Time Management Workshop - Assignment Example

Time Management Workshop Name Institution Course Tutor Date Overview In today’s business world, time has increasingly become a very precious resource and it is more and more at a premium. We spend time on everything we do in and outside office and encounter whatever issues of time that emerge when trying to accomplish our duties and being our most productive (Harrison 2005). Nevertheless, more effective usage of time depends upon our decision to manage time well instead of allowing time to manage us and this is the first step to having control of time. This workshop is meant to help participants gain more control over their time and make good use of it. Learning objectives The training of managers in time management has three major objectives. The workshop will help them to: -Appropriately use time management strategies to improve their effectiveness at work. -Understand the issues that affect their use of time. -Set their priorities more effectively. Therefore, it is expected that by the end of the workshop sessions, the participants should be able to apply time management strategies in managing their time and working more effectively. They should also be able to know what causes them to waste time and be able to set their priorities well. Programme design Media The workshop will be conducted by use of visual aids which include whiteboard and compute-projected presentation slides. These media of learning will help stimulate the participants and help reinforce the ideas presented on time management (Secretariat 2001). The presentation slides will be made simple without many fonts, sizes and colors to make easier for the learners to follow and understand. Before the learning session begins, the trainer will check the visual aid and equipment to confirm whether they are functioning. The whiteboard will be used to complement the computer-projected presentation slides and trainer will use it note additional points. Methods Different learning experiences will be used in the workshop, including discussion and brainstorming. Through discussion, the participants will learn from one another with the help and guidance from the trainer (Beevers and Rea 2012). This method is preferred on the basis that it is useful in stimulating interest and thought, developing consensus and generating likely solutions to problems (Management science for health 2012), in this case time management. As such, discussion will help to stimulate the interest of learners, get them involved actively and allow them to share own experiences about time management. Alternatively, brainstorming will allows participants to contribute their suggestions concerning time management, without being criticised by the trainer (Gibb 2002). Besides, helping to stimulate creative thinking and generate possible solutions to the issue of time management, brainstorming will also help provide diversion and consolidation of past learning (Management Science for health 2012). Importantly, it will help learners to actively participate in the workshop and allow sharing of experiences and ideas related to time management. Structure Before making changes in our work habits, we must always first analyze why we are making these changes or determine the basis on which we are developing the changes. Based on this understanding, this workshop will begin from the analysis on how you spend your time. It will them analyze how you should spend your time and eventually what you need to do in order to balance the differences between the two (Benchmark Institute 2010). Therefore, learners are expected to reflect on where their time goes, where it should be directed, and how they can use their time better. By systematically reflecting on each of these concerns and highlighting problems they encounter in responding to them, learners will be able to effectively manage their time. Learning theory Contemporary ideas about learning are that learning is a process of active engagement, it is a social phenomenon and an individual experience, and that differences in learners are resources and not obstacles (Wilson and Peterson 2006). Human behaviour leads to another as argued by behavioural-learning theorists and therefore if a teacher acts in a particular way, learners will also act in a particular way. Important also is the idea that social groups play critical role in the development of understanding. The social events of discussion, debate, conversation and joint work facilitate learning (Wilson and Peterson 2006). Therefore, this workshop is conducted based on an understanding of basic theories that drives learning, including how people learn, what they need to learn, and how the trainer can facilitate the learning process. Where your time goes To understand where your time goes there is need to maintain a time log for a period of one week. To complete the daily time log, participants are expected to follow the instructions below: Write the date and your daily objectives listing them in order of priority and in terms of results. Allocate the deadline to each objective within each day. Highlight all important actions in terms of results. This should be done after a period of each 15 minutes and make recording detailed. Prioritize every action you take and comment on them. Immediately after completing the time log, the learners are expected to respond to a number of questions. These include: 1. Do you always set goals on a daily basis? 2. What major activities do you do? 3. Did you have a leading priority goal? If yes, when did you start it and were you able to start it sooner? 4. What period of your day way most interrupted? 5. What was the most productive and least productive period of your day? 6. Indentify the most common source and causes of interruption? 7. Which actions took most and least time? 8. What actions could be handled by someone? 9. Did you document activities or results? 10. On which actions could you afford to save most of your time? Where your time should go To be able to determine where you should spend your time, it is important that your review your main timewasters and then select five solutions you consider best which you should implement as soon as possible. The following steps can help you to develop an action plan for time saving. 1. Note on a piece of paper the 5 best ideas for saving time you have learned in priority order. 2. For each idea, highlight five specific steps of actions to can adopt in the following week so as to fully benefit from them. 3. You now have 25 actions steps which you should now determine priorities on each set of ideas. 4. You must work on each idea and when you get opportunities you should implement the other ideas which you have developed. How to use your time better Your personality, level of self-discipline, and ability to self-motivate will determine the type of time management strategy that would work best for you. Nevertheless, to become more effective in managing your time, you need to incorporate some or all of the time management strategies below (Chapman and Rupured 2008; Benchmark Institute 2010). Understand how you spend your time To determine how you are making use of your time you need to keep a time log of what you do and evaluate the results. Set priorities Learn to differentiate between what is urgent and what is important. The most important tasks are not normally the most urgent tasks. Use a tool for planning Personal planning tools such as pocket dairies, wall charts, notebooks and calendars can help you manage your time appropriately. Get organized Simply avoid disorganization because it often results in poor time management. Get rid of the clutter. Schedule your time well Do not just record what you have to do such as appointments and meetings. It is important to also commit time to the things you plan to do. Delegate Free up some of your time for duties or tasks that need your expertise by assigning responsibility for other tasks to some people. Stop procrastinating Break down the task into smaller parts that need less time to accomplish especially when the task appears unpleasant or overwhelming. Manage time wasters Eliminate or decrease time you spend on unproductive things or people who are disruptive. Avoid multi-tasking Switching from one task to another makes you lose time and may result to loss of productivity. Stay healthy Have some time to relax to help you rejuvenate mentally and physically and hence finish tasks more hastily and easily. How learning is retained and transferred How individuals learn, acquire new information, and retain the information they acquired helps in designing learning programmes. Memory enables us to interpret the perceptual world and therefore to organize our responses to changes around us (Lutz and Huitt 2003). Therefore, for learning to occur, the trainer will ensure that learners retain the new information in long-term memory. The trainer will achieve this by elaborating on points and connecting previous experiences and learning with new information (Lutz and Huitt 2003). Alternatively, to increase transfer outcomes of learning, it is important that the work environment in which participants work from is made favourable. This includes creating an appropriate transfer climate, opportunity, support and follow-up (Grossman and Salas 2011). Additionally, the trainer will create a realistic learning environment; motivate learners to participate; and assure them the importance of participating in the workshop (Grossman and Salas 2011), in order to enhance transfer of learning. Reference List Beevers, K. and Rea, A., 2012. Learning and Development Practice. Chartered Institute of personnel & development. Benchmark Institute, 2010. Time management manual. http://www.benchmarkinstitute.org/t_by_t/time_management_manual.pdf Chapman, S.W and Rupured, M, 2008. 10 strategies for better time management. The University of Georgia http://www.fcs.uga.edu/docs/time_management.pdf Gibb, S., 2002. Learning and development: process, practices and perspectives at work. Palgrave McMillan. Grossman, R. and Salas, E., 2011. The transfer of training: what really matters. International Journal of Training and Development, 15(2), pp.103-120. Harrison, R., 2005. Learning and development. CIPD Publishing. Lutz, S. and Huitt, W., 2003. Information processing and memory: Theory and applications. Educational Psychology Interactive, pp.1-17. Management Science for health, 2012, Designing and implementing training programmes. https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl#q=Time+management+training+workshop-pdf&btnK=Google+Search Secretariat, C., 2001. Designing and Implementing Training Programmes. The Commonwealth Youth Credit Initiative Toolkit. Wilson, S.M. and Peterson, P.L., 2006. Theories of learning and teaching: what do they mean for educators?. Washington, DC: National Education Association. Read More