It takes different people different amounts of time to do the identical task.

Once you know you how long it takes you to do something, you may decide it’s a better use of the world’s resources to have someone else do a certain task. A “do-it-all-yourself” mentality can be a big time trap.

Good time managers calculate how long things take and build the time they need into their schedules. This is not a mysterious talent that some people are born with and you lack. It’s a simple skill anyone can learn.

Good time managers make a conscious decision to figure out how long a task will take. They simply ask themselves that question. This is a big missing link for the rest of us who say, “Okay, I’m going to do these twelve things tomorrow,” without ever pausing to consider how long each task will take.

Finding you work/life balance isn’t always easy. You may need to get creative, like Jane did. But what if you, like Jane, work in an environment where face time is very important? Perhaps your co-workers and your boss keep different hours than you: they could begin their day at 11 a.m. while you start yours at eight. If this is the case and you are determined to keep those unusual hours, like Jane, than here are a few tips to help you succeed.

Jocelyn has been late her whole life. As a kid, she never got to school on time, even though John Jay Elementary was just down the block.  Now 56, married, with two grown children and a successful career, she is still late for work every day.  Jocelyn fills every moment with activity—going to the gym 6 times per week,  listening to books on tape as she drives, lunching with friends, attending dinner parties, scurrying to business meetings, weekend brunches, movies and museums. She’s late for them all. 

Friends tell her she has no sense of how long things take. She’s tried to be more conscious of it, to be more sensitive, making a big effort to give herself extra time. But she always gets caught up in this feeling that I've get to fit one more thing in. 

Spending the first hour of your day stuck in traffic can be enough to make you feel like you’re losing control.  According to a recent national study, American drivers waste nearly an entire work week per year just sitting in traffic on the way to and from their jobs.   But, your time behind the wheel doesn’t need to be squandered.  Turn this down time into prime time by following these quick tips to make your commute more productive.    

How productive did you feel last week? If you got less done than you'd hoped....what kept you from staying on task?  For many people, a constant stream of interruptions is the biggest hurdle to productivity.  So, here's some advice for preventing unnecessary interruptions from taking more than their fair share of your upcoming week.

When People struggle to manage their time, they very often jump to the conclusion that they are internally flawed somehow, that they are born incompetent in this area of life. Or they throw their hands up in resignation, convinced that “out of control” is just how life is supposed to be in the modern world. Both of these perceptions are totally inaccurate and self-defeating. Often it’s a combination of forces that create time-management problems. Consider the top 10 time management mistakes and how to avoid them.

How do workers choose what’s most important when their to-do list now goes on for pages?  What administrative services have been cut which create unexpected time sinks? How do they produce quality work when they are distracted with worry? On the other hand, what if your people are suffering from too little to do? 

If recent years were a boon time, and there is a sudden dearth of phone calls, emails and meetings, what should your team do with all their free time? The lack of structure can be very disorienting to workers who have gotten into the habit of being completely reactive.

The result? Harried, anxious workers who feel paralyzed and end up buried in a rut of disorganization and inefficiency.  Managers can combat the time management backlash by concentrating on the Five F’s with their team:

Between homework, after-school activities, friends, family, cleaning, errands and a zillion other events competing for your time, yours and your child’s life can be shockingly full of activity. It’s not easy fitting it all in, but you’d be surprised how much you can get done when you learn to organize your time.

            How long can you ignore all distractions and give 100 percent of your attention to one task? Ten minutes at a time? Thirty minutes? Two hours? Four hours?

            We each have a different concentration threshold. Find out what yours is. How long can you give one task your undivided attention before you begin to feel saturated, distracted, or antsy to take care of something else? Study yourself—you may be surprised what you learn.

            Deleting tasks means deliberately deciding not to do them at all. Take a hard look at every item on your to-do list and ask yourself: “What is the worst thing that would happen if this task or project weren’t done? Would my life change drastically? Would anyone else be irreparably hurt?” If the answer is no, cross it off your list. Let go of the obligation and guilt of tasks you will never get to anyway, and free your energy for what truly matters most.       

            Delay does not mean procrastinate. Procrastination is about indefinite postponement; delaying is about consciously rescheduling something for a more appropriate time. Delaying in this sense is actually proactive—you are choosing the best time to do something so that it works with your schedule, work style, and priorities.        

Knowing how to delegate effectively is one of the most important and valuable time management skills anyone can develop. Delegating tasks is not something you do to avoid your responsibilities; it’s a technique you use to fulfill them. It can be difficult to know when to give something to someone else. You may be hesitant to delegate if you feel that everyone else is overloaded just like you. Or, you may worry that someone might not do as good a job as you would. It may not even occur to you to delegate something because it’s always been your job and you are doing it on autopilot.          

The phrase, Work-Life Balance tends put many people off.  Impossible!  A pipe dream!  A dated concept!  But I don’t think so.... the issue isn’t the term—it’s our definition of the phrase and what it implies that needs to evolve.

One of the most common mistakes people make when creating their to-do list is generating an endless inventory of everything in their heads—which is not particularly practical for getting things done.

The secret sauce is creating what I call an “intelligent” to do list, which goes way beyond just asking “what” we need to do,  it addresses how long each item will take, and when  we are going to do it—so that we can make realistic plans for each day.

The W.A.D.E. formula is a practical plan for sorting through your to-do’s, making wise decisions, and feeling the unbeatable sense of accomplishment that comes with checking things off your list...

            When time is limited, you need to find the quickest way to your goal. Finding      shortcuts is not about “cheating” or taking the easy way out—it’s about becoming    a more efficient person. For you perfectionists out there: Remember, it’s usually  preferable to have something completed (even if it’s imperfect) than never done at all.    

            Studies have shown that it takes your brain four times longer to recognize and process each thing you’re working on when you switch back and forth among tasks. This means that if your day is a random free-for-all in which you hop from task to task, your work will literally take much longer because of the real time you lose switching gears.  

Many people suffer from a tendency to overload their schedules, because it’s so darn hard to say no. And, once you’ve said yes, it’s even harder to back out of things because you don’t want to disappoint others. If you’re feeling overextended and out of balance, you may gain inspiration on what to do about it by reading George’s story.

            George’s schedule was so overloaded that he didn’t have time to concentrate or really connect to any one thing he was doing. He staggered from one task to the next, never taking any time to reflect, and spent his nights worrying about what he wasn’t doing or couldn’t get to. He asked me to “help him become more efficient” so that he could keep doing it all, but with less stress.

            Every day, you face a myriad of choices about your daily to-dos. There are things you have to do, things you want to do, and things other people ask you to do. Tasks for work, family, self, and friends. Tasks that require mental concentration, physical strength, charm, creativity, or diplomacy. When looking at a long list of to-dos, it can be tempting to dive right in, starting at the top and knocking them out as they come at you. But don’t. Take a moment to sort through them to ensure you approach your day efficiently.

Most people think of time as intangible. In the journey from chaos to order, it is often easier to organize space than time because space is something you can actually see. Stacks of papers, piles of clothing, and shelves full of knickknacks are visible. You can pick things up and move them around in your space to see how they fit.

Good time management is not about creating a perfectly organized life in which nothing ever goes wrong. It’s about having the tools to get back in control whenever you get thrown off track. Prepare to recover from the most common time management traps, with the following quick solutions.....

             More and more people are working from home these days—as freelancers, budding entrepreneurs, or even as virtual employees of a larger company.  Working from home often brings with it a lot of freedom – the freedom to make decisions, to set hours, and to determine your own workplace culture. Yet the home-based office has its share of challenges. Space is limited. It’s hard to be productive with unstructured days. You do not have the same support that comes with working at a big company, and the lines often blur between home and work.         

            With just a little organization, you can be productive, efficient, and enjoy all of the advantages of working from home. Here are a few of the core strategies I give my clients to ensure they get things done and feel effective.........

Has organizing your computer files been on your to-do list since last summer? Is there a writing project you've been avoiding like the plague? What about those networking phone calls you've been meaning to get to since the job market got so shaky? What is it that causes you to procrastinate...........?

Have you noticed a time management backlash to the economic crisis?  Procrastination seems to be at an all time high these days--90% of our clients complain about their ineffectiveness at work these days.  It's hard to get anything done....when people you are doing business with take longer to respond, you've got a bunch of new responsibilities to wrap your head around, and your own to-do list has become a bit of a stranger to you.

Restructuring, hiring freezes, and the unpredictable business climate have created a situation in which it's hard to figure out where to invest your time, to provide value.  How do you prioritize when your to-do list goes on for 7 pages? How do you produce quality work when you are distracted with worry? ..............