{"id":24,"date":"2012-11-27T11:46:16","date_gmt":"2012-11-27T11:46:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cmwlab.com\/blog\/?p=24"},"modified":"2025-04-15T09:05:36","modified_gmt":"2025-04-15T09:05:36","slug":"effective-time-management","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cmwlab.com\/blog\/effective-time-management\/","title":{"rendered":"Effective Time Management – Clear Your Calendar"},"content":{"rendered":"

Apple Inc<\/em>., was advertising how Siri<\/em> could let manager \u201cKaren\u201d know that she faced a full day of meetings: \u201cAnother busy day today, Karen!<\/em>\u201d the virtual personal assistant said in the print ad on the back cover Time Magazine<\/em>\u2019s April 16, 2012 issue.<\/p>\r\n\r\n

\r\n\"CMW<\/a><\/p>\r\n\r\n

At least Siri said \u201cbusy<\/strong>\u201d and not \u201cproductive<\/strong>\u201d. Because with a closer look at Karen\u2019s day it was clear that her day is filled with nearly useless meetings: a status meeting, a project briefing, a development call (essentially another briefing), and an update. From morning to evening, status meeting after status meeting, with only a lunch with Emily to talk about anything apart from where things stand on this project or that.<\/p>\r\n\r\n

“Countless status meetings are a sign that your work time isn\u2019t organized efficiently so you need to fix it.”<\/blockquote>\r\n\r\n

This situation is not unique to the fictitious Karen, as people struggle with effective time management every day. In fact, the meeting-crowded calendar is so commonplace that advertising-savvy Apple used the scenario as a neutral backdrop of sorts, so the reader would focus on the delights of Siri itself.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\"Manage\r\n\r\n

I used to live like that, sometimes double- and tripled-booked, scurrying to grab a Diet 7-Up between hour-long chunks of time in the fishbowl that was Executive Conference Room #2<\/em>. Barely getting visibility into others\u2019 work and making almost no headway on my own, which meant that I had to do my own work whenever the meetings finally ended for the day.<\/p>\r\n\r\n

Effective time management is impossible if you actually have no time for work to manage and only go from one meeting to another. Any project manager would tell you that this means lack in visibility which needs to be cover by any possible means: reporting, daily scrum, online tool \u2013 anything that can keep you on top of your project.<\/p>\r\n\r\n

Now, my calendar is largely clear, except for pointed discussions when two or more professionals need to speak live about ideas, and, dare I say, collaborate on a shared goal.<\/p>\r\n\r\n

When I need to know the status of something, or to look at the business requirements of a development project, or to be \u201cbriefed<\/em>\u201d and \u201cupdated<\/em>,\u201d I look in an online tool that is part dropbox, part inbox, part chat room, part library and part project manager: Comindware Tracker<\/a>. Here I view the history of a task or a work item, examine an automated workflow to understand my team\u2019s underlying processes, read the latest revision of a document, view any background material, catch-up on recent discussions about a topic and set priorities based on what I find. It allows me to practice effective time management all from my desk, or my mobile phone, or wherever<\/em>.<\/p>\r\n\r\n

\n \n\n Get a 30-day trial!\n\n <\/a>\n<\/section>\r\n\r\n

If I\u2019m called to report on an initiative, I know what\u2019s going on, whether or not my key people are on vacation (or stuck in some meeting). If I have to make a decision about resources or strategy, I have the necessary information to proceed, or at least to know which questions to ask next.<\/p>\r\n\r\n

\u201cI write. I think. I consider.\u201d<\/blockquote>\r\n\r\n

And you know what else? I now manage my time effectively…<\/p>\r\n\r\n

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