This document discusses setting priorities and time management. It begins by outlining the session objectives of understanding the need to set priorities, focusing on importance over urgency, and balancing roles and activities. It then discusses defining priorities in terms of important tasks, tracking progress, and making time for important matters. The document emphasizes separating importance from urgency and using a matrix to categorize tasks accordingly. It also notes the importance of regularly reviewing roles, goals, and tasks to determine priorities and maintain balance. Specific examples for setting ASME priorities are provided. The key points are that importance should dictate actions and time management requires planning, execution and reflection.

1. Setting Priorities
Terrell Yon
yonterre@embarqmail.co
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2. Session Objectives
• Better understand the need to set priorities
• Focus on importance, not urgency in time
management
• Recognise that effectiveness requires
balancing relationships, roles, activities and
quality of output
• Understand the value of periodic assessment
of tasks
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3. Session Outline
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Session purpose
The meaning of time management
Importance versus Urgency
Challenges in setting priorities
ASME perspective
Key points
Priorities scenario

4. The Purpose of Setting Priorities
• Priorities are about:
– Making time to attend to important
matters
– Getting tasks done
– Keeping track of tasks to monitor
progress
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5. Time Management
• “Try” versus “Make” time.
• “Don’t have the time” versus “Making
a priority”
• 80% of results come from 20% of
your activities
• About 50% of your time is out of your
control
• Multi-tasking is not an effective use of
time

6. Importance versus Urgency
• How do you spend your time?
• How do you react to crisis?
• What is essential?

7. Importance versus Urgency
URGENCY
HIGH
LOW
HIGH
LOW
IMPORTANCE
Crisis
 Deadlines
 Problems
 Planning
 Prevention
 Relationship Building
 Interruptions
 Some calls
 Some e-mail
 Trivia
 Watch TV
 “Escape” activities

8. Importance versus Urgency
• Habit 3 in Stephen Covey’s list for highly
effective people “first things first” is about
setting priorities.
• The underlying principle is the need for
balance in relationships, roles and
activities.
– Things which matter most should not be at the
mercy of those which matter least.
– Focus on the truly important and say no to the
unimportant.

9. Importance versus Urgency
• To determine priorities one needs to
review:
– Roles
– Goals
– Tasks
• Consider weekly reviews since daily
gives a limited view and too many
things change in a month.

10. Importance versus Urgency
• Roles
– Organize all that you do by roles
• Enables a view of balance and comfort level
– Roles represent responsibilities and
relationships
– Examples
• Family – spouse, parent
• Work – projects, administration, training
• Volunteer – ASME, Church, Scouts

11. Importance versus Urgency
• Goals
– Consider big picture view things
that need attention
– Set one or two each week that are
likely to have the most impact

12. Importance versus Urgency
• Tasks
– “To Do” Lists
– Organize by roles
– Evaluate with integrity
• Consider “Toggle” method
– Focus on one or two until
completed

13. Application

14. Challenges in Setting Priorities
• Understanding goals and expectations
• Triage list of all tasks and determine “must
do” items
– Break up big tasks
• Scope
• Timeline
• Relationships – consider involving others in
completion of efforts.

15. ASME Perspective
• Tasks
– Programmes, events – leading, delegating,
communicating, etc.
– Running meetings – make meetings effective
– Administrative duties – budgets, forms, updating
rosters, etc.

16. ASME Perspective
• Example Tasks
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Accessing unit financial information online
Submitting updated rosters for unit committees
Scheduling meetings, creating agendas,
conducting meeting
Planning programs (sections) / developing
Products and Services (division and sections)
Delegating / recruiting volunteers to carry out
programs
Creating a strategic plan for the unit
Identifying /nominating candidates for Honors &
Awards, filling out necessary paperwork

17. Application

18. Summary of Key Points
• Importance matters more than urgency and
should be the basis for actions
• Time management is about making time for
important activities
• Planning, execution and reflection are important
to achievement
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19. Related Sessions
• Team Building
• Business Plan Methods
• Effective Meetings

20. Setting Priorities
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