The secret to effective use of time for new managers

What is time management?

Time management is the process of organizing and planning to divide your time into specific activities. Good time management allows you to work smarter and get more done in less time, even when time is tight and pressure is high. Conversely, poor time management will damage your productivity and cause stress.

Simply put, how to properly manage your time to improve work performance, helping you to be able to complete your work in a timely manner.

Why is effective use of time important to managers?

The manager is the representative of the team. Their role is to decide the team goal, plan the necessary actions to achieve the goal in the desired time, assign those tasks to the team members, determine the points of interest. weaknesses in the team and find ways to overcome the shortcomings, develop development plans for team members, train employees whenever needed, resolve conflicts, keep up to date with the latest information on market and business situation… And alas, there are only 24 hours a day and managers only have 10 to 12 hours of work per day to handle all the above tasks. Don't forget that managers are people too. Therefore, to be a successful manager, it is essential to realize the value of time and know how to use it effectively.

Poor time management skills can lead to late appointments, unhappy customers, and even increased costs due to overtime… Today's managers aren't just focused on making sure they put them to good use. time but also help their employees do the same. To help improve performance, new bosses can use the following 9 ways to improve their effective time management skills and share with their employees.

Plan and set goals

Work with employees to set daily, weekly and monthly goals. For each goal, you need to come up with a timeline for completion and break the goal down into small, easily manageable tasks. Also, consider providing employees with task management tools like online calendars, project management apps, and simple to-do lists.

Determine your team's order of priority

Help employees define their priorities based on the interests and urgency of their clients and encourage them to complete tasks that start with the highest-priority ones. This process requires effective communication to ensure that priorities are aligned with company goals.

Clearly defining team priorities helps to set clear goals for each team member to follow. Imagine, if you don't articulate your expectations clearly, employee A might start thinking about his next project, employee B will focus on her quarterly report, employee C will focus on data analysis… Each person does a separate job while you only have 3 weeks for the current project. If you know how to prioritize, you will have a group of 4 people working together towards the end goal, instead of disorganized chaos.

Reasonable workplace organization

A well-organized workspace can help maximize efficiency and save you valuable time at work. To do this, you need to put everything in order, identify and tag documents, keep the space clean… Keeping everything organized and clean saves you time in searching. See documents and tools whenever you need them in an emergency. Therefore, you will not waste time on searching and spend more time completing tasks.

Authorize smartly

As a manager, you need to get your work done, but that doesn't mean you have to do all the work yourself. Delegate certain tasks to the right people and make them feel empowered. Explain job duties thoroughly, work with employees to develop a task completion plan, track progress, and provide the necessary resources and support to achieve assigned goals. Most importantly, share your own knowledge if you've done work before. This will help you complete all the targeted tasks efficiently and your employees will feel appreciated as well.

Some tasks may require special expertise. Then don't hesitate to get help from your peers or colleagues who are experts in that field. Some missions may only require supervision on your part, don't get too involved in completing these missions.

Have the courage to say NO

Most new managers don't have the courage to say no when they are assigned tasks that are beyond their capabilities or limitations. And in the end they fell into a state of high stress and couldn't complete the task in time. Therefore, it is better to politely decline the tasks assigned to you, when you are already overwhelmed with work. Don't accept an offer and then make a mistake with what you promised.

More emphasis on difficult tasks

Many people become procrastinated, especially when faced with a difficult task or when something unexpected comes up. To help employees stay focused, break large projects into smaller chunks and schedule specific times (such as the start of the workday) for larger or more difficult projects.

Avoid interruptions

Schedule important tasks to be done during periods of minimal interruption during the day. This is a great way to use your time effectively. For example, if you are someone with more energy in the morning, use this time to do things that require more concentration. Also, remind yourself that disruption is inevitable and when planning, add a little time for the unexpected.

Eliminate unnecessary meetings or time-wasting things

When new managers take over the team, they tend to inherit the "tradition" from their predecessors. And one of those traditions involves monthly, weekly, even daily meetings that are a waste of time. You can identify redundant meetings by answering three questions: Is the meeting aligned with the team's priorities? Does everyone need to participate? Does the meeting have a positive impact on performance? If the answer is yes to any of the three questions above, you should probably proceed with the meeting. On the contrary, the communication should probably be done by email.

Ensure the right balance

No matter how well you manage your time at work, it can be difficult to keep it going from day to day if you become stressed or lack energy. Therefore, take regular breaks during the working day and practice healthy habits, take good care of your health. With health, you can do all other things, including effective time management.

Using time effectively is important for any business and can be especially important for new managers with a lot of responsibilities. As a manager, you need to be a role model in how to manage your time effectively and provide your employees with the guidance and tools they need to maximize their performance. Use these 9 tips to do just that.