Learning Time Management
August, 2018
In the early years of my career I did not plan my work and never had the freedom to. There always seemed to be a fire that needed to be put out. I was typically handed a set of red-lines (markups) from my manager and told “Hey get these done for me by lunch-time. I have a submittal this afternoon!”
The red-lines were self-explanatory although I did occasionally ask stupid questions. Usually I asked questions without thinking for myself. That is what made them stupid. This typically frustrated my manager. I’ll explain how to ask better questions in the future.
Learning by red-lines is the best method for a new engineer. It required no planning of my time. No work breakdowns. No budgeting. Just getting things done as accurately and as quickly as you can. I got a clear set of instructions on paper with a clear goal on what it should look like at the end. If you’ve had the fortune of learning like this: Excellent, you’re on your way to becoming a good engineer. If not, seek opportunities to learn this way. You will become an accurate decision maker from this type of practice.
Later in your career, you’ll need to learn how to plan your work and allocate your time. This takes a deliberate method. You will need to follow these steps:
- Recording where you spend your time.
- Cutting out unproductive uses of your time.
- Consolidating your time into continuous units.
Record your time for two to five days in ½ hour blocks. Print out a Personal Time Sheet (this one is for your personal record, not to be shared) and keep several sheets with your journal. Be honest with your recording. Coffee breaks, fantasy football talk and non-work related time should be recorded. The sheet should cover from 4am to 11pm (or whatever your full day looks like). The time you devote to things outside of work (gym, TV, sports) should also be tracked.
Next, cut out the unproductive uses of your time. Fantasy football talks can go. Internet time not spent increasing your knowledge of the industry minimized. You’ll likely find that you spend less time productively than you think.
Lastly, consolidate your time into continuous units. This is the process of batching your task. If you spend time going back and forth between emails, invoicing, PM reporting, or other task then you’re wasting your attention. Batch similar task. Respond to emails twice a day, lunch-time and afternoon. Do cognitive work when your mind is most able. You’ll need to know how your energy levels fluctuate. Also, schedule time to wind down. Maybe after all the day’s work is done you can do the fantasy football talk or check out the day’s news.
Action Item: Print out a Personal Time Sheet. Record, manage and consolidate your time.