How can you coach coachees with poor time management skills?

Generally, it starts with making sure they have a "north star" of goals or values. If they don't have a clear understanding of their "WHY," everything may seem important. As with most things, starting with the WHY at least creates a grounding on which to build. Next, teaching prioritization. I often use Full Focus framework and the "Big 3" concept for the quarter, week, and day. Tying how you spend your time to the "WHY" and the things that move you closer to it helps focus on the most important things first. Generally, then there are tools and processes that will evolve as most helpful for each coachee to scale and be more productive and effective, but without knowing the why and top priorities opens up the more refined phase of work.

A variety of task lists and tools can actually add to the stressors and distractions for some coachees. Often times, they are aware of their triggers and less aware of their motivators. I often find during an initial assessment that many coachees may not necessarily be externally or internally motivated to prioritize and complete certain tasks or projects. Explore the "why" before throwing out the "what" and "how".

Time management is nothing but life management. One needs to check if their life priorities are in place, how much is the disconnect between their heart, mind and spirit.

Most managers do not wake up saying I want to be a poor manager. Helping them identify their stressors, constraints, and perceptions of expectations can take them far!

I always start with their calendar. You become what you do. If you sit in meaningless meetings that could be delegated or are considered lower value, you’re wasting your time. Identify the highest valued activities and start there. Consistency in tasks are important forming habits. If your tasks are lower value then your outcomes will be lower value. It’s important to learn the art of delegation. Delegating tasks vs. delegating authority. Learn the difference if you don’t know. Delegating to someone equal or lesser competence of you. In order to elevate, find someone that is doing or has done things that you haven’t. Someone above your competence level. That’s where growth comes from. None of it is possible, if your time owns you.

I tend to take a bigger step back with my coachees, before looking at more tactical SMART targets objectives. I will explore where they want to be in 3 - 5 years time, their big goals, where they really want to make a difference. These becomes their Big Rocks (using Stephen Covey’s language) and what is really important. After this it becomes easier to help them stay motivated to improve their time management. As we find activities that are adding no or little value and save time, they are now on clear on what they should be doing with the time saved.

Using SWOT analysis to determine how to set SMART goals is helpful. Instead of starting in thin air, we can assess what the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats to the coachee's time management. What does it look like for the coachee to be successful in time management? What are they getting right? What would work best for them to improve? How do we utilize these more linear models to create a success cycle? Success is cyclical so we must create better habits over time. We must also manage expectations and provide specific, measurable, actionable, realistic, and timeable goals. This may look like asking this person if they have a smartphone, a smartwatch if they have a scheduling system, or an appointment book to track time.

I go one step further to 7 steps process to set the SMARTER (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound, Evaluate and Re-adjust) goals related to improving time management. These goals provide a clear framework for the coachee's development and serve as benchmarks for progress. During this process, it becomes important to work with the coachee to define specific objectives, such as reducing procrastination, prioritizing tasks, or enhancing productivity while ensuring that these goals align with their overall professional and personal aspirations.

Vejo que muitas pessoas se perdem por conta de prioridades, tra?ando as mesmas, eleger metas e mais fácil, prioridade como o nome ja diz é primeiro, ou seja uma coisa por vez. Ent?o é preciso olhar para o que precisa ser entregue em curto, médio e longo prazo

Achten Sie darauf, dass die im Coaching gesetzten Ziele nicht einfach vom Coachee akzeptiert werden, um Ruhe zu haben. Der Coachee sollte das Ziel als erstrebenswert empfinden und es wollen. Stellen Sie daher zahlreiche Fragen, die dem Coachee erm?glichen, sich ausführlich mit dem Ziel auseinanderzusetzen. Beispielsweise k?nnten Sie fragen: Warum ist Ihnen das Ziel wichtig? Welche Auswirkungen hat das Erreichen des Ziels? Welche Konsequenzen gibt es, wenn Sie das Ziel nicht erreichen? Das Ziel kann auch durch das Aufschreiben oder die Verwendung eines Bildes, abh?ngig vom Pers?nlichkeitstyp des Coachees, noch greifbarer werden. Seien Sie offen dafür, das Ziel zu überdenken, falls der Coachee merkt, dass es das "falsche" Ziel gewesen ist.

I use practices from the book ‘Atomic Habits’ authored by James Clear On one hand, I encourage them to use practices such as the habit stacking and making changes attractive and easy On the other hand, I help them make the changes to their identity

After setting SMARTER Goals, I introduce a range of proven time management strategies that can help the coachee enhance their skills. This may include techniques for prioritization, task batching, goal setting, and the use of productivity tools. I also tweak these strategies a bit to the coachee's preferences and work style. Also, providing practical demonstrations, sharing relevant resources, and encouraging experimentation to identify which strategies resonate best with their individual needs helps a lot during the process.

One of the best ways to become effective in time management is to take a step back and look at all the things you do which eat away your time but are not producing any results. These activities are distractions which you need to avoid at all costs Hence, I tell my coachees to create a "Not-to-do" list - what are some of the things they will not do, so that they can focus their time and energy on the key things at hand In addition, I ask them to create a "Not-supposed-to-do" list as well - these are things which they are not supposed to do. These activities should be done by someone else in the organization Once the awareness around these 2 things is created, next step is to take be disciplined in enforcing these lists

Erforschen Sie im Hinblick auf neue Strategien zur Festlegung von Priorit?ten die bisherigen Erfolgserlebnisse des Coachees. Untersuchen Sie, ob das Setzen von Priorit?ten in anderen Kontexten bereits gut funktioniert hat. Stellen Sie Fragen, die das Bewusstsein für die Priorit?tensetzung sch?rfen, wie zum Beispiel: "Wann halten Sie Termine ein? Wann nehmen Sie sich bewusst Zeit für etwas?" Vertiefen Sie das Verst?ndnis durch Fragen, die das Setzen von Priorit?ten veranschaulichen, wie etwa: "Stellen Sie sich vor, Sie h?tten nur noch einen Tag zu leben – wie würden Sie diesen Tag gestalten? Wie würden Sie priorisieren? Und was, wenn Sie noch eine Woche, einen Monat oder l?nger Zeit h?tten?"

One thing that really work well is encouraging the coachee to track their time for a week or more to understand where their time goes. This can reveal time-wasting activities and areas for improvement. Explain the drawbacks of multitasking and encourage them to focus on one task at a time. Provide strategies for minimizing distractions. One framework I liked in the past was "the one thing". How to prioritize the one thing per time to show progress.

Continuous feedback and support are crucial for reinforcing positive habits and addressing challenges. Regular check-ins allow the coachee to reflect on their progress, receive guidance, and make necessary adjustments to their time management approach. For this I schedule regular coaching sessions to review the coachee's adherence to their goals. I celebrate successes, identify areas for improvement, and collaboratively problem-solve any obstacles. Providing constructive feedback that focuses on specific behaviors and outcomes helps in this journey.

Many of the clients I have been working with come to me saying time management something that they need to improve. Many times the actual problem is a lot deeper than time management. Executives are talented and intelligent individuals who know that every person has got 24 hours. That is why we need to go deeper Because the actual problem is not only time management, it is something completely different. Some fear, some belief they don't understand, pattern that they just don't acknowledge.

Coachees neigen oft dazu, gerade zu Beginn, gro?e Ver?nderungen anzustreben, dabei übersehen sie jedoch h?ufig kleine Erfolge und Ver?nderungen, was zu Frustration führen kann. Als Coach ist es wichtig, den Coachee bewusst dabei zu unterstützen, die kleinen Erfolge wahrzunehmen und zu feiern. Erfragen Sie, was sich bereits ver?ndert hat, oder wie andere Menschen den Coachee wahrnehmen, um auf positive Ver?nderungen hinzuweisen. Stellen Sie Fragen, die den Coachee darüber nachdenken lassen, wie er sicherstellen kann, auch zukünftig ohne Ihre Hilfe diese Erfolge zu erkennen. Ein praktisches Beispiel hierfür w?re das Führen eines Erfolgstagebuchs, in dem kleine Fortschritte festgehalten werden und bei Bedarf durchgebl?ttert werden k?nnen.

Help them choose accountability partners, who will help them keep on track. Accountability partners are not superior and colleagues alone, and can include spouse, friends and mentors/coaches.

The time it takes to build a new habit can vary widely from person to person and depends on several factors. While the idea that it takes 21 days to form a habit is a common belief, research suggests that the timeline is more complex and individualized. Consistently offering feedback throughout and after establishing a new habit is crucial. Often, people begin well but eventually revert to their old behaviors.

Time Management issues are an outcome of improper prioritization. A simple prioritization 2x2 matrix on Urgent Vs Important, on a scale of High to Low, helps decide where to allocate time. It can help further if we introspect, do we find it difficult to say No, and do we find it difficult to delegate.

As always in coaching, keep a focus on the person not the problem. Time management is a problem. Tools can help with delivery and prioritization in the short run, however the real shift for the client will come from understanding what’s in the way for them and developing new strategies to manage those fears, thoughts, behaviors. For example, I spoke to a potential client this week who desires help with time management. This is a real concern for them and is the motivating factor for working with a coach. However, the client also revealed through our conversation that what they really desire is a sense of control over future outcomes. That is what is in the way of the time management.

I recently learned that for people who have an IPhone, it actually tracks the time and how you are spending it using the phone. It can tell you how much time is used scrolling social media. The average time for this is 3 hours. We often say we do not have time but if we can really look honestly at how each hour in our day is spent, it will show us that we do have time but are not leveraging the time we have effectively. What has helped me is a sleep tracker, using time alarms from my phone and also writing down on my calendar my appointments. You can also use your online calendar through Gmail, Outlook, or other online scheduling options to determine how to better organize your time. You can put in reminders as well. Hope this helps!

Time is a concept that often eludes a concrete understanding. Exploring our internal perception of time can yield valuable insights. Often, we use time management as a shield, masking underlying issues such as: Avoidance: Busying ourselves to evade something, conveniently citing a lack of time. No Boundaries: The subconscious belief that our worth is tied to constant availability or an incessant affirmation through saying yes. Deep Work and Flow State: Immersed in tasks, we lose track of time. It's crucial in such moments to avoid stacking activities back to back. Lack of Priorities: Taking stock of our responsibilities and prioritizing, or seeking guidance from superiors, becomes imperative.

Often, poor time management stems from deeper issues like fear of failure, perfectionism, or procrastination. Work on these underlying issues by addressing mindset, building confidence, and developing a positive attitude towards time as a resource.