Time Management

Knowledge Center

What is Time Management? Meaning.

Time Management (TM) involves the conscious control of the amount of time spent on tasks, activities, projects or inititiatives, in order to maximize efficiency.

As Eisenhower once put it, "Plans are nothing, but planning is everything".

TM involves analyzing how time is spent, and then prioritizing different work tasks. To be effective as a manager, you should be able to distinguish clearly between what tasks, activities, projects are important (and deserve to spend time on) and which ones are not.

Levels of Time Management

TM can be performed on an:

• INDIVIDUAL LEVEL (yourself, your colleagues, your employees);
• TEAM LEVEL (your project, department); and
• ORGANIZATIONAL LEVEL (division, country, firm, corporate).

The Eisenhower Matrix

Eisenhower said that to approach a full agenda and to determine priorities for issues and tasks at hand there are two dimensions to consider: URGENCY and IMPORTANCE. Putting these 2 dimensions on two axis results in 4 quadrants of issues and tasks:

1. Important and urgent. NOW! Get done with it right away.
2. Important but not urgent. SCHEDULE. Make an entry into your calendar.
3. Not important but urgent. QUICK FIX. Try to delegate as much as possible and reduce involvement.
4. Not important and not urgent. DROP. Trash it.

6 Steps to Create an Eisenhower Matrix

1. List
2. Rank Importance
3. Rank Urgency
4. Divide the issues and tasks into the 4 categories
5. Plot them in the Matrix
6. Act upon your classification

Note that besides time planning, a range of other things influence how quickly and efficiently you are in managing and carrying out activities: for example your information handling skills, your verbal and written communication skills, and how you delegate.

The Action Priority Matrix

The Action Priority Matrix looks similar to the Eisenhower matrix, but the focus is on impact and effort instead of importance and urgency. It also helps you decide which tasks, projects or activities you should spend your time on, but from a different perspective.

The Action Priority Matrix is a time management tool with 4 quadrants along 2 axes: EFFORT and IMPACT, each of which can be High or Low:

1. High Effort + High Impact: "MAJOR INITIATIVES". Decide. (Very) good returns, but time/resources consuming. This means that one major initiative may "crowd out" several quick wins.
2. Low Effort + High Impact: "QUICK WINS". Focus. Attractive projects, because they give a good return for relatively little effort. Focus on these as much as you can.
3. High Effort + Low Impact: "THANKLESS TASKS". Avoid. These initiatives or tasks give little return and also soak up precious time that you should be using on more useful things.
4. Low Effort + Low Impact: "FILL-INS". Don't worry too much about doing these activities  If you have spare time, do them, but otherwise drop them or delegate them.

6 Steps to Create an Action Priority Matrix

1. List
2. Rank Impact
3. Rank Effort
4. Divide the issues and tasks into the 4 categories
5. Plot them in the Matrix
6. Act upon your classification

Note: there are more time management methods, tools and techniques than the two explained above! Take a look in the forum, best practices, expert tips and resources section.

Forum Forum about Time Management. Below you can ask a question about this topic, share your experiences, report a new development, or explain something. Start a new topic about Time Management Share your knowledge here (or ask a question)   The Time/Utility Matrix for Prioritizing what to Learn Today's world has plenty of learning opportunities available. Although learning is essential, the presence of so many learning options also makes it difficult to choose the right and most relevant mat... 22   15 comments 🔥 NEW Rapid Planning Method (Tony Robbins) As managers or students, most of us are accustomed to use To-Do Lists nowadays. In a world overloaded with information, powered by internet and smartphone, literally everyone and everything is trying ... 21   5 comments Time Management Styles Time management styles abound. Many people have a mixture of them depending on their situation, their background and their personalities. In some cases, one particular style is dominant. Adopting one ... 14   7 comments Tips to Motivate Yourself for Boring Tasks, Untimed Tasks and Ones you don't Like It might have happened to you sometimes - or even frequently - that when you don't have a deadline for some task, you postpone it, set it aside or you prioritize other work, rather than completing thi... 14   11 comments The Role of Subject Knowledge in Time Management Worthy of note is that in effective and efficient management of time, knowledge of the task, and expertise, or proficiency in the job plays a great role in the reducing or increasing the time spent on... 10   1 comments Dealing with Distractions How does one handle internal and external distractions? Also, how can one apply time management principles in various contexts, such as quick service restaurants and other forms of retail? In the... 9   2 comments Why Time Management? Reasons and Benefits What are the benefits of time management? For what reasons we use time management techniques?... 8   2 comments How to Create Awareness for Time Management One good way to to make people realize they need to manage their time and focus on what's really important to them is a time management awareness excercise called the "10 + 5 excercise". Here's ... 7   Practical Time Management for Managers (Shimkin) Probably if you read this you are a business person or a manager. or aspiring to be one. Surely you have many worries on an ongoing, daily basis. Even if you think "I am running my business since a lo... 7   9 comments Time Management Quotations / Quotes "Those of us who make the worst use of their time are the first to complain about its brevity." Jean de La Bruyère (1645-1696), French essayist and moralist, in Les Caractères. "It is... 6   1 comments How to Effectively Schedule Meetings with Attendants from Different Timezones? When team members or stakeholders are based in different world regions in different timezones it is hard to manage time effectively. For example the US (Eastern Standard Time) and India (Indian S... 5   3 comments Should Employees have more Sense of Urgency? Is 'Sense of Urgency' a highly underrated employee characteristic? It surely is a contributor to the success of most organizations...... 4   2 comments Success Conditions for Time Management I have been a user of one time management system for many years and have found it to be an excellent process. But most systems are kind of complex and obscure. What are the main boundary conditions to... 3   3 comments

Best Practices The best, top-rated topics about Time Management. Here you will find the most valuable ideas and practical suggestions. Personal Energy Management I just read an interesting Dutch article on a concept somewhat related to time management: personal energy management. Here's a brief translation... WHAT IS PERSONAL ENERGY MANAGEMENT? ... 53   7 comments Time Management Laws | Principles of Time Management Managers are facing a lot of stress due to an endless list of activities which have to be performed. Would you like to increase your personal effectiveness and efficiency as a manager? Apply these tim... 32   13 comments The Getting Things Done (GTD) Method (David Allen) For those of us who are struggling to tackle the flow of everyday to-dos and get the control of life's overwhelm, the Getting Things Done (GTD®) method can be useful. David Allen, the inventor of this... 22   11 comments 3 Steps and Tips to Say: No As a professional you're actively managing your time and the tasks and goals you work on. This does mean that at some point you will have to say "No" to requests made upon you by other people. You pro... 18   13 comments Personal Time Management and the Pomodoro Technique Give yourself a surprise and time yourself to see what you can do in 5 minutes. This will give you an idea how much time you should allow for things. It is amazing what you can do in 5 minutes, w... 14   6 comments Basic Prioritization Skills Within the Work Environment are Lacking These Days Computer and IT technology appear to have affected the "basic office skills" of workers these days. I have been taken by surprise often lately at how little "managers" and staff know about the be... 13   11 comments I Prefer Work Management: Managing to Work in the Available Time I would suggest that there is no such thing as "Time Management". What there is, is the managing of the work to be done in the time available, i.e., "Work Management". So it is not so much t... 13   9 comments The Ivy Lee Method: The Simplest Productivity Technique? Recently I wrote an article summarizing David Allen's popular productivity framework Getting Things Done (GTD). The post has received a lot of reactions, thanks to this large management audience. But ... 12   16 comments Time Management by Effective Delegation The right selection of people to do the job will result in high efficiency and increase of effectiveness, resulting in utilization of less time. Effective delegation is key to time management. So: ... 10   The 18 Minute Technique to Plan your Day Did it ever happened to you that you had lots of energy and a plan to have a great working day and you went to the office in a very positive mood, but due to circumstances, the day didn't go as planne... 9   7 comments Individual Differences in Applying Time Management Techniques Time management is focusing on solving problems caused by being overwhelmed by workloads; planning too optimistically; being unable to deal with distractions; deadline pressure; and procrastination. T... 9   Group Time Management Excercise: Time Bandits A well known time management excercise is called "Time Bandits". The generic process is as follows: You give a list of common time wasters to a group and ask each person to tick the ones that ... 8   Consider a Virtual Management Assistant By using a virtual assistant you can 'shave hours from your workweek'. But knowing which tasks to delegate can be tricky, whether you're starting or growing a business or managing a large business.... 6   5 comments

Expert Tips Advanced insights about Time Management. Here you will find professional advices by experts. Perfectionist? Accept That You Can't do Everything Time Management, Stress Management A pitfall for knowledge workers and in particular for the perfectionists among them is that they try to do everything an... CEOs Time Spent per Stakeholder / Constituency CEO Coaching, CEO Time Management, Stakeholder Management Research by Porter, Nohria and Higgins among 27 CEOs revealed the following interesting data on with whom they spend the... Prioritizing your Own Work Time Management, Work Prioritisation An interesting variant on the standard time management matrix is the one discussed by Jen Su to prioritize your own work...

Information Sources Various sources of information regarding Time Management. Here you will find powerpoints, videos, news, etc. to use in your own lectures and workshops. Time Management for Business Managers Time Management, ABC Analysis This presentation elaborates on the concept of time management and includes the following section: 1. Introduction 2. ... Improving your Time Management Time Management, Setting Priorities Presentation that clearly sets out the obstacles to effective time management and the ways to overcome those obstacles. ... The Role of Supervisor | Skills of Supervisors Skills of a Supervisor, Supervisor Role, Supervisor Behavior This presentation elaborates on the skills that supervisors need in order to be successful in their business/organizatio... Mindfulness and Wellbeing at Work Wellbeing, Well-being, Mindfulness, Motivation, Employee Commitment Time Management, Coaching This presentation elaborates on the concept of mindfulness in the workplace, and includes the following sections: 1. Ou... The Role of Consequences in Time Management Time Management, Long Term Orientation, Decision Making, Problem Solving Brian Tracey on one of the most important words in Time Management: Consequences. Something is valuable (important) to ... Funny Introduction to Time Management Initial Understanding of Time Management, Start of Workshop / Training Harold Taylor gives live examples of the most freqently made errors, misconceptions and and time consuming habits in a f... 3 Practical Ways to Deal with Stress Coping with Stress, Avoiding Stress, Emotional Intelligence, Stress Management Workplace stress is very common and can cause higher blood pressure, illness and lower self esteem. Decreasing the stres... First Introduction to the 80/20 Rule (Pareto Principle) Understanding the Importance of the Pareto Principle in Time and Life Management Basic explanation of the Pareto Principle for time and life management: 20% of your activities will account for 80% of y... Summary of the 4 Quadrants of Time Management Initial Understanding of Time Management Brian Johnson initially explains 4 of Steven Covey's Seven Habits: 1. Be proactive 2. Begin with the end in mind 3. P... Time Management is a Misnomer. Manage Yourself! Advanced Time Management Dr. Sharon Melwick explains the meaning of Stephen Covey's saying: 'Time Management is a misnomer. The real challenge is... Eight Secrets on Time Management Time Management, Personal Effectivity Brian Mozes reveals eight time management secrets from billionaires: 1. Be pro-active; not re-active. 2. Work on impac... Lessons Learned from Steve Jobs (Part 1): FOCUS Time Management, Focus, Focusing, Leadership, Prioritization In this micro-learning video Jonathan "Jony" Ive, Chief Design Officer of Apple, shares some major management/leadership...

Research Links Jump to further research sources regarding Time Management. News Videos Presentations   Books Academic More

Compare also: Pareto Analysis  |  Parkinson's Law  |  Gantt Chart  |  Time Value of Money  |  Management by Exception  |  Empowerment of Employees  |  Analogical Strategic Reasoning  |  RACI  |  RAPID approach  |  Stretch Goals

Return to Management Hub: Change & Organization  |  Communication & Skills  |  Decision-making & Valuation  |  Human Resources  |  Leadership  |  Program & Project Management

More on Management  |  Return to Management Dictionary

This ends our Time Management summary and forum.