Career Center Time ManagementTo be skilled at managing your time, you must be able to manage yourself. Everyone has a different personality when it comes to time management. People will often talk about how important it is to properly manage their time, but their actions will not show that they practice what they preach.
To be successful at managing your time, you will need to know what is called your time management persona. Many people have aspects within their own personalities which cause them to be less than successful when it comes to managing their time. You will want to look at the personality types below to find out which one describes you. Understanding your personality may help you become better at time management.
The first personality type is called the "fire controller." Somone who is a fire controller will spend a large amount of time "fighting fires." A person who has this personality type will see everything as being a crisis, and will fail to spend time focusing on things which are important. As they try to deal with the various fires that effect their lives, things tend to pile up on them, and they may forget things which are very important. An example of this is someone who has a home based business that is constantly have to deal with family issues that drag them away from their work.
The second time management personality type is called the "too much" person. The "too much" person is someone who takes on more work than they can handle. They find it hard to turn down assignments, and end up becoming so busy that it is impossible to focus on any one thing. These people are prone to getting into situations where they fail at every task because they can't focus on a single one. Someone who has the "too much" personality will frequently have burn outs. They may also forget things, because they have so many things to remember.
The third time management personality type is called the "laid back" person. In a sense, they are just the opposite of someone with the "too much" personality type. They will often underestimate the importance of the task, and will put it off until it is too late. They are not quick to return calls, and they are hard to communicate with. They may be prone to taking an approach to things that is not realistic, and it gets them i n trouble. Someone who has this personality type may also be known for procrastinating.
The fourth time management personality type is known as the "chatter box." These individuals are highly social, and spend lots of time talking with others. The problem with someone who has a chatter box personality is that they will often waste time talking about things that are not important such as gossip. When you talk to them, the converstation will almost always go on longer than it should, and if you are in rush, you may find yourself becoming annoyed. These people tend to spend large amounts of time on the phone.
The fifth time management personality type is called the perfectionist. As the name implies, these people thrive on being perfect with everything they do. While they will generally work better than the other personality types, they may spend so much time trying to make something perfect that they end up missing deadlines. These are the five time management personalities you will not want to have. I will next describe the persona that you will want to develop if you wish to become skilled at time management.
