What is time management?

Combining time management and productivity brings a series of benefits to the employee, helping him to balance his daily activities in a fluid way and avoiding work overload.

Time management and productivity are subjects that are closely associated in everyday work. The relationship between these two factors is seen as essential for a positive outcome, as everyone expects project deliverables to align with proposed planning solutions and team workflow.

Achieving an ideal level between time management and productivity adds benefits to employees, who will find an adequate level of efficiency to carry out their activities smoothly, without having to fight deadlines or work overload .

In this article, we will explain the importance of managing time to improve productivity and what are the techniques and tools that help in achieving a balanced and healthy income.

We often hear that time organization is the secret so that our routine flows naturally and daily tasks don’t get accumulated on the agenda.

For this to happen, we carry out time management , a practice that consists of planning and measuring the stipulated deadlines for the execution of each task.

Good time and productivity management is about setting priorities, that is, defining what are the most important and urgent actions that need to be done on that desired day or period. 

Listing priorities also includes personal commitments, focused on self-care or relationship with the family, as well as rest breaks and even those unforeseen events that can impact your calendar.

In order for time and productivity management to be effective, different methods are recommended, which are relatively simple, such as prioritization matrices and a task manager to save time, such as Runrun.it , which has an automatic timesheet that counts all the hours applied to a project.

The concept of productivity 

We understand productivity as the result between what is produced, the time used and the resources invested in this entire process. 

In theory, this account seems to be quite accurate, but in work routines, we realize that there are other factors that say whether an employee is effective or not.

For example, there is a comparison between quantitative and qualitative performance. While the first delivers a greater number of solutions, the second values ​​care in the smallest details in each activity.

However, this does not mean that the two criteria are opposites. These characteristics must be aggregated in the same production cycle so that the delivery of projects is always positive.

To control processes and establish performance evaluations in a clear and fair way, a leader can use productivity indicators as a parameter for identifying opportunities or failures within his company.

For this, it is essential to map the data of the company’s current scenario, define short and long-term goals with transparency, involve employees in strategic planning and rely on technological resources, which will make it easier to measure productivity.

1-A new look at productivity

Despite being so desired, productivity is sometimes used as a parameter that is difficult to reach, especially when there is a requirement to meet large goals in a short period of time.

Therefore, it is necessary to be alert to the recurring charge for productivity . It is necessary to understand that each employee has a different capacity and this must be respected, to avoid harm, such as stress and burnout syndrome .

The changes in time management and productivity refer to a more humanized look at teams, so that they work in a space that offers assistance for any doubts and balance in the distribution of tasks.

At the same time that we can replace the term control with monitoring (in concept and in practice), productivity itself has undergone a revitalization.

Currently, productivity 4.0 has been gaining ground in the corporate environment, showing that it is possible to achieve results by combining technology, knowledge and the use of agile methods , which promote more dynamic and efficient creative cycles.

Time management and productivity: habits to put into practice

Good time and productivity management means that activities are carried out in the order of the demands provided for in a project schedule, so that interdependent tasks do not paralyze the workflow , creating time bottlenecks, which consequently generates the dreaded delays. .

To prevent this from happening, we list some actions that favor the personal organization of priorities and stimulate individual and collective performance within a company. Check out!

1-plan your day

You can create a checklist and write down all the activities planned for your hours at work. That way, you can establish a productive and efficient sequence.

It is also important to schedule breaks during working hours. Occasionally you will need a break to regain energy or even resolve an unforeseen event.

2-avoid distractions

According to a survey by the Rescue Time app, we check our email 55 times a day. If you’re talking about smartphone notifications, that number exceeds 70 times.

These small interruptions cut the concentration , which takes time to resume. Therefore, creating an environment that stimulates focus is essential to be able to make your deliveries.

So, silence notifications and set aside unique moments to check and reply to messages.

3-Use the Pareto technique

This method proposes that 80% of your success comes from 20% of your activities . Find out what that 20% means in your routine.

That is, prioritize the most strategic tasks, which have the most impact for your company, and dedicate more time to them ― both to execute them and to think of ways to improve them.

4-delegate tasks

Perhaps it is a characteristic of you that you prefer to personally take care of each step of the processes. However, care must be taken to ensure that supervision does not become micromanagement.

By distributing tasks, you unburden your schedule and still encourage autonomy and self-confidence in the team.

5-Set goals and deadlines

Having where to go and what to achieve is essential for time management and productivity. This simple formalization helps to achieve goals more visibly and favors total focus on the main activity.

6-Practice self care

In work models such as the home office, we often put our well-being aside at the expense of productivity.

But to achieve it, your body and mind need to be in tune. So, dedicating time to your health, exercising, taking care of food and reserving a moment for leisure brings benefits to the professional side.

Tools to manage time and productivity 

We have already mentioned here that time management and productivity go hand in hand and even more so nowadays, in which we have access to complete and automated tools that favor agile management and gain in results.

A management software like Runrun.it provides users with complete features that make their day-to-day work easier.

From task organization to project cost management, the platform has essential resources for time management, such as real-time monitoring of activities through an interactive dashboard, measurement of the number of hours needed to deliver each process , as well as custom reports based on your metrics.

With a simple and functional interface, the tool favors the exchange of information and messages between teams and external users , facilitating the approval of materials together with customers and more assertive decision making.