“Keeping The Pace” - Powerful Time Management

Do you sometimes feel like the white rabbit in Alice In Wonderland? “I’m late! I’m late! I’m late!” You might be aware of time management tips in the world but during times of increased stress your natural style emerges. So, you can decide to work against your natural time management tendencies OR you can work with your natural flow to improve your productivity.

So, what are “natural time management tendencies”?

There are two types of time management tendencies. One is the “Time Manager”. This person appreciates promptness, speed, brevity and punctuality. They measure things by the clock and typically decide in advance how time will be spent on each task/project. Planners and to-do lists work well for this type of personality. Predictable tasks lend themselves well to this personality.

The other time management tendency is the “Process Manager”. For this person, time is related to many complex factors. Decisions are typically made intuitively, in the moment and as events play out. People issues, intangibles and agreements are most suited to this type of personality.

Each needs a different approach to time performance management that suits their personality and yet gets the work done. Following are three Powerful Time Management tips tailored to each of the tendencies.

Performance Enhancement #1: PLAN For Time Managers, planning involves making a list and checking it twice. For Process Managers, planning involves piles and possibilities. We have all heard the saying “Plan well in advance and stick to your plan.” This type of thinking will work well for the Time Manager and frustrate the Process Manager.

Time Managers will perform best if they take time during the day to create a to-do list and have an action plan for each day. Process Managers will need to have three to four working items on their desk. More than four and they will feel overwhelmed. Less than three and they will feel bored.

Tip from the Coach: Regardless of your style, schedule three times during your day to do a time management performance check. The start of the day, mid-day and late afternoon would be my recommendation. The length of this check-in should be five to ten minutes in length. During this time you will either 1) review your list or 2) check the piles of working items on your desk. Clarify where you are and where you need to focus between the current time and your next check-in time.

Performance Enhancement #2: FOCUS “Finish one task at a time.” A great time management tip that works fine for the Time Manager Personality but can be a disaster for the Process Manager Personality. Time Managers strive to finish each task before moving on to the next. Or, at the very least, leave it with a note on top as to the next steps before you set it aside to begin the next project.

For Process Managers, if you spend too much time on one task, your brain will begin to wander to other projects and tasks despite your best efforts to concentrate on one task at a time. Therefore, with three to four projects on your desk, recognize that you may only be able to spend twenty minutes focusing on one project before moving to another. By frequently changing the focus, you will perform at a higher level than the “one task at a time” perspective.

Tip from the Coach: If you manage others, be aware of this difference. What you see as a lazy or unorganized person may be that your style is Time Manager and your staff’s style is Process Manager. OR, you may see a person on your team as rigid and slow. This may be because you are a Process Manager personality while this team member is a Time Manager personality.

Performance Enhancement #3: USE SOME BEHAVIORS FROM THE OPPOSITE STYLE Overwork and stress sometimes lead us to become more engrained in our natural styles. The more you can self-manage to use the style that is best for the situation, the more your performance will improve. For example, if you are a Time Manager personality with multiple tasks on your desk, do not let the anxiety of too many things and no clear timeline…overwhelm you. Recognize that is not a natural operating position for your tendency. Do recognize the anxiety, but do not overreact to the anxiety.

On the other hand, if you are a Process Manager who needs to focus on one high priority task, you may struggle with keeping your mind focused on the task. The anxiety will also occur but for a different reason. Recognize that this is not a natural operating position for your personality AND do not overreact to the anxiety.

Tip from the Coach: At the same time that you are checking in on your planning needs from Tip #1 also check in with your anxiety. If anxiety is present, first take a deep breath. One of the things that happens when you are anxious is you forget to breathe which in turn creates more anxiety. After taking a few deep breaths, recognize the anxiety and the fact that you do not need to overreact to the anxiety. Do what you can to plan for the next block of time using your natural time management style. If you cannot use your natural style, incorporate what is needed. Just remember, this too shall pass.



“Keeping The Pace” - Powerful Time Management - To learn more about this author, visit Cheryl Leitschuh's Website.

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