Time management is one of the most important things for anyone looking to increase their productivity and maximize their daily productivity. While this is important for individuals, for managers, it's a crucial aspect of business success. When it comes to time management online, this concern is even greater.
Since it's virtually impossible to find a business these days that doesn't require the internet, staying connected during work hours has become essential. However, while the internet is a rich environment for content and information, it's also a place where distractions spread like wildfire. Therefore, it's essential to find ways to be more productive and avoid wasting time during the workday.
Essentially, time management is a methodology that helps prioritize important activities in the shortest amount of time possible. For example: fitting X number of tasks into an 8-hour workday, or managing to study all your college subjects within the available time on the weekend without leaving anything pending.
We can apply time management methods to all aspects of our lives, adding more organization and quality of life, regardless of the tasks.
How to manage time?
First and foremost, it's necessary to thoroughly map all the tasks and obligations that must be completed and the time available to complete them properly. Furthermore, it's important to determine how much time is needed for each task to be completed correctly and what the priorities are, in order to better organize employees' routines.
To help you, we've put together some online time management tips for your company that can optimize your daily routine and significantly increase your productivity. See below:
1. Planning
Unless the employee is new to the job, they likely already have a basic understanding of what tasks need to be performed daily and the approximate time each one takes to complete. Based on this information, it's important to establish a rough plan for how the day will be conducted and which tasks are considered important and prioritized.
Of course, this plan isn't a set rule, and it won't be definitive the first time you try it. It's important to test it in different ways and implement changes as needed. Ideally, you want to find a routine that works organically for everyone and brings benefits, especially in terms of productivity.
2. Consider distractions
It's no surprise that the internet is full of distractions, and it's important to avoid them in your daily life. However, if checking personal email or social media is crucial for your team, it's a good idea to educate them so that this type of non-work-related access can be done during their lunch break, for example. This way, everyone can relax a bit without impacting their workday.
3. Value the sequence
Similar activities are completed faster when performed sequentially. When creating a plan for your team, try to organize similar activities sequentially. If the brain is already working in a certain direction, there's no reason to interrupt that flow. Starting a new task involves a significant change, so maintaining continuity helps you achieve even more.
For example: if the employee is already working on an activity that uses certain tools, organize activities that use the same resources to be carried out immediately afterwards.
4. Have priorities
Within a routine, only those directly involved know what's most important. Therefore, it's helpful to suggest a way to organize your work so that priority activities can be completed as quickly as possible, avoiding disrupting your routine and wasting time on less important tasks.
5. Stay focused
The internet's temptations are numerous, and they're the biggest culprits for those seeking greater productivity during the workday. Even though it's a constant challenge, avoiding these distractions is essential to maintaining a more productive and efficient routine. If employees have difficulty avoiding these traps (social media, entertainment sites, e-commerce, personal email, etc.), there are some tools and methodologies that can help, such as:
- Pomodoro Method;
- KanBan Method;
- GTD method;
- 5W2H;
- SMART technique;
- Between others.
With a simple internet search, you can find a variety of materials about these tools and methodologies to apply in your routine.
6. Set realistic deadlines
Missing deadlines is one of the biggest causes of procrastination in the workplace. Since there's no deadline for delivery or completion, a task can take longer than necessary. Therefore, even if a task doesn't have a pre-established deadline, set a deadline for it to be completed within your planning.
7. Learn to centralize information
Rework, besides being extremely tiring, represents one of the biggest time drains in our routine. To avoid this problem, try to concentrate all relevant information for a task so it can be executed with quality and agility.
Tools for managing time on the company's internet
The internet offers countless facilities, but on the other hand, it is an environment that can considerably harm workers' productivity . For this reason, having a tool to block internet access can bring countless advantages.
The lack of more assertive access control contributes to the indiscriminate use of this tool, especially on entertainment websites, e-commerce sites, social media , personal email accounts, and more. Blocking access helps prevent productivity losses and, more importantly, security issues.
This is because many websites and pages contain malicious links, the purpose of which is to create vulnerability points that favor hacks, data theft, and access to company systems . Besides being excellent value for money, website blocking tools are valuable allies for business productivity. This is because they allow employees to stay focused on their tasks and avoid online temptations, which are veritable black holes in productive time.
The importance of time management on the internet
As we've seen, although it's a resource that has immensely transformed the way we perform countless tasks, the internet is also an environment full of distractions for those looking to increase productivity within their routine.
These distractions consume significant time during the workday and ultimately harm employee productivity and business profitability . Activities pile up, and the time available to meet demand becomes very limited. This results in a series of negative repercussions for the company, beginning with delays in less urgent tasks and ultimately damaging the company's image in the market.
In a scenario where agility is the norm , ensuring that more is accomplished in less time is essential. Therefore, time management is a priority for those seeking to deliver increasingly better results. By performing tasks with greater efficiency and intelligence, it is possible to improve not only business results but also contribute to a better quality of life for employees.
In our previous article, we provided some indicators to more efficiently monitor online worker productivity. Click here to check out the material.
By using the right resources, doing more in less time stops being a utopia and becomes a reality. Managing your company's online time should be part of your processes and priorities.
