Self Improvement Zone: Managers Just As Guilty of Poor Time ...

In ? previous article ab?ut time management, I wrote ?bout h?w m?n? employees fail t? pay attention to the amount of time they waste at work and h?w th?s affects their productivity. Yet not m?ny employees w?uld ??nsider them?elves a time thief. Well, the sam? comment applies t? managers. In fact, many managers ?an make th? lives ?f th?ir employees miserable when ?t ?om?s t? time management.

On on? hand, managers with poor time management may talk ?bout th? need f?r higher productivity, ??t their own work style prevents ?r blocks th?ir employees fr?m be?ng productive. In some cases, th?s? managers confuse activity for productivity ?nd accomplishment. In reality, they ?r? simply engaged in pointless busyness. If y?u asked ?n? ?f the?e managers ?b?ut th?ir productivity, th?? w?uld quickly provide excuses b? ?a??ng that they have multiple demands, t?? m?ny ?r not enough staff for delegation, ?r n?t enough money.

And unfortunately, in s?me cases, the? w?ll blame th??r staff.

If th? truth be known, most ?f th? managers with poor time-management skills have ? number of personality ?nd leadership faults that lead to ? colossal waste ?f time and energy ?nd ?au?e great frustration f?r their employees. Some of the?? faults ?r traits include the following:

Indecision -- There i? n?thing more frustrating th?n hav?ng a boss wh? i?n't sur? ?f h?m?elf ?r h?r??lf with respect t? making ? decision. This leads t? on? decision b?ing made today and th? decision b?ing reversed tomorrow. Often ?n employee will begin the?r assignment ?nd upon presenting th? results, th? manager will state, "That ?sn't wh?t I wanted." A shock t? th? employee t? s?y the least.

Procrastination -- I d?n't kn?w what ?? worse, indecision or procrastination. I hav? se?n managers procrastinate for f?v? or ?ix months ?n important decisions, wh?ch th?n caused a crisis and/or ? missed opportunity. Employees n??d t? be tasked w?th work within reasonable time frames. When they a?k ? question and/or ??k for guidance, the? need ?n answer. Procrastinating on ? decision until ?t reaches a crisis puts ev?r?one in a frenzy, work need? t? b? put ?s?de t? deal w?th th? crisis ?nd more than likely, th? work ?? not u? to the best standards.

Meetings, meetings, bloody meetings -- This is a common complaint, es??c??ll? from employees wh? ?re called to ? meeting but don't reall? ne?d t? be there. Other complaints include to? m?n? meetings, meetings th?t ?r? too long ?nd meetings that ?ren't ?v?n necessary. Not only that, some managers call ? meeting ?nd then arrive late w?th?ut an agenda. An incredible waste of time!

Unrealistic time estimates -- As y?u might expect, a manager with poor time-management skills will undoubtedly make unrealistic time estimates for work. Quite frequently, this results in ?n underestimation ?f th? time required to complete ? job. Strange that the?e managers feel th?r? ?? n?t en?ugh time t? d? ?t right. Not ?nly that, th?? don't learn fr?m past projects. Once again, pushing employees to speed up their work onl? leads to substandard work.

Micromanaging -- Micromanagers hav? ? difficult time w?th delegation and so they stand ?ver the shoulder of th??r employees ev?r? step of th? way. Not ?nl? ?s th?? ? great time waster, ?t irritates th? employees ?nd c?us?? frustration that affects personal productivity. As well, the manager i? not developing staff. Should th? manager b? absent, no decisions are made ?nd work grinds to ? halt.

Implementation without good planning -- Some managers ?re ?? gung ho about implementing ? project th?t they forget t? engage in analyzing the problem ?nd effective planning beforehand. They don't examine th? risks, th? ch?ng?? required ?r develop contingency plans. As well, they ?ften d?n't include th? r?ght people when they do their planning. The result ?s a waste ?f time ?s often tasks mu?t b? d?n? ?v?r again.

Failing t? delegate -- Most managers with poor time-management skills frequently fail t? effectively delegate work to th??r employees. Employees n??d to be g?v?n wh?l? jobs that the? ?an complete from start t? finish without interruption. The tasks need t? be fully explained and be w?thin th? skill level ?f the employee.

Avoiding a "to do" list -- While ? paper-based t? do list ?r checklist m?? seem outdated, th?r? are man? managers who ?re n?t u?ing their computer day timer and task list to th?ir advantage. Thus, their efforts are scattered ?nd th?y forget tasks th?t needed t? be done. This creates a frenzied environment, for sure.

Lack of priorities -- Most managers engage in strategic planning for the?r own department and ?ls? participate ?n planning f?r the larger organization. However, poor managers fail to l??k at th? planning results ?g?in ?nd fail t? set specific, measurable goals f?r th?ir work. Changing priorities ever? day drives ?our employees crazy and wh?l? th?r? i? frenzied activity, not mu?h ?s accomplished.

Pointless conversations -- While managing b? walking ?round h?? it? merits, stopping t? engage ?n pointless conversations w?th employees that ar? m?re socializing th?n work ?s n?th?ng more than a waste ?f time. Keep your visits ?nd conversations short ?nd t? the point if you want th?s? tasks completed.

The issue ?f wasting time at work ?? growing ?s concerns ab?ut th? lack ?f productivity continue t? arise. Just imagine the impact on an organization if ea?h and ?very employee wastes at lea?t tw? hours per day, Yet, whil? managers struggle with how t? help their employees b??om? mor? efficient ?nd productive, they n??d to stop ?nd engage ?n ? l?ttl? bit ?f self-examination. Managers ar? often th? problem.

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