All in good time

Time management is such an important skill in any role, and yet a very high percentage of all employees struggle with their time management skills. Many will claim to be proficient at organising themselves, and certainly it is a question which often comes up in job interviews, as employers seek to find future employees who will make the most of all the time that they spend in the office and will be as efficient as possible when getting the job done, which will contribute to corporate wellness.

Working faster can mean turning projects around in a much smaller time scale, which can increase efficiency. It can also help you to be more organised in general, which increases your own wellbeing as well as your company’s corporate wellness. It is, for many people, a skill, however, rather than something that they are naturally good at, and there are several ways that you can work on this skill to increase your time management.

There are tools available on the computer and internet to help increase your proficiency. Some enable you to keep track of your time, and in this way you can see how long certain tasks are taking you and work out where your time is being allocated. Some software can also block you from time-wasting websites such as Facebook or YouTube, thus cutting down the amount of time that you spend distracted from tasks and increase your wellbeing. The bookmark tool on your computer can also be useful for pinning important websites to your favourites bar, so that you don’t have to waste time looking them up.

A good old-fashioned ‘To do list’ can also be really helpful with time management. Create one each morning and tick items off as you progress through the day. Perhaps have a weekly or more long-term list as well.

Make sure that you have focused time, blocking out work time in your calendar and sticking to it. Turn off your e-mail notifications during this time and simply focus on the task at hand.