Time Management Training

Time management training is essential for executives, managers, and supervisors in order to have their employees equipped with the skills needed to manage their time effectively. Skills for managing time well are critical in today's workplace where employees are often juggling multiple tasks at once. Employees and supervisors alike are getting pulled in multiple directions at once, with ongoing to-do lists, wondering what should take priority and where their time is most effectively spent.

Training for time management can help your leaders and team members to be able to prioritize work so that they can get the most important things done first. What is considered "most important" may vary from person to person, and depend upon their job title, department, or the deadline they're working on. The goal is to help your teams understand how to best approach tasks and projects while focusing on making the most effective use of their time.

This post will help you incorporate some beneficial ways to help your supervisors and team members to effectively manage their time and increase productivity in a world where it feels there just isn't enough time in the day. 

corporate time management training

3 Easy Ways to Improve Poor Time Management and Increase Productivity

Prioritize Tasks

The most obvious, but sometimes undervalued, way to improve time management is to prioritize tasks in a sort of to-do list. Each of your team members can create a daily (or weekly) tasks list and accomplish things by prioritizing by the due date, importance, or whatever is most critical. Make it a goal to accomplish the hardest tasks first, which makes sure that the most important is out of the way and done before any distractions can sidetrack you before you complete it. This is also known as "eating the frog" -- a concept created by author and speaker Brian Tracy, to stop procrastinating the most difficult tasks and decreasing your productivity. "Eat the frog" is a great way to help your employees stop procrastinating and get the most important tasks out of the way first! 

If you're not sure how to prioritize tasks, you can use the ABCDE method, also created by Brian Tracy and shared in his 2017 book, "Eat That Frog! 21 Great Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Done in Less Time" Tracy suggests using this ABCDE method, where you attribute a letter to each one of your tasks.

  • A for tasks that are the absolute most important. There can be serious consequences if you fail to complete this on time. This is your "frog" for the day.
  • B for important tasks which also have consequences, and still need to be completed, but not as dire - also referred to as "tadpoles."
  • C for tasks which should still be completed, but do not have any real consequences if you do not get them done.
  • D for tasks that you can delegate in order to free up some time.
  • E for tasks that can be eliminated from your day.

Minimize Distractions

Again, what may seem like an obvious way to improve time management, minimizing your daily distractions, can actually be significantly hindering your performance. What is the time-cost of constantly checking your emails or messages when you should be concentrated on an important task? It may seem insignificant, but if you are regularly checking the notifications on your phone, or popping over to the email browser tab every time you hear that bell, it could be really putting a damper on the amount of work you're completing in a day. 

A study from the University of California-Irvine showed that when you're actively engaged in an activity/working on a task, and allow a distraction (such as checking your emails) to take away your attention, it may take upwards of 20 minutes to get back to the task at hand and fully regain your momentum. If you consider how many times you may be checking notifications in a day, this can significantly reduce your ability to effectively manage time. Put your phone away, and close your emails for a few hours. Make it a point to only check twice a day -- and advise your leaders and team members to do the same -- and see how profound the impacts are on your teams' productivity.

Stay in Communication With Your Team

Above all else, regular communication and feedback between leaders and team members is critical to completing tasks in a timely manner and overall shared organizational goals. Not only does regular communication help you to know when your teams are struggling and where they need help, but it also helps supervisors understand where to better prioritize and where to direct extra attention and/or resources should the situation require it.

Of course, this isn't an exhaustive list of tips to take to effectively manage time and improve skills in your organization. You can read all the tips and tricks to help your team members, but ultimately you may need to address it head-on and implement a training for time management that team members at all levels can benefit from! This can lead to increased productivity for the entire organization and therefore, overall business success.

time management skills

Invest in Time Management Training

Time management training teaches people how to deal with interruptions more efficiently by giving them tools for handling distractions without getting sidetracked from their current tasks. Time management skills are truly essential for employees at every level to be successful in the workplace. When team members are skilled in effective time management, it makes everyone's job easier and allows the company to run more smoothly. Training is a worthwhile investment for any organization. 

If you're looking for a way to improve your team's time management skills, consider investing in a training to do so. Training for time management can help employees learn how to better manage their time so that they can be more productive at work. It can help them to reduce stress, gain control of their day, and work smarter. This type of training teaches people how to set goals, prioritize tasks, and stay on track even when faced with distractions. Training to improve poor time management can help employees to become more efficient and organized, which can lead to better results for the company.

Time Management Training Works

With time management skills, team members can regain control of their own productivity and get more done in less time. Improving your team's time management skills through a developed training can help them to be more productive and efficient when it comes to handling multiple priorities, and stay organized while using time wisely. Time management isn't a skill that everyone is born with, it needs to be learned and practiced. It helps your team members have an effective work-life balance, because they can focus on the most important things in their professional life, allowing them to truly decompress after work is done. Time management is essential for stress management, because when you can effectively manage your time, you're less likely to feel overwhelmed. 

Effective training can help employees learn how to better manage their time so that they can stay focused on the highest-priority tasks at hand. Time management is one of the most important skills an employee can have in today's workplace. When team members have good time management skills, it makes the supervisor's job easier and allows the company to run more smoothly. The right kind of training is a worthwhile investment for any organization.

Time Management: The Power of Prioritizing

In this lesson, A Better Leader will help your leaders understand the benefits of prioritizing! This lesson highlights two key methods of prioritizing and provides tips to stay focused and have less stress at work. Also, we'll help your leaders take a look at how they can handle unexpected entries on their "to-do" list, especially with multiple priorities! 

Here's what your leaders will come away with when they complete  "Time Management" training :

  • How time management puts them in control of their workday and how it can benefit their team members
  • Two methods your leaders can use to prioritize their workload
  • Smart ways to keep things on-task and on-time

If your organization is in need of effective time management training that inspires your leaders to prioritize their workload while engaging team members, look no further. We're here to help! You can chat with our team of experts, and even discuss a custom eLearning solution for any other unique issues your workplace may be facing. We can't wait to help you move your organization forward.

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About the Author Walter Orechwa

Walter is Director of IRI's Digital Workplace Solutions Group, and the founder of A Better Leader. Walter provides expert advice, highly effective employee communication resources and ongoing learning opportunities for Human Resources and Labor Relations professionals.