Time Management
Over the past 6 months or so, I have had a revelation about time management. In the past, I thought it was all about being organized and careful planning. While these things are important, I no longer believe they are the answer.
I now firmly believe the number one thing you can do to effectively manage your time is be very selective about what you choose to do.
In Merlin Mann's excellent video "Inbox Zero" he has a great line:
Time & Attention are finite.
No matter how hard you try, there are only 24 hours in a day. There comes a point where regardless of how well organized you are, there are things you cannot fit in.
Tim Ferris (4 hour work week fame) has an interesting spin on this same idea:
Time without attention is worthless, so value attention over time
What Tim is saying is that even if you manage to squeeze every last thing into your schedule, you likely won't be happy with the results. When you are constantly trying to get "yet another thing done" you are not leaving yourself a lot of room to innovate and push the boundaries. You are not likely doing the very things you were hired to do and (at least for me) you are removing the fun parts by going through the motions.
Finally, Lister's Law:
People under time pressure don't think faster - Tim Lister
The next time things get really hectic, instead of getting stressed out and trying to squeeze everything in, think about what things you do not really need to do.
Comments
Fredrik Kalseth on on 1.28.2008 at 6:41 AM
People might not think faster under pressure, but most devs I know focus alot better and spend less time procrastinating when a deadline is looming, getting more work done. So I'd say a little pressure from time to time is a good thing, to keep us on our toes ;)
Wyatt on on 1.28.2008 at 9:21 AM
This sounds dead on, Scott. Attention is everything, and this means that you should really avoid distractions. I have a looming suspicion that music is a big distraction for most devs. Sometimes music can help boost energy, but I believe a lot of people in the post napster days, where they have access to everything, are always looking for a better song to listen to, thus being distracted. Working in silence is golden, with IM and Outlook notifications off.
Jose Lema on on 1.28.2008 at 11:01 AM
Last week I ended up unplugging my speakers completely and it was *great* to not have any auditory distractions (especially IM/Outlook). It certainly helped me get thru lunch time without lurching towards the computer for every IM "ding".
Stacy Randolph on on 1.28.2008 at 7:42 PM
The magic of getting things done, IMHO, has to do with discernment and prioritization. Just like you don't look at everything when scanning a web page, you don't need to look at everything that comes your way the moment it happens--that's discernment.
<br>
As a PM, I have pretty consistent priorities in the order that I do things:
<br>
#1 - client communication
#2 - project team communication
#3 - project tasks assigned to me
#4 - company overhead (reports, dept meetings, etc)<br>
The rest falls under a "soon as I get to it" category. :)
David L. Penton on on 1.29.2008 at 12:51 AM
Closing my door helps immensely - separation from distraction. But, even sitting back and not staring at the screen and just thinking makes all the difference.
Robert C. Barth on on 1.29.2008 at 5:44 PM
Read "Slack" by Tom DeMarco. It addresses what you've discovered regarding time management.
Scott Watermasysk on on 1.29.2008 at 7:54 PM
Hi Robert,
Yes, I did read slack. There is where I got Lister's law.
Kris Krause on on 2.04.2008 at 3:25 PM
Great entry Scott. <thumbs-up />
Ryan on on 2.05.2008 at 10:32 PM
Excellent post Scott, and music is probably my biggest distraction.
Jason Short on on 2.06.2008 at 3:44 PM
Yep, sometimes the most important thing you can do is decide what NOT to do.
Take things one at a time, spend all your concentration on it. When you can't concentrate it is time to move on to something else.
I personally find my own intellectual energy level has a lot with what I choose to do from my list. Sometimes late in the day you just need to do lite things because your brain is fried.
Martin Gomez on on 2.07.2008 at 6:56 PM
I think that the clue is to be honest and say "no" to things that you really know that you won't do, and to delegate stuff to the proper person that will solve this stuff. Avoind trying to be the superhero that will solve all the problems. Also is useful to be specific, and not fly on words...
No pain, no gain ;)