What do you do if your career success is hindered by poor time management?

1 Assess your situation

The first step to improve your time management is to understand how you spend your time and where you can improve. You can use a time log or a time tracking app to record your activities and how long they take. This will help you identify your time wasters, distractions, interruptions, and procrastination habits. You can also evaluate how well you align your time with your goals and values. For example, are you spending enough time on strategic and creative tasks that can advance your career, or are you bogged down by routine and administrative tasks that can be delegated or automated?

2 Prioritize your tasks

The next step is to prioritize your tasks according to their importance and urgency. You can use a matrix or a list to rank your tasks based on their impact and deadline. This will help you focus on the most critical and valuable tasks that can move you closer to your goals. You can also use the Pareto principle or the 80/20 rule to identify the 20% of tasks that produce 80% of the results. You can then eliminate, delegate, or postpone the remaining 80% of tasks that are less important or urgent.

4 Delegate effectively

One of the key skills for successful executives is to delegate effectively. You can't do everything by yourself, and you need to leverage the skills and talents of your team members. Delegating can free up your time for more strategic and creative tasks, as well as empower and motivate your team. To delegate effectively, you need to choose the right person for the task, communicate the expectations and outcomes clearly, provide the necessary resources and support, and monitor the progress and feedback.

5 Monitor your progress

The final step is to monitor your progress and evaluate your results. You can use metrics and indicators to measure how well you are managing your time and achieving your goals. You can also use feedback from your clients, colleagues, managers, and mentors to assess your performance and areas of improvement. Moreover, you can use self-reflection and journaling to review your actions, feelings, and learnings. By monitoring your progress, you can celebrate your successes, identify your challenges, and make changes as needed.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?