Time management has been one of my biggest problems yet. I think it’s a big issue most of us face in our daily life. Honestly, how many of you are able to manage time efficiently? I am not saying its impossible but, being a. Feature Article: An Integral Approach to Project Management. Feature Articles / March 2011.
© Copyright 2014 Brefi Group Limited Find out more at our comprehensive web site www.brefigroup.co.uk Covey’s Four Quadrants for time management The Covey time management grid is an effective method of organising your. Hutch Carpenter is the Director of Marketing at Spigit. Spigit integrates social collaboration tools into a SaaS enterprise idea management platform used by global Fortune 2000 firms to drive innovation. Caption describing picture or graphic. INSIDE: 10 strategies for better Sue W. Chapman Michael Rupured Time Management Know How You Spend your Time Set Priorities Use Planning Tools Get Organized Schedule Delegate Stop. The Quadrants. This is the third of a set of excerpts from the Intervention DVD. As I describe the Quadrant concept, Quadrant #1 is what I would call something like a basic PE class — like the PE class I told you about.
Quadrants That Will Help You Manage Time More Efficiently » Salman Ahsan » Creative, Authentic & Transparent Time management has been one of my biggest problems yet. I think it’s a big issue most of us face in our daily life. Honestly, how many of you are able to manage time efficiently?
I am not saying its impossible but, being a fulltime college student and dealing with several other entrepreneurial projects can be hectic. If you have read my previous posts, I have mentioned how I enjoyed managing and working on several projects at once but unfortunately that did not produce the result as I expected; lesson learned.
I have realized that if you focus on a thing and complete it before starting something else; you have higher chances of getting a better return. Managing your time is critical if you want to reach your goals. Couple of weeks ago, in my psychology class, I was introduced to the four quadrant time management system which I found really amazing. Franklin Covey, the inventor of the system, breaks down time management into 4 quadrants that make managing your life much easier. Trust me, once you know how to manage your time effectively, you will become super effective by eliminating our favorite friend “procrastination”. I know how it feels when you end up doing the wrong thing and then procrastinate that you did not have enough time to do the right thing; if that’s the case, then my friend, you have time management problems : ). But, don’t worry because the method I am going to discuss will help you cut down procrastination by at least 5.
It worked for me and if you follow the simple rules, you will succeed. Today, I am going to explain the time management system created by Covey.
Always remember, two factors oppose each other, time management and procrastination. They never get along and its better that way 4 Quadrant Time Management System. As you can see in the figure above, in quadrant 1, you have things that are important and urgent.
In quadrant 2, you have things that are important but not urgent. In quadrant 3, you have things that are urgent but not important and finally in quadrant 4, you have things that are not important and not urgent. Quadrant 1. So what is considered an “important thing”? Important things that need to get done are things that you value the most or someone else’s values that effects you. If there was a fire, its emergency which is urgent and important at the same time where one has to act quickly.
Thus, this can be categorized under quadrant 1. Urgent things are time sensitive. It is important to differentiate between them or you will be categorizing things incorrectly. Quadrant 2. Family, relationships, exercise can be categorized in quadrant 2 because family and relationships are important but they are not urgent. I am sure you guys are not that desperate to meet your girlfriends or boyfriends all the time : ).
Quadrant 2 is very important because if you cant keep up with it, things will start shifting to quadrant 1 which we should avoid at all cost. For example: If I have a test 2 weeks later, it is in quadrant 2 because the test is important but not urgent since I have 2 weeks in hand to prepare for it.
But, if I procrastinate and do nothing in the 1. Do you see how important is quadrant 2? If you can manage this quadrant well, you don’t have to worry much. Quadrant 3. I had several arguments with some of my mates who consider phone calls important and urgent. I say, they are urgent but most are not important. How many of you received important calls in a daily basis?
I doubt that! Phone calls are a huge distraction and I personally hate them. They are time killers and should be avoided if you want to get the most out of your day. Although some phone calls can be important such as emergency calls etc, we all know that it is very rare. Phone calls, interruptions, distractions, can be categorized in quadrant 3. If your girl friend calls you in the middle of the night and asks you to take her to pizza hut, that would be urgent but not important ; ).
Now, you might have to consider this. Please don’t blame me if you face any relationship problems, eh.
It’s your choice; whatever it is, this is the way the quadrant works. Quadrant 4. In quadrant 4, we place all the time wasters such as playing video games for hours and not making money from it : ), watching ton of movies a day, browsing and stalking facebook, day dreaming etc. I am sure I don’t have to explain this quadrant. Anything that doesn’t help you or things that don’t affect your lifestyle positively can be categorized in quadrant 4.
Do the stuff in moderation and you should be fine. How I Do It This is what I have started doing after discovering the 4 quadrant time management system- I set aside 1. Most of the time, I do this a day ahead of time. It seems to have a greater effectiveness when you actually write, not type or think, the things that need it get done in a day.
I bought several packs of square note cards, divided each into 4 quadrants and write down stuff in their right places. This way I know what I have to deal with first, second and so on. Do this and see the changes, I can feel it : ). Work on important things before they become urgent. This will relieve a lot of undue stress. Verdict. Without a doubt, we all know the importance of time management, but a few act on it.
I still have time management issues but I am able to manage time better than before which means more productivity and higher ROI. Whatever it is, the fact is that this method actually helped me to some extent.[tip]Always work on things categorized in Quadrant 2 before it reaches Quadrant 1 because that’s where it gets stressful and you become friends with procrastination.[/tip]When you stop working on things that are not important, it is then that we free up more time to get things done ahead of schedule. This can be challenging, but it can be done. What other time management methods would you recommend?
Let me know if you found the “4 Quadrant Time Management System” useful. I must govern the clock, not be governed by it.