Notes and checklists, calendars and appointment books, project timetables and reminder systems – should managing time require so much… time? And once the training session is over, how many of these tools do we actually employ to effect in our working lives?

Statistics tell a grim tale: most Time Management training is ineffective and therefore literally (and ironically) a waste of time.

So this workshop will take a radically different track.  The course will commence with deep and personal questions about how each of us views and values our time.

This perspective is often neglected in traditional time management courses in favour of scheduling and arranging techniques.  This is in keeping with the latest research, which shows that the ultimate time management device for busy managers is… themselves.

We will then focus on two proven techniques that yield maximum results for time-poor managers and business people.

The first is the revolutionary ‘80/20 Principle’ as radically interpreted by Richard Koch, self-styled ‘time revolutionary’ and serial entrepreneur.  The second is the ‘Quadrant 2’ system developed by Stephen Covey, author of the famous Seven Habits of Highly Effective People.  Between them, these ideas will radically alter how you view and use time – from a quantity to a quality perspective, from spending time to investing time.

This is a wide-ranging and stimulating course, designed to provide managers and professional people from all sectors with real-world tools for everyday use.

It will endow newcomers with an excellent overview of the best in Time Management techniques.  And it also offers fresh stimulation and focus for those with previous training in the subject.  No prior knowledge is assumed.

Venue: Queens University Belfast  -  Cost £210  -  Speaker: Dawn Baird

To book your place, please contact QUB CPD Short Course Programme on 028 9097 5260 or cpd@qub.ac.uk.

Image credit: foxypar4.

On Wednesday 18 November 2009 I’m delivering a 1-day workshop as part of the Queen’s University Continuing Professional Development (CPD)  Short Coruse Programme…for the second time.  It’s name?  Radical Time Management!

Here’s the rundown.

“Notes and checklists, calendars and appointment books, project timetables and reminder systems – should managing time require so much… time? And once the training session is over, how many of these tools do we actually employ to effect in our working lives?  Statistics tell a grim tale: most Time Management training is ineffective and therefore literally (and ironically) a waste of time. So this workshop will take a radically different track. We will focus on two proven techniques that yield maximum results for time-poor managers and business people. The first is the revolutionary ‘80/20 Principle’; the second is the ‘Quadrant 2′ system developed by Stephen Covey. Between them, these ideas will radically alter how you view and use time – from a quantity to a quality perspective, from spending time to investing time.”

This was a popular course first time round with great feedback.  I felt compelled to design it after reading about and personally experimenting with a host of time management techniques myself which I found overly complex or (more usually) overly simplistic.  For instance, I remember reading a whole book by some time management guru whose basic big idea was the cunning use  of suspension files and file dividers!  As Dawn would say, pur-leese!

I’ve built this course around what I personally have found the most useful, and therefore what I’m keen to share with others.  This is a cut-the-crap, back-to-basics sort of course that sets time management in the larger framework of where you’re going with your life and how best to get there.

If you’ve time, see you there.  If you haven’t, definitely see you there!

To book a place, contact Marc Forte at the School of Education (Short Courses Programmes) on 028 9097 5260 or email cpd@qub.ac.uk.

Image credit: Orange42.

A business colleague told me recently that she thought I was the ‘passive and calm’ type.  I didn’t like it.  I didn’t like it one bit.

True, she hadn’t known me for very long and her observations of me were all within one limited situation.   But she’s an astute and experienced person, so I took her comments seriously enough to warrant reflection.

Why didn’t I like it?  Well, my business training kicked in, which told me in at least two ways that it’s bad to be passive.  Consider these examples.

Traditional assertiveness training – which I teach, practice and believe in – makes a distinction between three types of behaviour: aggressive, assertive and passive.  Aggressive behaviour is ego-centric, power-greedy, and wins at the expense of others.  Assertive behaviour values both the self and the other in terms of rights and need-fulfilment, striving to achieve win-win outcomes. But passive behaviour gives away all rights and power to others.  It is the mentality of perpetual victimhood.

Then there’s Stephen Covey’s The Seven Habits of Highly Successful People.  The first of which is the habit of pro-activity. Being proactive means taking responsibility for every aspect of your life. Initiative and taking action will then follow.  It’s the opposite of being reactive, which means you blame other people and circumstances for obstacles or problems.

Finally, there’s the unflattering synonyms available for the word ‘passive’ on my MS Word thesaurus: inert (sluggish), submissive, flaccid (limp, flabby, drooping, sagging), lifeless.  Euuw…

So passive is not a good place to be. But it started me thinking.  Are there any ways in which it is good to be passive?  I think there are.

Calm – A passive person can be composed in the face of fear or danger, serene, like the traditional Buddhist monk.  It is healthy to relax, to learn to control your responses.  Passive people are not prone to dangers of stress and anger.

Satisfied – Being passive is the opposite of striving, of restlessness to achieve some goal, then another, then another, never resting in the contentment of now.  Goal-setting is a good discipline, but enjoying the ride is better.

Unbiased – Passivity requires detachment, a standing apart from life in order to objectively observe and analyse.  People who are only active are always totally involved, submerged in themselves and their projects.  They tend therefore to be blind to themselves and how they are perceived.

Spontaneous – For proactive people, everything must be premeditated and planed.  But where is the space for impulsive, reflexive decision-making in this world?  Covey’s world purrs like a well-oiled engine, but I am much more than a machine.

Indifferent – There are things in this world that are not worth caring about. I would even dare to say that most things fall under this category.  Broadly speaking, an attitude of apathetic indifference and passivity is exactly the right way to approach celebrities, advertising, the tabloids, TV, fashion, Hollywood, workplace gossip, the size of your neighbour’s car etc, if you want to sustain your happiness.

Can I reconcile this healthy passivity with a helpful activism? Here’s what my favourite philosopher has to say about it.

“I do not want to accuse, I do not want even to accuse the accusers. May looking away be my only form of negation! And, all in all: I want to be at all times hereafter only an affirmer!”

What do you think?

Image credit: boff_hiroshi.