TIME, COST AND LEADERSHIP

Time, Cost and Leadership

[Hussain]

HDL625

Dr. Jennifer Wyatt

April 2012

Time, Cost and Leadership

Introduction

I would try to save time preferably, although it will be done efficiently using as minimum resources as possible. We can all benefit from drastically reframing our sense of time. Are you aware that, to a person earning $100,000 per year, one minute is worth a dollar? (Cox 2002, Pp. 111) Multiply it out for yourself. A person earning $150,000 per year is earning $1.50 per minute. At $200,000 per year, each minute is worth two dollars. This example shows the value of time is very important for professionals.

This is all a means of drawing perspective on the question we should all be aware of throughout the day: “What was the value to me and my family of my last 15 minutes?” A very profound question like this should be tattooed between your index finger and your thumb, written on the back of the name plate on your desk, on the face of your watch, on a sticker in the cradle of your telephone, and in bold letters above your computer screen.

Discussion

Peter F. Drucker, the great management expert, has many suggestions for ways in which we can all profit from liberated time. Here are three of his most important:

Record your time

Don't count on your memory for an accurate assessment of how you spend your time. Would you trust your memory more than the register in your checkbook? I promise you that documenting your time usage for three days will convince you beyond any doubt how much you need time planning. (Allen, 2001)

Manage your time

Peter Drucker was so convinced of the importance of time management that he said, “Until we can manage time, we can manage nothing else.” Managing means being aware of and proactively appropriating time to tasks rather than letting time “get away from us.” Plan your time, but also time your plan. Give yourself some time pressures as motivation. (Johnson 2011)

Consolidate your time

To increase efficiency, group chores together. (Johnson, 2011)

Time Management for Leaders

Theories of Time Management

We have tried to capture time on calendars, measure it by the clock, extend it by daylight savings time, speed it up, and slow it down. But the simple key to good time management is to work smarter, not harder, in every phase of your life (Cox, 2002). Determine what is important in your life through visioning, writing goal statements, and taking action steps that will focus in on the goals.

Approaches to Time Management

How?

Possible Results

Increase amount of available time

Stretch hours of each day as much as possible

Fatigue, lack of efficiency, and sometimes depression

Do more work in available time

Assume that if you can pack more work in your day, everything will work out

High stress and burnout

Do only important work in available time

Assign a scale of priority to the use of your time—commitment to essential matters

Feeling of accomplishment—things that are important

Visioning, setting goals, and action steps help us to achieve the most preferred approach to time management by establishing a clear ...