Article 36 (Time Management)

Article 36 (Time Management) – D M Goldstein, October 2024

I did a Google search for “Article 36” and found links to several countries’ Constitutions, the 1949 Geneva Convention, and GDPR, among others. All very cool and official-sounding stuff. This article is not about any of them. Rather, it is my 36th monthly article - I started writing my first one in November 2021, although I did not officially publish it until December (and then did a second article in December as well). Thirty-five articles, over 65,000 words. This one, as with some others, was inspired by a friend asking me a question. This article is about Time Management.

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Basic tools and guidelines

"If you want to make good use of your time, you've got to know what's most important and then give it all you've got." - Lee Iacocca.

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General rule: In my opinion, there are three categories that most things fit into, be they email, projects, meetings, or other interruptions:

(1)?? Urgent/Now - things like a P1 that require your immediate attention regardless of what is on your plate. This includes things like your CEO walking up to your desk, your top customer calling with “some concerns,” and other “do it now” items; it is not just fires and crises.

(2)?? Soon/Later - things that you personally need to do, but nobody is going to die if they wait from an hour to a day. These types of items fill most of your productive work time.

(3)?? FYI/Noise - some things can (and should) be looked at only once and then move on. Altogether, you should not be spending more than around 10% of your day on these.

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Priorities: Not all seemingly “Urgent” things are truly a priority. In fact, some are just loud “Noise.” Make sure you understand and leave time for true priorities and do not get lost jumping from one fire to the next. "Don't confuse movement with progress.” (I saw this credited to Denzel Washington, and I have also heard it as, “Don’t confuse action for motion.”) Jumping about waving your hands and checking off boxes does not mean you are making progress on items that truly matter.

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Email: When I first log in or return to email, I do a quick scan of senders and subjects looking for any “Urgent/Now” items. In some cases, I have set Google Filters to highlight important items, and to move unimportant items (“Noise”) out of my Inbox (this also works in Outlook). Then I read oldest-to-newest. Whenever I look at a thread I scan for all mail with that subject; that way I can knock out the entire thread without repeatedly coming back to it. If it is FYI/Noise, I then either delete it (Noise) or save only the most recent incarnation (FYI), marking it as "Read" and labeling it (Google-speak for putting it in a folder) - get it out of your Inbox. I will also flag anything that I want to explicitly follow up on to ensure it does not get lost (usually leaving it in the Inbox for visibility). I hate ending my day with a high double-digit number of "unread" flags in my Inbox and wonder how people can have hundreds or thousands.

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The principle which drives the above email behavior is to act on it (based on categorization) immediately, so you never have to look at or deal with the same item twice. Procrastination or handling the same item repeatedly are time-wasting activities. Multitasking has its place, but context-switching also consumes time. “The shorter way to do many things is to only do one thing at a time." - Mozart.

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Phone/Email/Slack/SMS: When I first became a manager I learned an important lesson about interruptions. If you and I were in my office having a discussion and somebody else came to my door, I would tell them that I was obviously busy and I would check with them later. So why would I interrupt our discussion for an incoming phone call? I learned to ignore a ringing phone - if it is urgent they will leave a message, try again, or use another method to notify me. The same goes for the barrage of email and various message methods. I do not let Slack or Email pop notifications for every inbound item on my screen - I will see them when I return to those tools. I do let Slack and SMS pop on my phone, though, and I have set rules for some Urgent/Now mail to ping my phone. I do not answer my cellphone for an unrecognized number - it is usually spam anyway, and important callers will leave a message. This has the benefit of eliminating a lot of the “Noise” as they usually go away without leaving a message or any other “call to action.”

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Managing the day

“Time management is an oxymoron. Time is beyond our control, and the clock keeps ticking regardless of how we lead our lives. Priority management is the answer to maximizing the time we have.” - John C. Maxwell.

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Daily priorities: I keep a short list of things I know I need to do on a given day. Let's face it, it is easy to forget something like, "Call the bank." I found a great article about To Do Lists (https://zapier.com/blog/to-do-list-alternatives/ ) which calls out making categories, like “Things I need to do”, “Monthly goal list”, things that can be automated, “Spare time to-do list”, and so on. Great thoughts on how to stay focused, prioritized, and productive. And make sure to reserve time to focus on true priorities - those projects, meetings, and tasks that are critical for your success and well-being.

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I like to start my day clearing out overnight email, and I block my calendar for lunch time and an afternoon walk. There was one day, long ago, where I was booked solid except for a small break near lunchtime. Somebody sent me a meeting invite for that slot. I asked why and they said, "It was the only spot open on your calendar." Ever since then I have blocked off time for lunch. I will move it to accommodate meetings, but I will not let others take it away from me. The same works for those true priorities, projects, and tasks; I will book a meeting with myself with subjects like, “Block for vendor analysis and response,” or, "Write weekly report." Again, I can/will move it, but it stays on the calendar in some form to block off time and remind me. As mentioned earlier, beware of multitasking. If you are focusing on an important task, do not be sidetracked by noise. "To do two things at once is to do neither." - Publius Syrus.

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Various methods: Long ago my boss told me his method: "12/31". He kept 12 file folders (actual paper folders) for the upcoming 12 months and put documents or reminder notes in them for items that needed to be done during said months. And he had 31 daily folders for the current month. That worked for him but was useless for me. I carry a spiral-bound (paper!) notebook and take notes during calls or meetings. If there is a to-do, I flag the page with a paperclip and put a big O next to the item on the page. When done, I remove the paperclip and put a checkmark in the O. If I carry it forward to a later date, I do the same markings on the new entry and put an arrow through the original O indicating what date I carried it forward to. Or, instead of a date, I write “WIP" (work in progress) and leave the paperclip. Cancelled items get an X in the O. All silly, and all per my own OCD.

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In addition to my notebook and paperclips, I have also entered the 21st Century and use reminders like flagging email, using the Google Task List, and tagging Slack messages for “Later”. The lesson is to learn what works for you. Remember when "Daily Planner” books were all the rage? You can still buy them, though I suspect in this digital age most people are using online apps to track things.

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Meetings

“Time is the coin of your life. It is the only coin you have, and only you can determine how it will be spent. Be careful lest you let other people spend it for you.”? - Carl Sandburg.

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I try to not waste other people’s time, and to not let other people waste mine. If inviting others to a meeting, I try to limit the attendees to those who can benefit from it or have contributions to make; anybody else can either read the notes or, if available, watch a recording. “Optional” invitees can choose for themselves whether to attend. Having a written agenda is always useful, both for controlling the flow of the meeting and advising attendees so they know whether to attend and prepare accordingly. During the meeting, it is OK to have “pleasantries,” as they keep it human, but do not let it stray too far off-topic or get lost in the weeds of arguing about some minute point. Try to start and end on time. There are many books about running effective meetings or removing the need for them; I leave it up to the reader to pursue these if interested.

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When I have a meeting, either live or via a video or voice-based app, I try to get there or connect 1-2 minutes early, showing respect for the host and participants. I am part of a theatre group where the Director’s rule is, “Ten minutes early is on time, on time is late, and late is unacceptable.” Though I did have a professor in college who said that showing up late showed interest in participating, while leaving early was rude. “Better three hours too soon than a minute too late.” - William Shakespeare.

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Projects

“A goal without a plan is just a wish.” - Antoine de Saint-Exupéry.

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Assuming you have used the prioritization and time-blocking methods discussed earlier, how do you make the most of Project (or Task) time? It helps to know where you are going before you start. “Begin with the end in mind.” - Stephen Covey.

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If, for example, the project is to create a presentation, you might start by identifying how much time will be allotted for presenting it. Next would be identifying the key points you wish to make. Then drill down on the key details for each point. And then do edits for clarity and aesthetics, including any artwork. Finally, do some dry runs and final edits to meet presentation criteria. If, instead, you were to start with “slide 1” and its drill-down details, it is easy to lose sight of the big picture and get lost down a rat-hole.

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If your project is a system implementation, then it makes sense to start with understanding what the future users want and need of the system, and then plan on how to introduce the solution. “Measure twice and cut once.” Starting with preconceived notions is a sure-fire way to meet with resistance and introduce a lot of re-work to make it right.

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Here are some additional thoughts and Principles about Planning & Context-switching (source: https://makemeacto.substack.com/p/timeless-principles-of-time-management ):

• Planning is an action
• Planning is worthless if you do not know where you want to go
• Context switching is the enemy

Wrapping it all up

I have provided many tools and methods that have worked for me. But, as with the “12/31” method, they may or may not work for you. The trick is to find something that works, and then use it. As for me, this marks the end of Article 36 and three years of monthly articles. I wonder what I will start year four writing about. “I am definitely going to take a course on time management - just as soon as I can work it into my schedule.” - Louis Boone

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Footnote: most quotes taken from https://clockify.me/blog/fun/quotes-about-time-management/

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