1. Stephen J. O’Rourke West Warwick Housing Authority
Time Management
NERC/NAHRO
Mid-Winter Conference
February 4-7, 2018
Stephen J. O’Rourke
West Warwick Housing Authority

2. What is Time Management?
The act or process of exercising conscious control over the amount of time spent on specific activities, especially to increase productivity and efficiency.

3. Stephen Covey Approaches Habits of Highly Effective People
First Generation
Clocks, watches, computers to let you know when task is completed
Second Generation
Planning & preparation based on calendar and appointment books; setting goals
Third Generation
Planning, prioritizing, controlling (using personal organizer, other paper-based objects, or computer or PDA-based systems) activities on a daily basis
Fourth generation
Being efficient and proactive using any of the above tools; places goals and roles as the controlling element of the system and favors the importance of urgency.

4. Time Management Skills
At the heart of time management is an important shift in focus:
Concentrate on results, not on being busy.
80 : 20 Rule
Summed up in Pareto Principle
Typically 80% of unfocused time effort generates only 20% of results
Remaining 80% of results are achieved with only 20% of effort.

5. How Good is Your Time Management?
How often do you find yourself running out of time?
Weekly
Daily?
Hourly?
For many there just doesn’t seem to be enough time to accomplish everything that has to be done.
Time Management Survey

6. Time Management System
A time management system is a designed combination of processes, tools, techniques, and methods

7. Ten Common Time Management Mistakes
Failing to keep a To-Do list.
Not setting personal goals
Not prioritizing
Failing to manage distractions
Procrastination
Taking on too much
Thriving on “Busy”
Multitasking
Not taking breaks
Ineffectively scheduling tasks

8. 10 Common Time Management Mistakes
Mistake #1: Failing to keep a To-Do List
To-Do Lists effectively prioritize the tasks on your list
Use a coding system: A-D or 1-5
If you have large projects, break them down into parts
You can also use an Action Plan to manage your work

9. To-Do Lists Benefits: Effectively focus your time and energy
Be better organized
Experience less stress
Be more productive

10. ABC Analysis A prioritization of tasks: “A” Tasks “1” Tasks “B” Tasks
Tasks that are perceived as being urgent and important
“B” Tasks
“2” Tasks
Tasks that are important but not urgent
“C” Tasks
“3” Tasks
Tasks that neither urgent nor important

11. Activity Log Time Activity Description Duration Value 8:00 Make coffee
(High-Medium-Low
8:00
Make coffee
15-minutes
Low
8:15
Check
40-minutes
Medium
8:55
Write grant application
2-hours
High
10:55
Break
10-minutes
11:05
Resume grant writing
55-minutes
12:00
Lunch
30-minutes
12:30
Attend meeting with residents
1-hour

12. 10 Common Time Management Mistakes
Mistake #2: Not Setting Personal Goals
Personal goal setting is essential to managing your time,
goals give you a destination and vision to work toward.
When you know where you want to go, you can manage your priorities, time, and resources to get there.
Goals help you decide what is worth spending your time on.

13. 5 Principles of Goal Setting
To motivate, goals must have:
Clarity
Challenge
Commitment
Feedback
Task Complexity
The whole point of goal setting is to facilitate success!

14. Goal Setting Goal setting is a powerful way to motivate people
Use of S-M-A-R-T goals:
Specific
Measurable
Attainable
Relevant/realistic
Time -bound

15. Goals Management Form

16. 10 Common Time Management Mistakes
Mistake #3: Not Prioritizing
Sometimes it is difficult to know how to prioritize, especially when your facing a flood of seemingly-urgent tasks.
Tools:
Urgent/Important Matrix
Action Priority Matrix

17. Activity Logs Taking Inventory of Your Time
How long do you spend each day on unimportant tasks?
Junk mail, talking to colleagues, making coffee?
It may be a good idea to take inventory of your workday by keeping an Activity Log
By using this simple tool you will be able to determine how to better use your time for more important issues

18. Action Priority Matrix Worksheet
Activity
Impact
0-10)
Effort
(0-10)
Complete security grant 9
Design poster for community center 5 4
Conduct meeting with Resident Advisory Group 8
Draft resolution for board meeting 3

19. Urgent/Important Matrix

20. Action Priority Matrix

21. 10 Common Time Management Mistakes
Mistake #4: Failing to Manage Distractions
If you want to gain control of your day and do your best work, it is vital to minimize distractions, and manage interruptions effectively.
You have to learn how to improve concentration, even when faced with distractions.

22. Dealing with Distractions & Interruptions
Some people lose as much as two hours daily because of distractions
Distractions come from:
s, IM chats
Colleagues in crisis, walk-ins
Phone calls from clients, vendors, etc…
They all interrupt the flow of work
If you want to gain control of your day and perform your best work, it’s vital to know how to manage interruptions and minimize distractions

23. Minimizing Distractions
Schedule “ ” times
Check and respond to at “low productivity” times
Schedule your check-in during your less-productive hours
Keep you program closed
Turn s into actions

24. Minimizing Distractions (2)
Disorganization
A disorganized desk or office can be very distracting and slow down your productivity
When you are disorganized, you cannot think and plan clearly
Instant messaging
Use in a disciplined way
Phone calls
Minimize phone call distractions by turning it off during peak work hours
Don’t take non-essential phone calls during certain hours (high-productive) of the day

25. Minimizing Distractions (3)
The Internet
Read the news before the start of the day
Close your Internet browser
Take short Internet breaks
Other People
Close your office door
Use headphones
Talk to the disrupter

26. Managing Interruptions
Keep an interrupters Log
Analyze and conquer interruptions
Put your phone to work for you
Catch your breath
Learn to say “No”
“Available” and “Unavailable” Time
“Invitation Only” Time
Uncontrollable interruptions

27. 10 Common Time Management Mistakes
Mistake #5: Procrastination
Procrastination occurs when you put off tasks that you should be focusing on right now.
Procrastination Quiz
Strategies to beat procrastination
Action Plans

28. Overcoming Procrastination
What is procrastination?
When you put off things that you should be focusing on right now, usually in favor of doing something that is more enjoyable or that you are more comfortable with.
How to overcome procrastination:
Recognize that you are procrastinating.
Work out WHY you’re procrastinating
Adopt anti-procrastinating strategies

29. Recognizing Procrastination
Indicators:
Filling your day with low-priority tasks from your To-Do List
Reading s several times without starting work on them or deciding what you are going to do with them
Sitting down to start a high-priority task and almost immediately going off to make a cup of coffee
Leaving an item on your To-Do List for a long time even though you know it’s important
Regularly saying yes to unimportant tasks that others ask you to do.
Waiting for the “right mood” or the “right time” to tackle the most important task at hand.

30. Why Are You Procrastinating?
Find job unpleasant
Disorganized
Feel overwhelmed by the task
Perfectionists
Undeveloped decision-making skills

31. Anti-Procrastination Strategies
Procrastination is a habit-a deeply ingrained pattern of behavior.
You won’t break it overnight
Habits only stop being habits when you have persistently stopped practicing them!

32. Anti-Procrastination Strategies
These tips will motivate you to get moving:
Make up your own rewards
Ask someone else to check up on you
Identify the unpleasant consequences of NOT doing the task
Work out cost of your time
Aim to “eat an elephant beetle” every day

33. Anti-Procrastination Strategies
If you are procrastinating because you are disorganized, here’s how to get organized:
Keep a To-Do List
Become a master of scheduling and project planning so that you know when to start those all important projects
Set yourself time-bound goals
Focus on one task at a time

34. Anti-Procrastination Strategies
If you are procrastinating because you find it overwhelming, you need a different approach:
Break the project into smaller parts
Create an action plan
Start with some quick, small tasks so the whole project won’t be so overwhelming
RESIGN! Find another line of work.

35. 10 Common Time Management Mistakes
Mistake #6: Taking on too Much
Are you a person who has a hard time saying “no” to people?
If so, you probably have far too many projects and commitments on your plate.
Are you a micromanager?: someone who insists on controlling or doing all of the work yourself, because they don’t trust anyone else to do it correctly.

36. Avoid Micromanaging
Signs of Micromanaging
Resisting delegation
Immersing yourself in overseeing projects of others
Start by correcting tiny details instead of big picture
Taking back delegated work before it’s finished
Discouraging others to make decisions without you
Micromanagement restricts the ability of micromanaged people to grow, and it also limits what the micromanager’s team can achieve, because EVERYTHING has to go through him or her.

37. To Whom Should You Delegate?
Factors to consider:
Experience, knowledge and skills
The individual’s preferred work style
How independent is the person?
What are his/her interests?
The person’s current workload
Does the person have time to take on more work?
Will delegating this task require reshuffling?

38. How to Delegate (1) Clearly articulate desired outcome
Clearly identify constraints and boundaries
Should the person:
Wait to be told what to do?
Ask what to do?
Recommend what should be done, and then ask?
Act, and then report results immediately
Initiate action, and then report periodically?
Empower staff. Let them decide what tasks are to be delegated

39. How to Delegate (2)
Delegate to the lowest possible organizational level
Closest to the work – they have the most knowledge
Provide adequate support and ne available to answer questions
Focus on results
Avoid “upward” delegation”
Build motivation and commitment
Discuss the impact on the organization
Establish and maintain control

40. Ready to
Serve

41. 10 Common Time Management Mistakes
Mistake #7: Thriving on “Busy”
Some people get a rush from being busy
The problem is that an “addiction to busyness” rarely means that you are effective, and it can lead to stress to achieve deadlines.

42. Thriving on Busy
Some people get a rush from being busy. The narrowly-met deadlines, endless s, etc.
The problem is that an “addiction to busyness” rarely means that you’re effective, and it can lead to stress
Better to slow down and manage your time better.

43. 10 Common Time Management Mistakes
Mistake #8: Multitasking

44. Multitasking Can It help You Get More Done?
Multitasking DOES NOT make you more productive!
American Psychological Association
Journal of Experimental Psychology
“multitasking actually results in us wasting around 20-40% of our time, depending on what we’re trying to do.”
Simple reason is that we can’t actually focus on more than one task at a time
Reduces quality of work

45. Multitasking Tendencies
A few indicators:
Several pages or tabs open on your computer
Desk is disorganized: several file folders or papers out that you are working on
Multitasking is more likely when you are working on a projector task that you are not excited about
Frequent interruptions can cause you to multitask

46. How To Stop Multitasking
Plan your day in blocks
Follow your To-Do List
Prioritize!
Manage your interruptions
Be assertive
Close your office door
Hold the phone calls
Improve your concentration
Focus on one task at a time

47. 10 Common Time Management Mistakes
Not Taking Breaks
Don’t dismiss taking breaks as a waste of time
Enables you to think creatively and work effectively
Helps to avoid stress

48. 10 Common Time Management Mistakes
Mistake #10: Ineffectively Scheduling Tasks
Are you a morning person?
Do you work better in the afternoon?
All of us have different rhythms, that is, different times of the day when we feel more productive and energetic
Schedule high value work during your peak time

49. Effective Scheduling Planning to Make the Best Use of Your Time
Scheduling is the process by which you look at the time available to you, and plan on how you will use it to achieve your goals.
By using a schedule properly, you can:
Understand what you can realistically achieve with your time
Plan to make the best use of the time available
Leave enough time for things you absolutely must do
Preserve contingency time to handle the unexpected
Minimize stress by avoiding over-commitment to yourself and others

50. Preparing Your Schedule
Scheduling is done on a regular basis. Go through the following steps:
Identify time available
Block in actions you absolutely must take to do a good job
Review your To-Do List and schedule high-priority urgent activities
Block in appropriate contingency time
What’s left is “discretionary time” the time available to deliver your priorities and achieve your goals

51. Time Management Summary
Key Issues:
Key Points:
Time management is an essential skill that helps keep your work under control, at the same time that it helps you keep stress to a minimum
Goal Setting
Prioritization
Managing Interruptions
Procrastination
Scheduling

52. Thank you for your time!
Any questions???