Creative Time Management for the New Millenium

Click cover to enlarge.

By: Jan Yager

188926220X $19.95 trade paper retai list price

1889262153 $28.95 HC retail list price

Based on an original survey of 236 men and women, this practical guide to taking control of your time includes the 7 principles of creative time management as well as how to get organized, 125 top tips, work and leisure time concerns, overcoming the top emotional blocks to time management, and how to find your "hidden" time.

Detailed Information

1.  Creative Time Management: An Introduction    1
2.  The 7 Principles Of Creative Time Management;  10
3.  Overcoming 10 Key Obstacles To Managing Your Time;  14
4.  Emotional Blocks To Time Management   31
5.  Becoming Organized And More Effective   61
6.  Improving Your Time At Work   85
7.  Applying Time Management   117
8.  Improving Your Personal Time Management   143
9.  125 Top Time-Saving Ideas    164

Selected Bibliography 175

Index 159

About The Author 182

Articles

"Let Time Management Work for Your Career" by Jan Yager
All rights reserved. Do not duplicate without permission.

Career advancement isn’t just about doing the right thing to get ahead. It’s also about doing it faster and better than others. Effective time management can give you an edge. Consider Sue Trizila, president and chief operating officer of Wyndam Jade, an incentive and meeting services company in Plano, Texas. She knows managing time well has contributed to her success. In the past five years, her company has grown in annual sales to $180 million from $23 million and to more than 200 employees from 26. Says Ms. Trizila, "People who really succeed in a business appreciate the importance of managing their own time and have a sensitivity to managing the time of those who work for them, as well as managing the time of clients." The basics of time management concepts are simple and easy to apply to any career advancement strategy. They include:

• setting priorities;
• taking a long-term view;
• planning your time daily;
• taking time to organize; and
• maintaining a sound mind and body.

Doing the Right Thing

Time management offers you skills and tools to decide what’s the best use of your time right now so you’ll be more likely to be doing the right thing for your job and your career. How do you guard against the myriad of interruptions and distractions that can throw you off course? The first step is having clear long-term and short-term goals and prioritizing what you need to do to achieve them.

"Look at your list of priorities," says Tom Bay, a time-management consultant in Newport Beach, Calif. There’s always more things to do than there is time to do them in, he says. "Demands have gone up dramatically -- the amount of things we’re obligated to do -- especially in the last 10 years, but there’s still only 1,440 minutes in a day. That doesn’t change."

Mr. Bay, a former consultant for Franklin Covey Co. Inc., a time-management consulting firm in Salt Lake City, recommends designating tasks you simply must do as double AA priorities. If you have 10 or 15 items on your to-do list, choose three to five that are truly double AA priorities. "Invest your time in those [priorities] that will give you the best ROI -- return on investment," he says.

Take the Long View

When making decisions about how to spend your time, weigh the short-term benefits against the long-term ones. Choices made for the long-term often lead to a greater payoff. Tom Ferrara, when he was the 29-year-old president and CEO of CareerEngine.com, an independent network of category-specific career sites, said that a mistake people his age often make is chasing money rather than opportunity. "I could have, at any time, taken a sales job and made more money than starting up a new business," he said. "If I was just after the money, I’d have chosen a path other than the one I chose, which was more time consuming and more stressful." But, he said, the career experiences and satisfaction of building a business from the ground up far outweighed the short-term financial benefits of working for someone else. Like Tom, when you consider about what you want to do, think ahead about what will be best for you in the long run.

Daily Focus Time

Call it quiet time, planning time or focus time. Make time to prepare for the coming day. Tom Bay, author of Change Your Attitude: Creating Success One Thought at a Time (Career Press, 1998), says, "Get focused either at the end of the day for tomorrow or at the beginning of the day for that same day. You’ve got to take time in the morning to really get yourself organized."

Take up to 15 minutes to focus on what you have to do and the time you have to do it in. "Instead of just charging ahead, as so many seem to do, in a reactive mode, you’re carefully considering all the possibilities and actively planning the steps you will take," says Mr. Bay. This will help make sure you plan to do the right thing.

Upgrade Time

Being organized also will save you time. While you need to concentrate on your high-priority tasks, you won’t be able to find those crucial documents and papers you need to work on if you’re disorganized. Budget time for organizing. It could be just an hour every day, week or month or even just 15 minutes, whatever suits your workstyle and schedule.

Consider fitting an upgrade day into your schedule. This will motivate you to learn finally the software you’ve been using but never really understood, or experiment with new equipment that could multiply your productivity tenfold. Use this time to take a seminar, hire a consultant or attend a trade show. The time and energy you devote to upgrading skills and equipment will work to boost your career.

Sound Mind, Sound Body

You may be thinking, "But I don’t have time to exercise," or "I don’t have time for lunch." Think again, if you want to maximize your efficiency and advance your career in the long run. Taking some time to exercise, even if it means taking the stairs instead of the elevator or parking your car a little further from the door, will increase your daily productivity as it improves your fitness and stamina.

Links of Interest

National Association of Professional Organizers
http://www.napo.net
National association of professional organizers offering referrals to local members as well as training for organizers. Sponsors an annual conference with educational workshops and networking opportunities.

Online Organizing.com
http://www.onlineorganizing.com
Maryland-based organizing bookstore and resource site with links for both the general public needing information on getting organized, or the services of an organizer, as well as for professional organizers. Developed and maintained by Ramona Creel.

About the Author

Jan Yager

Jan Yager, Ph.D. (the former J.L./Janet Barkas) is a writer, sociologist, consultant, professional speaker, artist, and publishing entrepreneur whose areas of expertise include relationships and business issues including time management and work relationships. Jan's first book published by Hannacroix Creek Books, Inc., Friendshifts®, based on fifteen years of original friendship research, led to interviews on The Oprah Winfrey Show, The Today Show, The View , National Public Radio, and other programs. Other books include When Friendship Hurts (published by Simon & Schuster, Inc.) as well as two career books by Facts on File, Inc. A prolific writer of fiction as well as nonfiction whose books have been translated into 14 languages, she is co-author of two suspense thrillers, Untimely Death and Just Your Everyday People. For more information, go to: www.drjanyager.com.

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Media Kit

To book Jan Yager for a TV, radio, or print interview, or for an author event at a bookstore or library, send an e-mail to the publicity department at Hannacroix Creek Books: publicity@hannacroixcreekbooks.com or fax (203) 968-0193

For speaker inquiries, contact your favorite speaker bureau or you may also send an e-mail directly to Jan Yager: jan@hannacroixcreekbooks.com

If you are a member of the media, here is a press release and sample interview questions.

Creative Time Management for the New Millennium

NEW BUSINESS BOOK SHOWS HOW TO ENHANCE PRODUCTIVITY, REDUCE STRESS, AND CREATIVELY MANAGE TIME

In today’s hectic world, especially at the dawn of the new millennium, making more productive use of time is key. In her new book, Creative Time Management for the New Millennium, workplace consultant and sociologist Dr. Jan Yager offers concrete help in clarifying priorities and applying proven time-saving techniques to achieve an ideal balance among work, family, personal, and leisure concerns. The new book is based on her extensive research including an original workplace survey of 234 working men and women, as well as the seminars she has conducted since her first time management book, Creative Time Management, was published by Prentice Hall Inc. in 1984 (Japanese edition, 1991). A Literary Guild featured alternate selection, here are highlights of the intriguing findings of speaker and time management consultant Dr. Yager’s new research, as discussed in Creative Time Management for the New Millennium:

• the #1 time waster at work is “doing too much at once” (33%) not procrastination, usually considered the biggest time problem, which was a very distant second (8%) virtually tied with the 3rd, 4th, and 5th reasons -- an inability to say “no,” paperwork, and perfectionism.

• collectively these men and women waste 118.5 hours, or almost 3 full work weeks, searching for something each day. The #1 reason for the search is trying to find a telephone number or an address on a piece of paper (27%).

• A vast majority (52%) said the personal computer was the #1 technological advance in the last decade to help them save time. A distant second was the fax machine (16%) followed by E-mail (12%) (with the microwave as #4 and the cell phone is #5).

• Workaholism is usually a symptom of poor time management.

Says Dr. Yager: “We recreate externally the chaos we feel internally.” Her chapter on “Emotional Blocks to Time Management” offers practical understanding for overcoming emotional blocks that contribute to internal chaos such as fears or success or failure, boredom, guilt, jealousy, perfectionism, and impatience.

Continues Dr. Yager: “I have observed that the number one problem most men and women have in effectively managing their time is that they underestimate how long a task will take thereby initially setting an unrealistic deadline. As they miss the first deadline, and subsequently reschedule a new one, additional projects either pile up and get postponed or, when they try to do it all simultaneously, they fall into the ‘doing too many things at once’ trap.”

What other behavior is a red flag that time is being misused or wasted? Says Dr. Yager, “Failing to follow up because someone has waited so long he or she is too embarrassed to make that phone call, write that letter, set up that meeting, or send along the article, report, or information that was promised. However, in most cases, the adage, ‘Better late than never,’ usually applies. These belated follow-ups have to be handled tactfully, however. You wouldn’t want to start off your letter, or phone call, with the words, “Sorry it’s taken eight months to get back to you.’”

Another valuable original contribution in this book are Dr. Yager’s 7 principles of creative time management, doctrines she practices everyday that enable her to handle the multiple demands of her roles as wife, mother to two schoolage sons, entrepreneur, speaker, consultant, and author, while still finding time for friends and fun:

The 7 Principles of Creative Time Management by Dr. Jan Yager

1. Be active, not reactive.
2. Set goals.
3. Prioritize actions.
4. Keep your focus.
5. Create realistic deadlines.
6. D-O I-T N-O-W.

D – Divide and conquer what you have to do.

O –Organize your materials, how you will do it.

I – Ignore interruptions that are annoying distractions.

T – Take time to learn how to do things yourself.

N – Now, not tomorrow. Don’t procrastinate.

O – Opportunity is knocking. Take advantage of opportunities.

W– Watch out for time gobblers. Keep track of, and take control of, how much time you spend on the Internet, reading and sending E-mails, watching TV, or talking on the phone.

7. Balance your life.

Sample Interview Questions

CREATIVE TIME MANAGEMENT FOR THE NEW MILLENNIUM by Dr. Jan Yager

1. What are the most notable changes in the way men and women handle time between your initial study of time management, for your first book, Creative Time Management (Prentice Hall, 1984) and this new book, Creative Time Management for the New Millennium? (Hannacroix Creek Books, 1999)?
2. What’s the difference between creative time management and time management?
3. In your original study of 234 working men and women, what was the #1 time waster?
4. What are the top 5 time wasters? What are the possible causes? Suggested solutions?
5. As the holidays approach, what are some time management concerns that can make or break the holiday season this year?
6. What are some of the considerations about how we handle time that we will need to be concerned with in the new millennium compared to now?
7. Are men or women better time managers?
8. Is there more or less leisure time today?
9. How is e-mail and the Internet saving, or wasting, time today?
10. Are there any international cultural differences that you’ve observed in how time is managed – at work or in our personal lives?
11. If you had to make one recommendation to men or women about improving time management, what would it be?
12. You’ve taught time management to executives and small business owners. You’ve also taught time management to elementary school children. What are the time management concerns of children?
13. Is it possible to be “too” organized?
14. Is it possible to effectively and efficiently manage multiple projects and competing deadlines without getting overwhelmed or burning out?
15. Are “things to do” lists really useful as a time management tool? Why? Why not?

Foreign, Subsidiary, & Film Inquiries

Foreign translations of Creative Time Management for the New Millennium, include:
Japanese (East Books)
Russian (Alpina Books)
Indonesian (Gramedia)

Inquiries about other foreign languages as well as additional English reprint rights should be sent to the foreign rights department at Hannacroix Creek Books, Inc.: Foreignrights@hannacroixcreekbooks.comOur company maintains an active network of highly-regarded and prestigious foreign agents in most major territories; in territories where we are not represented by a foreign co-agent, we deal directly with foreign publishers.

For subsidiary rights consideration of this title including mass market paperback rights, or for book clubs, contact the subsidiary rights department at Hannacroix Creek Books, Inc. (

Subsidiaryrights@hannacroixcreekbooks.com

, Fax: 203-968-0193) and your inquiry will be considered.

Feature or documentary film rights inquiries should be directed to our Film Rights Department (e-mail: filmrights@hannacroixcreekbooks.com, call (203-321-8674), or fax (203-968-0193).

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