Time management is the one thing that will make or break a person in terms of their career. How do you think CEOs become CEOs? Do you think that they were bad at managing their time? The chances are that these were the people who were extremely detail oriented and who knew exactly how to manage their time.
Time management is important because it is where we determine the balance of work versus personal space in our lives. An example of someone who manages their time well is someone who sets aside a specific time frame in which to do their work versus not. So, you might go to work from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and when you get home, you might get changed and take a shower before you settle in for the night to do something with your significant other such as cook dinner together, watch a movie, play a game or just talk.
Nowhere is time management more important than for those of us who work from home. When you work from home, it is purely up to you to make sure that you get all of your work done within a certain amount of time. In fact, there may be more work assigned to you, or if you own your own business, you may have to deal with potential client calls as well as impromptu phone conferences and meetings out of the house. How are you supposed to keep up with all of this and know when to pick your kids up from school or take the dog to the vet if you don t have a system in place for organizing your time?
There are also other examples of bad time management. For example, poor time management skills may manifest itself in the form of someone who does nothing but work. Workaholics are becoming increasingly common in this day and age because of the economic downturn. Additionally, many people are trying to pay of debts that they owe while others simply want to earn as much money as they can. The problem with this is that when you are a part of the working world, you have to have a balance in your life. Your life cannot be all about work because eventually, it will burn you out and make you a less valued employee. Many people, however, have trouble prying themselves away from their jobs, and this is incredibly true for those who work from home because unlike other people who go into an office, when you work from home, you cannot “leave” your work at the office.
Part of being disciplined and managing your time well is knowing when to step away from your computer. In this day and age, however, doing this is difficult because there are so many things that we do on our computers that it is extremely tempting to check and respond to an email related to work. We also have cell phones that send us emails from our workplace or constantly remind us of work. Despite all of this, we need to learn how to find a balance between work and our personal lives if we are to ever manage our time well.