There are four key elements to consider:
The definition of objectives
Translating them into actions or planning
The ability of delegation
The incident management or emergency
With regard to the first point it is clear that to manage their time well it should be aimed at creating a clear objective, without which we can not prioritize reducing us to treat everything as very important depending on the mood of contingency or time.
Who proceeds without visible targets browse aimlessly and do not need to say that this is the worst condition for proper time management.
However, the objectives, even if declared, are not enough to help in the management agenda. To be useful, must be up and running that is transformed into actions planned and cadenced in time and articulated in sub-goals. And 'here that the problems usually arise because many of us, while proceeding towards a goal, we did not make the "ship's" so do not know where they are to arrival or actions do today to arrive in port tomorrow.
Still, those of us who work as a team and maybe also has a coordinating role, it is often not able to exercise the duty / right to delegate. The priorities of his men then become its priorities, resulting in overcrowding the agenda. In my experience as coordinator of sales teams I've noticed that the inability to delegate often arises from poor or absent structuring and programming opportunities for verification, or verification that is continuous (in fact, then canceling the delegation) or does not reason to exist because both do everything alone.
Learn how to conceive moments occurs as scattered, then defined in time and space and structured according careful procedures, is an important first step to become good "delegate."
Despite what some will continue to argue "but I continue to manage emergencies or unexpected!" Well, first of all reflect on the fact that if emergencies or unforeseen events occur often means that we are faced with the practice and as such will treated. In fact, if a fault occurs on the agenda with a certain frequency, it means that either you have not planned enough or if it is done, we have not given due weight to that activity.
Many emergencies, if properly analyzed, can fall easily in the list of programmable functions.
Without this first filter, there is always the possibility that it is delivering real emergencies and then how to treat them? The compass are always the targets and their hierarchical organization. You have to ask the question "how this situation may affect the realization of my most important goal?" If I do the shopping and I'm losing an order, well the answer is simple! But if it comes to doing someone a favor because maybe it could turn into an advantage, I will analyze the consistency with my strategic objectives and the real possibility of realization. Even delegation is important in emergency management, because for example we could create a "hierarchical pyramid" of criticality which correspond different levels of responsibility that will allow us to absorb the exceptional workload. The "filters" that define the degree of urgency or priority in tackling the task but must be shared and consistent with the hierarchy of objectives. I say this because often we take a meter personnel to define what to do before and it is said that this is the correct way to work for the good of our organization.
Studying a "hierarchy of criticality" is also useful to understand what, according to our team and not just on our own point of view, it is helpful to address first.
I suggest, in the management of your agenda, to distinguish between:
Deadlines, by referring to those events preparatory or bureaucratic if not addressed in time, blocking the flow of work. Here the focus is not so much the "what" but the "by when";
Priorities, are related to the objectives. The focus is on "what to do before." These activities are not tied to specific moments such as deadlines, but are to be managed in relation to other tasks.
Emergencies are unexpected by those running or managing a priority even than already planned. Can be focused and then look like the deadlines, and then in fact constitute the new priorities. Require a new planning agenda which will be included on the basis of strategic importance and as the deadline.
Finally, time management is first and foremost a cultural thing and then methodology. To be addressed properly requires a change of perspective that is to abandon beliefs and modes of operation maybe consolidated over the years, and bear new, shared with the team and consistent with the objectives of the organization in which we operate.
Be convinced to do so many things, being very busy, does not necessarily mean being productive. In fact, the productivity can be measured only in terms of our ability to meet the objectives set for the time indicated.
