Time Management - Implementing Goals

Implementing Goals

Time management literature in relation to implementation of goals frequently centres on the creation and management of task lists.

There are also time management approaches that emphasise the need for more focused and simple implementation including the approach of "Going with the Flow" - natural rhythms, Eastern philosophy. More unconventional time usage techniques, such as those discussed in "Where Did Time Fly," include concepts that can be paraphrased as "Less is More," which de-emphasizes the importance of squeezing every minute of one's time, as suggested in traditional time management schemes.

A task list (also to-do list or things-to-do) is a list of tasks to be completed, such as chores or steps toward completing a project. It is an inventory tool which serves as an alternative or supplement to memory.

Task lists are used in self-management, grocery lists, business management, project management, and software development. It may involve more than one list.

When one of the items on a task list is accomplished, the task is checked or crossed off. The traditional method is to write these on a piece of paper with a pen or pencil, usually on a note pad or clip-board.

Writer Julie Morgenstern suggests "do's and don'ts" of time management that include:

• Map out everything that is important, by making a task list
• Create "an oasis of time" for one to control
• Say "No"
• Set priorities
• Don't drop everything
• Don't think a critical task will get done in one's spare time.

Numerous digital equivalents are now available, including PIM (Personal information management) applications and most PDAs. There are also several web-based task list applications, many of which are free.