How to Become a Time Management Ninja

March 10, 2022

How many times a day or week do you say…I don't have enough time for that?

We all have the same 24 hours, 1,440 minutes, and 86,400 seconds in a day. So why is it that some people can accomplish so much more than others?

YOU GUESSED IT – TIME MANAGEMENT!

Okay, so now we know what the difference maker is, let's discuss some time management skills.

Let's get out a pen and some paper or click on the Note's app on your phone. To start, list several things you need to get done over the next few days or weeks. I'll give you a minute.

Okay, you've made your list. Now mark the IMPORTANT items with an "I" and an "NI" for things that are not so NOT IMPORTANT. You ask, what does this mean because everything is necessary and has to get done, right? Keep reading.

IMPORTANT to-dos or responsibilities contribute to the achievement of your goals.

NON-IMPORTANT to-dos or responsibilities DO not contribute to the achievement of your goals.

Alright, now you want to consider your list and decide if the items are URGENT or NOT URGENT. You can have essential items on your list, but perhaps they are not urgent or non-important items, but they are critical.

Urgent responsibilities require immediate attention. These are often linked to the accomplishment of someone else's goal. Ignoring urgent issues will have negative consequences. For example, you have a parent who is unhappy with their instructor and is in your office demanding a meeting right now. You must take the meeting because it is good customer service and you don't want an unhappy customer, but this meeting is time spent not working to achieve your goals of starting a new program at your facility. It is an urgent meeting, it is necessary, but it isn't moving the needle so to speak.

After you have assessed your list, you want to consider the following things –

1. Items with important deadlines and high urgency need immediate attention; this cannot be helped. Unfortunately, these tend to be crises, pressing problems, deadline-driven projects, emergencies, or things that require last-minute preparations.

2. Items of high importance but do not have urgent deadlines. These items are usually planning, preparing, and training. The more you can add things like this to your schedule and plan far in advance, the more you are working toward your goals. The items from #1 will slow you down from #2, so you want to do everything you can to get in front of those items and see the smoke before there's fire, you know the old saying.

3. Items that are both not important with high urgency are distractions. Delegate these to someone else if you can. These tasks do not contribute to your goals, and they take energy away from tasks that will positively impact your business.

4. Items that are not important and are not urgent yield no value to your objectives. They are time wasters for you and should be eliminated when possible.

Here are some other things you can do to help you in your time management journey.

• Utilize first-class software such as iClassPro to help manage your business tasks. As the world's leading class management software for activity centers, iClassPro class management software has everything you need to run your business like a Pro. Features include easy online registration, sophisticated skill tracking, a smart point of sale system, a personalized branded app, convenient automated billing, and so much more! Learn more about iClassPro.

• Question if an activity brings your closer to your goals. Consider the four statements above and categorize your to-dos.

• Prioritize tasks that bring you closer to your goals versus functions that do not.

• Plan ahead and as far in advance as possible. The more you can live in this space, the fewer distractions you will have.

• Always sort your to-do list; this will help you identify what needs your attention, what can wait and what you can delegate to someone else.

Good luck and happy planning!