Effective Time Management Techniques

80/20 Rule (Pareto Principle)

Vilfredo Pareto created the Pareto Principle when he observed 20% of the people controlled 80% of the wealth in Italy. The principle states that approximately 80% of the results come from 20% of the efforts. Identify and focus on the tasks or activities that contribute the most to your goals. Prioritize your time and energy on the tasks that yield the most significant impact and avoid getting caught up in less important or time-consuming activities.

80/20 is one variation of this principle. There have been other adaptations, such as the 64/4 rule, resulting from applying the 80/20 rule to itself. This principle can be applied to any project or task.

• Go through projects and tasks identifying high-priority items

• With the project identified, define the highest-risk potential

• Focusing on the 20% doens’t mean we should ignore the remaining 80%

Pomodoro Technique

This technique involves breaking your work into timed intervals. Set a timer for 25 minutes (known as one "Pomodoro") and focus on a single task until the timer goes off. Take a short break for 5 minutes, then repeat. After completing four Pomodoros, take a more extended break of 15-30 minutes. This technique helps maintain focus, prevents burnout, and improves productivity.

The Pomodoro Technique was created by Francesco Cirillo in the 1980s when he was in college. In order to keep his attention to studying he used his kitchen alarm clock which was shaped like a tomato.

• Takes long complex tasks breaking them down into manageable 25 minutes sessions follow by a rest period

  Procrastinaion occurs in three ways. Afraid of mistakes, being pressured by others and you feel pressure to be perfect

• Write down a list of projects you would like to accomplish. Apply the Pomodoro technique to each project. At the end, look back and see what you accomplished with this new structure

🐸 Eat that Frog

This technique, popularized by author Brian Tracy, emphasizes tackling your most challenging or important task first thing in the morning. The idea is to "eat the frog" (the most difficult task) before doing anything else. By starting your day with a sense of accomplishment, you build momentum and reduce the tendency to procrastinate. Breaking a big task into smaller, manageable steps can also help make it more approachable.

It can be helpful to prioritize tasks based on their deadlines, importance, or impact on your goals. Making a to-do list and organizing tasks in order of priority can assist in focusing your efforts on the most crucial activities and avoiding wasted time on less significant tasks, as we discussed in the Organizing Ourselves issue.

• Identify your most challenge task or project

• Work on the identified task first thing in the morning

• Eat your frog aka complete the task. Rinse and repeat

• Try not to plan the frogs to far in advance