonable demands on our work time. Examples of
distractions and interruptions are:
i) A phone call
ii) An unexpected visitor or colleague
iii) Email
iv) The Internet
v) Family or social obligations
15. Maintain well organized data/records/file management system:
Do you often spend much time looking for documents or retrieving
information? Check your data management or filing techniques. A
chaotic system will steal/waste some of your precious time.
DEALING WITH THE CHALLENGE: WHAT WE CAN DO

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16. Deal with lateness: There is a problem if one is always late – lateness in
attendance, in meeting work deadlines, in responding to communication, etc.
An author says, ‘If you find you are always running out of time, you are also in
danger of burning out. Take a look again at your priorities”.
17. Beware of multitasking: It may be good to know how to juggle. It is
interesting that inasmuch as some claim that multitasking is a desirable skill
and in particular that women are very good at it, some authors disagree,
noting that it is a deceptive way of managing time effectively. One author in
particular says that “the scientific evidence overwhelmingly suggests that
multitasking – switching back and forth between two or more tasks – is an
extremely ineffective way to get things done” (Zeller, 2008).
18. Don’t be an online junkie: Staying glued to the computer or I-phone for non-
work or non-research related matters steals time. It deprives one of time for
other more important things. It also means not doing the right thing at the right
time. Beware in particular of addiction to the social media.
DEALING WITH THE CHALLENGE: WHAT WE CAN DO

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19. Keep small talk to a minimum (Wellman, 1996): Get to the point
quickly when conversing by telephone. Restrict time spent on making
social contacts to break periods or after work.
20. Use waiting time effectively: The trick is to always have a notepad and
pencil or pen on hand. Use the time to think and write down your
thoughts. It usually proves to be time well spent.
21. Avoid settling into a last-minute person: Experience has shown
however that , “If it weren’t for the last minute, a lot of things wouldn’t get
done.” – Michael S. Traylor (a lawyer)
22. Avoid burnout: The best way to do this is to keep track of how you
spend your time, and of course avoid the ‘last minute syndrome’.
23. Take time to rest: You never can imagine how much energy can be
available to you if you learn to take short breaks in between tasks. Also
watch the activities you engage in at weekends. Have enough sleep.
DEALING WITH THE CHALLENGE: WHAT WE CAN DO

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Is it possible? Can we do it?
http://agilelion.com/drupal-terrace/what-should-we-do-be-successful-women-project-managers
YES, WE CAN!

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1. We all need time management strategies: “It’s not enough to be busy, so
are the ants. The question is, what are we busy about?” – Henry D. Thoreau
2. Focus on productivity and be accountable: It is not about how many
things we do or how much we run around. It is more about the substance
being contributed. The ultimate is effectiveness.
3. Set priorities and deadlines: Deadlines keep you focused, driving you to
reach the target. Setting priorities enables you to deliver on the most
important things in a timely fashion.
4. Learn to say “NO”: Don’t go off your to-do list unless it is absolutely
necessary. You will always pay a price for carrying out an idea or task that
comes to you right at the time. Don’t be a slave to the constant flow of
events and demands on your time. Also control serendipity.
5. Finally, adopt a useable style: Stick to what works for you. Remember, the
bottom line is efficiency and effectiveness, getting to the goal.
THE KEY MESSAGE – TAKE HOME

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YES, WE CAN!
Let us commit to practising what we have learnt.
Your time applied efficiently will save seconds
and minutes. It’s those seconds saved – not
stolen or wasted – that add up. Then you will have
time to get more done, or just have time for
yourself. (Wellman, 1996)
... Time management skills boil down to
awareness, organization and commitment. – The
key is balance. (Tara Kuther, 2011)

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