How to manage time well

Editor's note: The Tuesday article "Why do You Feel Busier" discusses the reasons people are busy in the workplace, the lack of an effective system (whether in paper form or electronic form) to record them, so that they can be examined regularly. Today's article is about the time management in multiple project management, so that you in the workplace, in the face of multiple project management, will not fall into chaos.

How many projects do people have in their lives? A career? company mergers? Papers? A trip? Raising children? Care for the family? I think it must be the number is not, what is more frightening is that no matter whether your previous project is over, whether the end, a new project will be forced to enter, which is more stringent than the requirements of the boss.

How can you make yourself more effective in managing multiple projects? More control? I share three simple methods, with Omni focus examples (in fact doit.im is the same usage).

Improve efficiency by dealing with multiple project actions through situation batches

Batch processing should be the most practical way to improve efficiency, for example:

Call the need to solve things, such as 5 pieces, listed together, and then all the time to play out, than 5 calls scattered to the morning 2 pass, the afternoon dozen 3, efficiency is high, why?

Because this incorporates the start-up and closing costs of each call, I don't know if you have the experience:

1. In addition to the preparation of the call before the content, but also ready to call the mood and state (from the work of the state of irritability switch to the enthusiasm of the customer calls with full state).

2, to put down the current work, to call, and then switch back to the work just now, this is also a very large cost, and sometimes the state is difficult to switch back, hang up after the phone does not want to write just opened the head of the document.

So, the batch processing is to let you go to the subway direct, instead of changing five subway to arrive, thus, the efficiency naturally increases many.

The next question is how to get the most out of the batch process in multiple project management and push the project in 3 steps:

1th Step: Set the situation you use most

Situations do not need to be set too much, 5 within the OK, otherwise it will be easier to forget, you can set the situation to forget to set the situation, then you will have a feeling of distrust of the whole situation, so would prefer to start a little less, but once the conditions of action, you must join the situation.

There are three of my situations:

1, Phone: Need to solve the matter by telephone.

2, on out: need to go out to solve things, for example, three projects have to go out to solve things, some run contracts, some buy materials, or visit customers, so when you have to go out today, it is better to set today as "out of date", list all the things that need to go out to solve, a trip door , all done!

3, waiting: Authorized to wait for the response after the action, I will add this situation, I guess you must be authorized to go out of the action to add a time line, right? So you think the time line, you go to push him, not OK ~ I used to do that, But then he found out that the time line was going to rush him. He would be wrong, wrong direction, so had to come back, so I intend to take the initiative, when there is time to use this situation to all authorized to go out of the list of things to see which is not very sure, on the initiative to communicate, some people say, In the company, good communication is the basis of efficient, I quite agree.

2nd Step: Enter the action when the context attribute

It's a simple operation, and it takes a while to get used to it. The key is you have to know what your situation is, and where the boundaries between them, such as @phone and @xx customers, the boundaries between them is not clear, if there is an action is to give XX customers call, you have to two choose one, the situation should be classified, Rather than labels, most software is designed like this.

Omni Focus inside very convenient, shortcut key pop-up Collection window, with the keyboard input action, with the tab and down arrow can select items and situations, full keyboard operation is very comfortable.

Step 3rd: Select actions that match the situation

This is a simple step, to be aware of what situation you are in, to open the software to see what you can do now, to allow the brain to think and make decisions, and to allow the computer to provide information and messages.

You don't have to care what these actions belong to which project, you just know, will their batch processing, your related projects have pushed forward a little bit ~ not afraid of slow, afraid of the station, this "push a little bit" feeling is good.

Increased control by increasing bird's eye view

For those who have just been working soon, most of them will receive such advice: every day before work, looking back on what the day has done, tomorrow after work, the first thing is to plan the day's action, the most important thing to do first ...

This is good, and the "performer" has a more immediate effect.

For those who are responsible for multiple projects at the same time, increased control also requires a higher view of the overall situation, at least to observe and reflect on the action within a week, this perspective is called Bird view.

The aerial view is divided into two parts:

1. Appointments on the calendar

2. Pending action

Omni Focus has a "predictive" feature that is a bird's eye view (similar to other software).

The next week all the appointments and upcoming events are clear, how about a sense of control? (or anxiety might be, P)

Increase project quality through weekly review

Usually in the company like a war work, all the things and ideas are fragmented, so more rapid decision-making and action, the result I guess is "this thing let A to do and let B do, get the result is almost ~"

How to make the project more quality with the training of new employees?

It is difficult to improve the quality of the work, after combing the whole project, there may be a way to improve the quality of the show.

The retrospective approach is:

1, comb all plans.

2. Ask yourself questions

Suggest a project review after the end of the next project

Now do anything will affect the future, if the input or decomposition task is not in place, now review and comb up will be more laborious ~

After combing the full department plan ask yourself three questions:

1. Where can I authorize?

2. What will I focus on next week?

3, do this matter in addition to the present method, there is no better?

I've heard that some scientists and writers and artists have had the experience of being inspired in their dreams, and they think that being immersed in the status quo and then falling asleep with a problem can be a subconscious solution! "Dark Time" author Liu Weipeng called this "the inertia of thinking" (on my microblog, everyone says that they have this experience).

The feeling and the above mentioned "review to improve the quality" a little similar to the wonderful, you might as well try it.

Conclusion：

Life is actually a big project, everyone is a product manager, are solving 5 W (who, What, Where, Where, Why) and an H (how) problem

Our ability to manage multiple projects is related to the quality of life, so let's refuel together!