time-managementIn his book, Hot Prospects, Bill Good talks of his Time Analysis experiment – he gave a group of brokers a little gadget and asked them to punch in their start and end times for any activity they did during their working day.

When he collected the data, it turned out he hadn’t been measuring the periods of activity at all. He’d been measuring the amount of time in-between those activities – the time where the brokers were not actively doing something meaningful or productive towards their working goals.

Bill found that out of a typical 9 hour day, the brokers were spending 4 hours “off” and that less than one hour a day was being spent in their most vital role of meeting with interested and qualified prospects.

The Language Challenge I am undertaking at the moment has highlighted my issues with time – I know lots of us feel there’s not enough time in the day and rather than get stressed and implement changes willy-nilly, I think it’s useful to get some data in to find out how time is currently being used.

So for the last week I have been doing a time analysis experiment of my own. It’s very basic – an Excel spreadsheet with the time marked in 15 minute increments down the side and the days across the top. I fill in the cells with the activity I have just completed and then I colour-code it:

  • Green = Time well spent / Obligations & commitments / unavoidable travel time
  • Orange = Could have been better
  • Red =  Time not spent well at all

Because nobody else sees this spreadsheet, it’s easier to be frank with myself when it comes to colour-coding it. I mark social and relaxation activities as green – they’re important for well-being!

So far I average 1 red hour a day and 2 orange hours a day. Potentially, this gives me 21 extra hours a week and I don’t have to do much to access them! The Time Analysis has told me exactly where I can be more efficient and because I know this, I can now do something about it.

I’ve already made one very simple change that has turned out to have an incredible effect – I switched off the sound notification when a new email comes in. Now I am not forever being summoned to switch screens, read the latest and get side-tracked.

Take a week to do your own time analysis. Create your own colour coding and have it so that your equivalent of my red and orange stands out. Remember that this exercise is not about beating yourself up. It’s just research that shows you what you are currently doing. Knowledge gives you the power to gain control.

Mine is a very simple spreadsheet  - if you want mine as a template, let me know in a comment and I’ll make it available for download.

Do you have any tips and strategies for time analysis or time management? Share them below.

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You can also visit me at ReetaLuthra.com. It's full of information to help you address stress and work on reversing the impact of stress on your health.

 

Filed under: Personal Development • Strategies

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