It’s better to revise your Action Plan after the work is
complete, by changing anything that could have
gone better. Perhaps you could
have avoided a last-minute panic if you''d alerted a supplier in advance about
when and approximately what size of order you would be placing. Or maybe
colleagues would have been able to follow up on the impact of your newsletter
on
clients if you have communicated with them about when it would be hitting
clients'' desks.
Activity facilitates you to analyze how you actually spend your
time. The first time you use an activity log you may be shocked to see the
amount of time that you waste! Memory is a very poor guide when it comes to
this, as it can be too easy to forget time spent on non-core tasks.
Get ready with an effective action
plan. This helps you think about what you need to do to achieve that thing, so
that you can get help where you need it and monitor your progress.
To draw up an Action Plan, simply list the
tasks that you need to carry out to achieve your goal, in the order that you
need to
complete them. This is very simple, but is still very useful!
Keep the Action Plan by you as you
carry out the work and update it as you go along with any additional activities
that come up.
If you think you''ll be trying to
achieve a similar goal again, revise your Action Plan after the work is
complete, by changing anything that could have gone better. Perhaps you could
have avoided a last-minute panic if you''d alerted a supplier in advance about
when and approximately what size of order you would be placing. Or maybe
colleagues would have been able to follow up on the impact of your newsletter
on clients if you have communicated with them about when it would be hitting
clients'' desks.
Scheduling is best done on a regular basis, for
example at the start of every week or month. Go through the following steps in
preparing your schedule:
Begin by identifying the time you want to make available for
your work. This will depend on the design of your job and on your personal
goals in life.Next, block in the actions you absolutely must take to do a
good job. These will often be the things you are assessed against.
To set an example, if you manage people, then you must make time available
for dealing with issues that arise, coaching, and supervision. Similarly,
you must allow time to communicate with your boss and key people around
you. (While people may let you get away with ''neglecting them'' in the
short-term, your best time management efforts will surely be derailed if
you do not set aside time for those who are important in your life.)
Write your abstract here.