Have you ever felt you the needed to be more organized and/or more productive? Have you ever had that day… you know the one… a frenzy of activity and then at the end of the day wondering why you hadn't accomplished the most important things you set out to do?
Time Management skills are especially important for sales professionals, who often find they are performing many different tasks during the course of the day. You can be in control and accomplish what you want to accomplish – first you’ve come to grips with the time management myth and take control of your time. The following time management tips will help you increase your productivity and invest your time where you receive the greatest return… time spent with clients.
1) Realize that time management is a myth. No matter how organized we are, there are only 24 hours in a day. Time doesn't change. All we can actually manage is ourselves and how we invest the time that we have. Effective time management is not a course you take and implement… it is a commitment to assessing your internal compass daily to ensure you are doing the right things to maximize productivity & selling time and avoiding those things that derail us from our goals.
2) Find out where you're wasting time. Many of us are prey to time-wasters that steal time we could be using much more productively. What are your time-bandits? Where do you spend too much time? We all know some areas where we may be spending too much of our time but we are not fully aware of just how much time and the true cost to our productivity. Tracking your daily activities will give you an accurate picture of where you have spent your time… the first step to effective time management.
3) Create time management goals. Remember, the focus of time management is actually changing our behaviors, not changing time. A good place to start is by identifying & eliminating our personal time-wasters. Now we must create SMART Goals (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic & Time Deadline) for achieving what you need to accomplish. For example: setting a set number of sales calls for each day on existing products, services and customers as well as a set number of new business development calls. Setting the target number of real contacts with customers will ensure we are focused on maximizing time spent in front of clients.
4) Implement a time management plan. Think of this as an extension of creating time management goals. The objective is to change your behaviors over time to achieve whatever general goal you've set for yourself, such as increasing your productivity or decreasing your stress. So you need to not only set your specific goals, but track them over time to see whether or not you're accomplishing them and adjust accordingly.
5) Use time management tools. Whether it's a Day-Timer or a software program, the first step to physically managing your time is to know where it's going now and planning how you're going to spend your time in advance. Microsoft Outlook lets you schedule events easily and can be set to remind you of events in advance, making your time management easier. You can even use Outlook as your own Customer Relationship Management system, capturing all that valuable new business development information we acquire in our needs analysis in the notes section of the contact you have created for every new business you meet. You can even simplify your prospecting process by setting up categories for every product or service you represent and then reviewing each contact to select all the special sections, features and online opportunities that speak to their customer base… prospecting 101 – simplified.
6) Prioritize ruthlessly. You should start each day prioritizing the tasks for that day and setting your performance benchmark. If you have 20 tasks for a given day, how many of them can you truly accomplish? Are you maximizing your time with clients? Remember to exercise integrity in the moment and evaluate as the day progresses… if you have a meeting cancel… who else in that area can you cold call or drop in to see instead of simply driving back to the office…
7) Establish routines and stick to them as much as possible. While crises may still arise, you'll be much more productive if you can follow set routines most of the time. Set time aside for email, voice mail, a call block of time for setting new business appointments etc... You will really see an improvement in your productivity if you have a plan and follow it on a daily basis.
8) Get in the habit of setting time limits for tasks. For instance, reading and answering email can consume your whole day if you let it. Instead, set a limit for each task and stick to it. (I.e.; email & voicemail 8:30 a.m. – 9:00 a.m. & 4:30 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. and then only check and respond as absolutely necessary during the remainder of the day)
9) Be sure your systems are organized. Are you wasting a lot of time looking for files on your computer? Is your filing system slowing you down? Take the time to organize your files so you can quickly lay your hands on what you need. The time you will save in a moment of crisis urgently seeking that necessary file or customer information will be truly worth the investment of time getting organized.
10) Don't waste time waiting. From the proof that isn’t ready yet to the waiting room of your next client meeting, it's impossible to avoid waiting for someone or something. But we don't need to just sit there and twiddle our thumbs. Now you can re-invest that down time in planning, organizing your calendar, answering the email you’ve been meaning to reply to, or even making appointment setting calls from your car between client meetings. You will be amazed at the return you will receive from investing those minutes (that add up to hours) in high return activities such as planning, setting appointments, organizing your calendar and time or replying to or sending a business email.
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