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Leadership

Get more time for the important work

A week consists of 168 hours. Part of it is spent sleeping, some time is spent working, relaxing and being with family and friends. Unfortunately, too much time is also spent on unimportant tasks. Tasks you don't need to do that could be delegated or changed.

If you need 168 more efficient hours, you can use this method to slow down your work tasks so that you have more time for the important things.

The two researchers, Julian Birkinshaw and Jordan Cohen, have investigated, what it is that makes us productive and what prevents us from it. And often it's about us using our things for the wrong tasks.

When they asked managers to identify which tasks mattered most to them and their organization and drop or delegate the rest, among the 15 managers, it freed up to 20 % of their workday for more important tasks.

Leadership

The method consists of five steps:

Identify low-value tasks.
1. Which ones are not important, either to you or the company?
2. Which ones are relatively easy to drop, delegate or outsource?
Decide whether the task should be dropped, delegated or redesigned.
Divide the tasks into three categories:
1. Quick kills. Things you can stop doing without negative consequences.
2. Delegate opportunities. Tasks that can be delegated with little effort
3. Long-term redesign. Tasks that must have a new structure or change
Delegate tasks.
May be the hardest part of this exercise, but well worth the effort. The researchers tell e.g. about a manager who experienced that an employee was grateful to be given the extra tasks.
Distribute the freed up time.
Write down three things that you should be doing, but that you don't get to do. And with the help of a log book, keep an eye on whether you are using your time correctly.
Commit to your plan.
1. Share your plan with your boss, colleague or mentor. Explain which tasks you are dropping and why, and agree to discuss what you have achieved a few weeks later. Just saying it out loud gives you a sense of responsibility in relation to the plan. The person you tell it to might even be able to help you further. Eg. your boss may suggest to whom you can delegate one or more tasks.