Waste of Time?
7 Ways Time Management
Can Improve Your
Work Performance
Your interactions with others consume as much time, if not
more, than any other part of your day. You can eliminate waste of time by
learning time management strategies that can help you build more efficient
interaction with others. You can also maximize work performance by improving
the quality of your communications.
Miscommunication is a Waste of
Time
A major waste of time is caused by misunderstandings between
people about roles, goals, and responsibilities. People do not know what they
are expected to do, how to do it, and by what time.
Misunderstandings
lead to inefficiencies, anger, frustration, and unhappiness. It often requires
an enormous amount of time to clear up a misunderstanding and get matters back
to normal.
Most of your problems in life talk back. They come with hair
on top. Perhaps 85 percent of your happiness, or unhappiness, in life involves
other people in some way. Miscommunications with other people can create a major
waste of time and
lower work performance, but this can easily be fixed through
proper time management.
Unclear Priorities and Work
Performance
Misunderstandings
about priorities often lead to your working at the wrong job, at the wrong
time, for the wrong reason, and perhaps aiming at the wrong level of quality.
Or the problem may be that you are working for the wrong person.
The single most
important cause of high levels of motivation in work for increased work
performance is defined as “knowing exactly what is expected.” On the other
hand, the number-one complaint, or demotivator, of employees is to “not know
what is expected.”
In order to eliminate waste of time and increase work performance,
you need absolute clarity about your job and what you are expected to do. You
need clarity with regard to results required and standards of performance. You
need clarity with regard to schedules and deadlines. You need clarity with
regard to the rewards for doing a good job and the consequences of failing to
do good work. If you are serious about improving your time management,
clarity is everything.
Ineffective Delegation and Poor
Time Management
Poor delegation to
others, or from others, leads to mistakes and frustration on the part of both
the boss and the employee. It is a major waste of time and a good time
management technique to work on.
One of the rules for success in life and work is to “assume
the best intentions of everyone.” You can generally assume that each person
does the very best he can at the job he thinks he is supposed to do. But poor
delegation causes even the most sincere talented people to have poor work performance or the wrong jobs. Therefore, they end
up feeling frustrated and unhappy.
Unclear Lines of Authority
Unclear lines of authority and responsibility leads to waste of time.
People do not know who is supposed to do what job, when is it be done, and to
what standard of quality. People are left to wonder, who is supposed to report
to whom? Who’s in charge? Who’s the boss?
Incomplete Information
Another major waste
of time in business is poor or incomplete information, which leads to erroneous
assumptions and conclusions that decrease work performance. It is amazing how
often people jump to conclusions or make false assumptions on the basis of
wrong information.
The very best
managers take the time to ask questions, and they listen carefully to the
answers before they make a decision. If there is a key piece of information
that suggests a problem or difficulty, they double-check on this piece of
information to make sure that it is accurate.
Aimless or Too Frequent
Meetings
Too many meetings,
or aimless meetings that proceed without an agenda, direction, or closure, are
an enormous waste of time at work. These are meetings that start and stop
without any particular resolution. No problems are solved, no decisions are
made, and no responsibilities are assigned. No deadlines are agreed upon for
action.
Lack of Clarity Concerning
One’s Job
Lack of information
or unclear communications on important matters affecting a person’s work can
create a major waste of time. In one survey on employee motivation and work
performance, the best companies were defined as places where each person felt
that he was an insider and “in the know” about what was going on in the
company. The worst places to work were described as those where no one was sure
about what was really going on. In this type of situation, people were unclear
about their responsibilities, unsure about their jobs, and cautious about
taking any risks. When people don’t know what is going on, it leads to
demotivation, poor work performance, lack of time management, and “playing it
safe.”
People need to know
everything that is happening in the company that affects their particular jobs.
The very best companies are open and honest with all employees concerning those
matters affecting the health of the company.
Employees need to
know what is going on and how their jobs fit into the big picture. When
employees are unclear or unsure, an enormous amount of time is lost as the
result of conversations, discussions, and gossip, which lead to ineffective
work behaviors and poor work performance.
I hope you enjoyed
this article about increasing work performance and time management to eliminate
waste of time.
