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My Time Management Model - the Right Now Part

Sometimes Right Now feels like an impossible dream, being able to work to a plan, tick all the items in my To Do list, and work from 8 until 5...

So many things get in the way of running according to a schedule.   We have implemented a number of different initiatives at +Accsys (Pty) Ltd to try and allow people to complete tasks by deadline and take the pressure off.   But we do find that there are incoming tasks and requirements that are part of corporate life that throw out all the best laid plans.

So can a Right Now model change that?   To an extent, yes.   In one of my meetings today, one of my managers told me that it was taking a long time to finalise some of her requirements from a shared resource, and yet mine had been managed in a very brief time frame.  Its true that I do have seniority, but I also attached an absolute deadline to the job that had to be done.   So the Right Now model is very much around setting boundaries and time frames, as well as priorities.

In interviews, we often present a priority mini case study to candidates, to try and assess how they would manage being pulled in different directions, and having to decide which tasks to do first.   Nobody ever admits that they would handle the one who is shouting the loudest, first.   But, of course, that is what happens.  It frequently is not about the most senior, nor the most urgent, but the most aggressive.

It is important to be flexible, and change direction quickly, when necessary, but not at the expense of stability and sanity.   One of the nicest parts of being in a small to medium business is the ability to ride the wave of change ahead of, or at least with, the pack.   Still, it is essential to ensure that key tasks are being handled on time.

Right Now keeps that on track.   Every September, I have to deliver new reports to our sales team and our management.   Every year I promise myself I will just use last year's structure, and every year, I have new ideas for data analytics and better ways to view the data, that delay release.   Like most people who work in an office there are fairly constant interruptions, so Right Now is not easy to achieve.   One of my most effective ways of managing it is by publishing my internal deadline, that way I ensure that I am under the right kind of pressure.

When I first started managing Accsys, I set myself very clear goals in terms of business strategy, client experience, social responsibility, equity, culture, stability, growth, profitability and sustainability.   These goals were all consuming, and then we started to achieve them, and new goals had to be set , and existing ones updated, constantly.  In addition, our business is in a pressure industry, salaries and time management always need immediate attention. Using my Variations of Now Model (Not Now, Just Now, Right Now) helps to ensure that we are focusing on the right things, and effectively delivering to our market.

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