Staying focused and productive in the workplace can be a real challenge. Distractions; procrastination; changing priorities — all of these can easily derail even the most dedicated worker.
It’s easy to see how prevalent the problem is just by searching for “time management” on the Internet to see how many self-help articles pop up. Oh wait, that’s part of the problem! Today’s always-connected workforce has a universe of distractions at their fingertips.
Ironically, a recent informal survey asked people to share their favorite time management and productivity tips … on Facebook. Americans are estimated to spend an excess of 40 minutes per day on that one social networking site alone.
So how can you help your staff better manage their time to stay focused on goals, work smarter and achieve success?
Going with the flow
Time is like a river; it just keeps on flowing, turbulent with distractions and shifting priorities. Without effective time management skills, constantly changing objectives can be overwhelming, leaving us feeling out of control. We easily get off course, both personally and professionally.
Yet while it might seem easier to just go with the flow, it’s much more rewarding to chart your own course. We need to spend more time making sure that our compass is set straight and points toward the things that are important to us in our lives and our careers.
Many office professionals find the majority of their workday is spent responding to multiple interruptions and putting out fires. As a result, they aren’t able to meet their own objectives or the corporate goals they’ve been tasked to complete, leaving both the employee and management unhappy.
Better time management at the office requires the ability to proactively manage time in a way that allows employees to focus on corporate objectives and deadlines more efficiently. At Fathom, we achieve this by helping workers understand how their own behavior contributes to poor time management.
The Fathom Time Management Training workshop uses a time management audit to help employees understand where their time is actually being spent, and teaches them how to navigate around distractions to work smarter. Participants learn to establish long and short-term goals that meet both work and personal objectives.
By equipping employees with the skills needed to proactively manage their time for a more productive workday, we help them chart a course for sustained success.
How can your office benefit from greater productivity?
John Males is Founder and President of Fathom Corporate Training. With more than 20 years of experience in management, sales and negotiations, he helps clients increase employee satisfaction, lower turnover, increase revenue and raise profit margins.
