When I managed people in a call center, I used to like walking
the floor at least once in the morning and once before
I left for the day in order to talk with the employees.
I often wondered where the time went in the day, and why there were
times when I wasn’t getting everything done I wanted to. I knew the
people doing the hard work deserved my time, but I didn’t know how I
could continue to balance it. My peers were getting feedback that their
employees never saw them, so I knew I was doing the right thing, but
I didn’t want my other work to suffer.

Then, I thought back to my own advice about blocking off time
on the calendar. It was a lesson I’d been trying to teach others, and
yet had completely missed the fact that it was the solution to my own
problem! Although I could typically walk the floor in fifteen minutes,
it wasn’t on my calendar. I instantly scheduled thirty minutes to start
the day and thirty minutes to finish the day, for walking the floor. I
built in double the time to allow for extended conversations, problem
solving, or getting caught in the hall with someone who wanted to
share a lengthy story. As I started to figure out actual timing, I adjusted
it down and input a middle-of-the-day walk, too. I was actually more
efficient because I knew a calendar reminder would pop up—and over
time, I knew it was coming and became better able to focus on my
current tasks and meet all of my goals.

Do you account for everything you do in a day? Take the time to
list out ancillary pieces that you may not have typically added to your
calendar and add them. Some examples may include:

• Walking around/time not at your desk (e.g., water cooler or
even a restroom break)
• Running into people in the hall/casual conversations with peers

Although you may not schedule these events, they do take your time.
These previously unscheduled items can now be add-ons to the
previously noted administrative block of time we discussed earlier.
Have you accounted for this time? Using the blanket blocking of the
time will allow you to know that time is still being taken up.
All of the efforts to account for time are about knowing what is
taking up your time each day. That knowledge is a powerful thing,
because it will ease the pressure you feel on yourself; if it’s not done, it’s
not the end of the world. However, as you become more productive,
you’ll start to see more wins and sustained efficiency. In addition, on
many calendar applications—Microsoft Outlook, Instant Messenger,
and Skype, for example—those blocks of time you’ve set aside will
show your peers that you are “busy,” thus keeping requests for your
time in check.

Thomas B. Dowd III’s books available in softcover, eBook, and audiobook (From Fear to Success only):

• Time Management Manifesto: Expert Strategies to Create an Effective Work/Life Balance
• Displacement Day: When My Job was Looking for a Job…A Reference Guide to Finding Work
• The Transformation of a Doubting Thomas: Growing from a Cynic to a Professional in the Corporate World
• From Fear to Success: A Practical Public-speaking Guide received the Gold Medal at the 2013 Axiom Business Book Awards in Business Reference
• The Unofficial Guide to Fatherhood

See “Products” for details on www.transformationtom.com.  Book and eBook purchase options are also available on Amazon- Please click the link to be re-directed: Amazon.com

Do you know about Avanoo.com?  Two-to-three minute eLearning programs that can change your life.

When Your Job is to Find a Job—and Yourself

Manage Your Time—Don’t Let It Manage You

MP3 Downloads of “From Fear to Success:  A Practical Public-speaking Guide” are available at Apple iTunes, Amazon, Rhapsody, Emusic, Nokia, Xbox Music, Spotify, Omnifone, Google Music Store, Rdio, Muve Music, Bloom.fm, Slacker Radio, MediaNet, 7digital, 24-7, Rumblefish, and Shazam “From Fear to Success” MP3 on CD Baby

Are you the eager employee who volunteers for everything that
comes your way in an attempt to advance within your organization?
What is your confidence level when your boss or your
boss’s boss gives you an assignment when your plate is full? I remember
working for an individual who was driving me hard. I made every effort
to keep my tasks organized, so I maintained a spreadsheet. I had a
column that noted all of my deadlines. Some were manager-assigned,
while many were self-initiated, aggressive dates to work toward. I wanted
to do everything possible to push myself and prove my worth. One
day, I was providing an update to my manager, so I showed him the
spreadsheet. Although thirty-seven of the forty items were on pace to
be achieved on time, he focused on the three that were past due. The
three that were past due were my own deadlines missed. Unfortunately,
he held them over my head for quite some time.

I learned a valuable lesson that day: We must be realistic with our
timeframes, regardless of how badly we want to meet them. We should
continue to drive our work and not sandbag our deliverables, but we
must balance it with everything we’re doing. In our efforts to be “gogetters,”
we may actually be casting a negative shadow if we don’t
accomplish everything we said we would by the given timeframes.

Think back to the times when you were a go-getter and found
some commitments not being fulfilled. Effective immediately, I want
you to begin to under-promise and over-deliver. You shouldn’t tell the
boss that it will be done by five o’clock p.m. because you hope it will
be done. You should tell the boss when you know it will be done.
If five p.m. isn’t the right timing, you should be honest and tell the
boss when the realistic right time is, or invest time to reprioritize other
tasks. If you haven’t established a strong enough relationship to do
this, you may want to begin to build the trust and respect required to
have those prioritization discussions. By under-promising and overdelivering,
you’ll start to find appropriate times to hand work in early,
beat deadlines, and often times start taking on more responsibilities.
It’s ironic how easy it is to stop being a go-getter and actually go out
and get more done when you are real with your deadlines.

Thomas B. Dowd III’s books available in softcover, eBook, and audiobook (From Fear to Success only):

• Time Management Manifesto: Expert Strategies to Create an Effective Work/Life Balance
• Displacement Day: When My Job was Looking for a Job…A Reference Guide to Finding Work
• The Transformation of a Doubting Thomas: Growing from a Cynic to a Professional in the Corporate World
• From Fear to Success: A Practical Public-speaking Guide received the Gold Medal at the 2013 Axiom Business Book Awards in Business Reference
• The Unofficial Guide to Fatherhood

See “Products” for details on www.transformationtom.com.  Book and eBook purchase options are also available on Amazon- Please click the link to be re-directed: Amazon.com

Do you know about Avanoo.com?  Two-to-three minute eLearning programs that can change your life.

When Your Job is to Find a Job—and Yourself

Manage Your Time—Don’t Let It Manage You

MP3 Downloads of “From Fear to Success:  A Practical Public-speaking Guide” are available at Apple iTunes, Amazon, Rhapsody, Emusic, Nokia, Xbox Music, Spotify, Omnifone, Google Music Store, Rdio, Muve Music, Bloom.fm, Slacker Radio, MediaNet, 7digital, 24-7, Rumblefish, and Shazam “From Fear to Success” MP3 on CD Baby