Tips to Improve your Effectiveness as

So the economy finally found you. All those layoffs you hear about have reached your company’s doorsteps and many of your colleagues are gone. While you’re happy to have a job, boy has it changed. Gone is your support system, but still right in front of you is all of the work they used to do.

Or maybe your company has been fortunate enough to grow in this economy. Perhaps your organization has picked up momentum as others in your industry close their doors. But are you being out-paced by the speed of business and your clients’ needs? It’s a good problem to have. It’s a problem none-the-less. Either way… these days there seems to be more work than we have time to do.

Getting more done with fewer resources is one of business life’s greatest challenges. Leaders and managers indicate things are getting more and more difficult, and worse, they realize their performance has gone downhill… and that’s frustrating. One fundamental requirement these days is impeccable time management. Improve those skills and you can stop spinning your wheels, focus on your leadership and improve your team’s performance. From a blog entry by John McKee for TechRepublic, here are a few time-tested tips you can use to improve your game.

“Time is the greatest resource, and unless it is managed nothing else can be managed.” - Peter F. Drucker, widely regarded as America’s premier leadership guru and management consultant.

1. Go to other people’s offices for meetings. It’s a lot easier to leave their office than it is to get them out of yours! This saves wasted time after a meeting has ended. It also increases your visibility with others while you’re on the move – and you may learn something in passing.

2.  Encourage a “masculine” communication style. Scientists like Loann Brezendine have proven what others have long observed: Men think to talk and women talk to think. In meetings, it takes less time to hear the recommendations that are well thought out and prepared. Tell your team they are limited to two or three sentences. If you like the idea, get more information. Otherwise move on. This will help everyone to be more succinct.

3. As often as possible, meet with users, clients, or customers. This is a big time demand, but what you hear first-hand from those being served by your organization can be startling and exciting. 

4.  Snooze. According to studies, having a mid-day nap of just 20 minutes can improve mood, alertness, and performance. Next time you find yourself reaching for coffee or red bull, try this first. People underestimate the benefits of sleep. This can be a game changer.

5. Use a smart car.  It’s amazing how much time we waste in the car. Improve your time management by parking your car in a getaway position. A little planning makes a big time difference. It’s good for the blood pressure too! Also join the U of A… University of Automobile. If you spend time commuting or traveling between meetings, use audio books to hone your skills and keep current on new thinking. This from Zig Ziglar, a guy who knows performance issues.

6. Review tomorrow’s calendar the night before.  After a long day you’re likely to be more hard-nosed about time requests. The next day, just before lunch, revisit your afternoon schedule again. Your day’s priorities may shift many days, but this close management of your time will help keep your eye on the must-do issues.

7.  Use praise to reinforce crispness. In meetings, make it clear that you appreciate those who are aware of how valuable time is. The goal is to be crisp, concise and alert so the meeting will be effective and efficient. If someone is a time hog, tell them! Great leaders ensure that those around them are aware of needs and objectives.

8.  Use that smart phone in a smarter way. If you aren’t using the recording functionality on your phone, start now. We all have moments of brilliance and when they occur, you want to make the most of them. Never miss an opportunity to make verbal notes. Trying to recall them later is frustrating and can cost you a lost idea. Another approach is to call the office and leave yourself a voicemail.

9.  ACT LIKE A LADY.  Women, intuitively, are less top-down in their management styles than men are.  Social Scientists have a whole raft of reasons for this style difference and it may start when we're children.  Studies of youngsters show that girls often prefer games in which everyone leaves a winner, while boys are more inclined toward a winner-take-all approach.  Whatever the reason, senior ecexutive women are mroe likely to be egalitarian when looking for new ideas and approaches.  This works!

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