TAKE TEN
The 'Time' of Our Lives
Ten tips to making the best use of your most valuable commodity: time. 
W e are all in the business of trying to make the best use of our time. So in the interest of the many among us who wear multiple fedoras at our jobs, here are some suggestions for better time management.
1 Before going home each day, try to clean off your desk and make a list of what has to be done the next day. If there is something you haven't crossed off on today's list, it should go to the top of tomorrow's list. And this leads to?
2 Make to-do lists each day before you go home. Everything goes on this list – big and small. Your day feels worthwhile when you can cross things off a list. Keep an hourly agenda of your to-do list that reminds you of meetings and conference calls. Instead of a straight list, try dividing your page in boxes under different headings such as: teachers, Web site, newspaper section, serial story, etc.
Also time-block projects. On your agenda each day, block an hour or two to work on big projects. It forces you to set aside the small stuff and really focus. It's amazing how much you can accomplish when you time-block. The trick is stick to it and don't let the distractions get you. Close your door (figuratively if you have a cubicle) and don't answer the phone.
3 Never touch paper more than once. Make it your mantra. Here's the deal: If you get a memo, letter, flier, post card – whatever – do something with it immediately. Act on it or throw it away. Don't file it to look at or deal with later. Once you make this decision, you'll be surprised how many things you'll actually toss, which will make your life less cluttered and give you more time to work on important things. (Then go home and do the same thing.)
4 Don't waste your time on the things that matter least. Target your top revenue-producing projects, your most relevant curriculum ideas, or whatever is most important and spend your time working on that. You'll be surprised how many little things were not that important after all.
5 Dedicate an hour at the end of each day to finish up little things like filing, faxing, list-making and planning for the next day. Or if you find it easier to do those things in the quiet of the morning, try that.
6 Tackle the hardest project first (that one you've been avoiding because you loathe doing it). It'll be easier when you're fresh and you don't have it looming in front of you all day or all week or, dare we say, all month.
7 Copy and paste different ideas from the NAA Foundation NIE E-Forum into a Word document (or open an existing one on that subject), give it a title that will make sense later, and save it into a Word folder. Take a few minutes one day to look at the options you have with the E-Forum like receiving a daily digest or checking the archives.
8 Use the KISS method (Keep it simple, silly.) Plan a few events and do them well rather than many that will never reach their potential because you don't have the time, resources and energy to carry them off. For any event to be successful, it should consist of 80 percent planning and 20 percent implementation. You’re not going to save the world, but you can save your corner of it.
9 Always use technology to make less work for you, not create extra work for you. Wow, haven’t we all been victims to this? We think we’re simplifying things when we’re actually giving ourselves more work. Be careful. Utilize the help that’s around you.
10 Where is the love? Keep things in perspective. Make sure NIE or your youth section take a backseat to your family and friends. Try to attend conferences or local professional gatherings, if possible. You say you don’t have the time, but in the long run, learning how to do something better will save you time.
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