Time Management:
Everybody has the difficulty of doing a number of tasks every day within the limited number of hours available. Therefore time management has become a very important skill for executives and others alike. Pujya Swami Chinmayanandji said, “Plan out your work, work out your plan.” This summarizes the basis of achievements. Value of Time: People give us ‘time pieces’ as gifts. Does anyone ever give ‘time’ as a gift? We must become conscious of how valuable a resource time is. An old Sanskrit verse says “one should earn scholarship and wealth by being careful about every moment and every rupee. If moments are lost, one cannot learn much. If rupees are lost one cannot earn much.” Thus every moment is precious. The rich and the poor should know the value of money. Similarly, top-level managers and ordinary workers should know the value of time equally. Writing on a sundial at the Wellesley College in the USA has much to teach us on the value of every moment, especially the present moment.
The shadow of my finger cast
Divides the future from the past
Behind its unreturning line
The vanished hour, no longer there.
Before it lies the unknown hour,
In darkness and beyond the power.
One hour alone is in the hands,
The now on which the shadow stands.
Plan Out: We may envisage three aspects to proper planning of all our work. First, we should have a vision that does justice to the whole of life. Our professional responsibilities, domestic work, and contributions to society should all be balanced. Moreover, we must take full care of our own physical and emotional health. Secondly, we must plan two to three hours of undisturbed nature daily. That is the way to prevent our inbox to exceed our capacity for disposal. Thirdly, right at the planning stage, we must identify the right sequence of tasks. Important things must be marked A while less important ones must be marked B and so on in our task list itself. Work out: In the implementation stage again, we can visualize three important aspects. First, we ought to adhere to priority. Unless there is some unavoidable circumstance, A must be attended to before B. there should be no compromise in the matter of priority. Secondly, we must learn to do every job with full attention. When we are able to concentrate on the work at hand, we can save significant amounts of time. Thirdly, every one of us must learn to work as a team. The word ‘team’ in its very spelling indicates “Together Everyone Achieves More”. In all these matters, our ability to say no to distractions is very important. Interestingly, distractions take place not only from others but also from ourselves. There are people who interrupt us with some demands or proposals. We have to be careful in accepting them. Then our own restless mind proposes different things at different times. We need to have a wholesome discipline without being too hard on ourselves. Flexibility is necessary but one must know the dividing line between flexibility and waywardness. The right sequence ensures that our foundation is good and “there is a place for everything and everything is in its place”. In the Valmiki Ramayana (2:100:19) Lord Sri Rama says to Bharatha, “I hope you identify high priority works and attend to them before all others in your administration of Ayodhya”. One thing at a time and that done well – is a nice guideline for efficient working. Pujya Swamiji advised, “Let your mind be where your hands are.” When we work with concentration and have a team to attend to different aspects of a big job, it is like adding clocks and multiplying time. Slow and steady wins the race. Wish you all the best