One of the most frequently mentioned problems of businessmen is encapsulated in the phrase, “If I only had more time…” This concern is a common problem among all busy people. It seems that no one has enough time. Time is the most precious yet most limited resource of the businessmen. It is a unique quantity-the businessmen cannot store it, rent it, hire it, or buy it. With its supply being inelastic, it is totally perishable and irreplaceable. Everything requires it and it passes at the same rate for everyone. While important throughout the life of the venture, time is particularly critical at start-up and during growth and expansion of the venture. No matter what the businessman does, today’s ration of time is 24 hours, and yesterday’s time is already history.
What is Time Management?
Managing time means investing time to get what you decide you want out of life, including what you want out of the venture created. This definition assumes that the businessmen know what they want out of life-goal-oriented action. It implies that the businessmen have focused values about the venture, work, family, social activities, possessions, and themselves.
Why does the problem of time management exist for the businessman? It is basically due to a lack of information and a lack of motivation. The businessman must want to manage his or her time effectively and then spend some time to acquire the information necessary to accomplish this. Effective time management starts with an understanding of some benefits that will result.
Knowing the art of time management will help a businessman to become productive for anything he does. Determining the goal or purpose will help in setting up the allotted time for everything. Following a schedule is what works for many, but others may need intensive guidelines such as recording all activities including flow of thought within a week. Such technique will help in recognizing and determining the productive hours and the wasted time, as well. Paying attention to negative thoughts and engagement to unproductive activities and conversations are the usual causes, which make people fail in finishing the necessary things that they have to do in a certain time frame. Making to-do lists will also help, especially if the list will enumerate the starting and end time of every activity. It is also vital that a person gives allotted time for all the activities and meetings that will help pave the way to his success.
It is also essential to plan ahead of time all activities within the day. In this way, there is a guarantee that everything will run smoothly, and possible delays can be easily adjusted. It will help to ask the cooperation of other people around, so that disturbances will be limited. Aside from discipline, it is also vital to develop perseverance in order to get all the work done according to schedule. Procrastination also includes a cheat time, in which a person allows interruptions or breaks, which will supply and culminate another inspiration to keep things going. It will help a person to focus and concentrate by blocking distractions while at work, such as limitations in opening social networking sites. At the end of the day, it is vital to evaluate all activities that will help in identifying whether the schedule is followed according to the given goals.
Benefits of Time Management
While there are numerous benefits to the entrepreneur for effectively managing his/her time, some of the typical pay-offs are discussed below.
- Increased productivity: Reflects the fact that there is always enough time to accomplish the most important things. Through a conscious effort and increased focus, the businessman can determine what is most important to the success and growth of the venture and focus on those things rather than on less important or more enjoyable things; the businessman must learn to focus on the majors, not the minors.
- Increased job satisfaction: Getting more important things done and being more successful at helping the venture grow will give the businessmen more job satisfaction.
- Improved interpersonal relations: There will be an improvement in the esprit de corps of the venture as there are less time pressure, better results, and more job satisfaction for the businessmen. While total time spent with other individuals in the company may in fact decrease, the actual time will be of better quality as the businessmen is free to be involved with interrelations. Also, more time becomes available for the businessmen to spend with family and friends.
- Reduced time anxiety and tension: Worry, guilt, and other emotions tend to reduce mental effectiveness and efficiency so that decision making is less effective. Effective time management reduces concerns, stress and anxieties, allowing better decisions to be made in a shorter time.
- Better health: All of the above benefits culminate in this. Large amounts of energy and persistence are needed for the growth as well as for the start of a venture. High energy levels and long working hours require good health. Poor control of time often leads to mental and physical fatigue, poor eating habits, and no exercise. If there is one thing the businessman needs to help the venture grow, it is good health. A good health is a by- product of good time management.
Defining Task and Priority Setting
In organizational time management we can delineate the overall tasks in the form of the following:
- Urgent and very important matters: these are organizational matters or activities that require immediate concern or decision-making. They are regarded as urgent because they basically influence the overall performance of an organization.
- Less urgent and very important matters: these are the activities that are crucial to the organization’s performance but are dealt with over a wider range of time without any urgency.
- Urgent and less important matters: these are activities that are not crucial to the organization but they require immediate concern. They are seen next to those activities, which are both urgent and more important.
- Less urgent and less important matters: these are organization matters or activities that require the least attention both in urgency and importance of all the organizational activities. They are dealt with after all the above activities are executed.