Time Management: From the
Faculty/Staff Perspective
(handout accompanying PowerPointÒ
presentation)
CDR Dennis L. Hufford, MC, USN
Faculty Development Fellowship
Madigan Army Medical Center
(edited for web page 03 JUL 99)
Objectives:
- Recognize factors contributing to poor time management including time wasting activities, personality types in the workplace, myths regarding time and productivity, and factors controlling time allocation.
- Develop understanding of various time management principles including organization skills, time tracking, optimization of schedules, and prioritization of tasks.
Background:
Time management has been a major issue in the business community since the industrial revolution, and has grown exponentially through the computer era and business "rightsizing". The medical community recognizes the impact of overloaded schedules, long working hours, and staff shortages on time efficiency, yet little appears in our professional literature or training programs regarding improvement in time management by and for physicians.
The Problem:
- Time Wasters: see appendix 1of handout.
How many of these have happened to you this week?
How many of these could you have managed better? How?
- Time wasting behaviors/personalities:
-The Bureaucrat; a.k.a. "Guardian of the System", not the mission! He/she protects the system from change. Afraid of thinking outside the box, he/she will instinctively resist any paradigm shift.
-Dead Wood, or in military parlance, "Retired on Active Duty". Pretends to work, pretends to care, cares only about the time between now and the first pension check, and the path of least work to get there.
-The Crisis Maker, elevates every task to "top priority". Like a gyroscope, he/she is in constant motion but never gets anywhere.
-The Loner, who firmly believes only he/she can get the job done on time. Never delegates,
always overloaded, frustrated, and wondering why everyone else is going home "early".
How many of these do you know? More importantly, are you one of them?
- Myths regarding productivity:
- "I’m always busy, therefore, I must be very productive."
- "The more time I spent on this task, the better the product will be"
Possible solutions:
1. Methods of managing time:
A. Prioritization:
A time management matrix (see PowerPoint slide)
Goal Setting: long and short term, personal and professional. What is important to you?
Learn to say "NO".
B. Organization:
-Are you sure you understand where your time goes? Have you measured it?
-Do you plan your day? Week? Month? Career? Does day planner work for you? (Hint: it’s not for everyone!) Do you plan for progress towards your goals?
-When you start your day, do you know what you are going to do? How do you know when you’re finished?
Conclusion/ tips:
Q: Who makes demands on your time? A: Everybody!
Q: Who can create more time? A: Nobody…We all already have "all the time in the world"!
Q: Who can reallocate the time you have? A: You and those in authority over you.
Q: Who is in charge of your time? Your goals? Your Life? A: YOU ARE.
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Appendix 1
Leading
Time Wasters
- Telephone calls
- Pagers
- Unexpected visitors
- Meetings
- Crisis situations without plans
- Clutter
- Micromanagement
- Attempting too much at once, underestimation of time required
- Failure to set clear lines of authority/responsibility
- Inadequate or delayed input from others
- Indecision and procrastination
- Lack of clear instructions
- Inability to say "NO"
- Lack of standards, progress milestones
- Fatigue
- Inadequate support systems
Source of information:
This presentation is compiled from previous presentations and outlines (unpublished) on file at the fellowship, primarily those of Dr. Fred Miser. (prior graduate and Director of the fellowship)
