While participants in our studies typically track their time for two weeks, our results are reported on a weekly basis. The chart below shows total work hours, including work done at the office, at clients’ locations and at home. Business travel and breaks during the day are included, though commuting time is not. Overtime is done in the morning, at night, and on the weekends.

The average for all full-time employees is 46.7 hours per week. Within this group, municipal workers generally work 42.5 hours. Many of these are unionized employees with contracts that specify their maximum number of hours. Once negotiated, they generally stick to this The other jobs that are lower than the average do not have a travel component. Employees stay at one location.

Those who are above average have greater responsibilities, more travel, and more people management as part of their  jobs.

The chart below shows work hours per week (blue bars). Those who supervise employees have longer work hours and occasions than those who do not. Independent consultants are an exception. Unlike most other employees, their income is directly related to hours worked – they have a different incentive from employees to work long hours.

The scale for the red bars is in minutes. The bars represent typical durations, showing how long each event lasts.

Both scales increase at the same time, however there is not a causal relationship between hours worked and length of duration. Rather, durations increase with added responsibilities. Inside sales reps and receptionists for instance receive a high number of short phone calls or customer visits. Hence their durations are short. Middle managers and presidents on the other hand are more involved with long term planning through meetings. Meanwhile field supervisors show a long duration because their time spent in the field is usually long.

Generally, employees work longer hours than they would like. However, salaried workers do not receive extra compensation for overtime hours. They work more hours than the norm to:

• Achieve a level of results beyond expectations in order to obtain a promotion
• Reach bonus status, whereby compensation is tied to results
• Comply with requests by senior management
• Conform with peer pressure
• Be consistent with external schedules (e.g. train schedules, car pooling, or night time courses)
• Avoid stresses elsewhere. (For some, the attraction of work occurs when work becomes like home and home is too much work)

 But employees make all kinds of excuses for not delegating. They justify their inefficiency through beliefs that are unfounded. If you want to make better use of your time, you’ll get more done through delegation. Catch yourself when you say one of the following. Often, the opposite is true!

• I don’t know if I can trust her to do it.
•  I could do it better myself. He isn’t qualified to do it.
• She doesn’t want any added responsibilities.
• I don’t have the time to show anyone how to do it.
• There is no one else to delegate to.
• He already has enough to do.
• I like doing this task, or I’m the only person who knows how to do it.
• She messed up last time, so I’m not giving her anything else to do.

Assume that most people want added responsibilities (don’t you?). Assume they are keen to learn. Recognizes that the short term training investment will pay off in the long term.

Look around. Even though you’re not the boss, there are people who will help you if you approach them in the right way.

 WHAT TO DELEGATE: 

• Items that can be eliminated. If you shouldn’t be doing an activity, then perhaps you shouldn’t be giving the activity away to others.  Eliminate it.
• Minor decisions that can be found in policy
• Fact-finding assignments
• Preparation of rough drafts of reports
• Problem analysis and suggested actions
• Collection of data for reports
• Photocopying, printing, collating
• Data entry
• Email sorting
•  Things you are good at and do too much of
•  Things that aren’t part of your core competency. For small businesses, these include accounting, web site design, deliveries, hardware upkeep, software help, graphic design, travel arrangements, patenting, legal issues and even HR functions such as payroll.
• Tasks for which you are least qualified, that you dislike
•  Tasks that provide opportunities for employees to grow (Some things you can’t delegate: performance reviews, discipline, firing.)

PLANNING

Create a plan to delegate. Don’t give out assignments haphazardly.

Invest short term time in training to gain a long term increase in productivity.

Others may end up doing a better job than you can or finding new ways to complete a task.

Delegate, don’t abdicate. Someone else can do the task, but you’re still responsible for the completion of it, and for managing the delegation process.

Delegate to the right person. Don’t always give tasks to the strongest, most experienced or first available person. 

Spread delegation around and give people new experiences as part of their training.

Obtain feedback from employees to ensure they feel they’re being treated appropriately. A simple “How’s it going with that new project?” might be all that’s needed.

Be sure to delegate the authority along with the responsibility.  Don’t make people come back to you for too many minor approvals.

Trust people to do well and don’t look over their shoulders or check up with them along the way, unless they ask. 

Be prepared to trade short-term errors for long term results.

DELEGATION INSTRUCTIONS

1.  Delegate the objective, not the procedure. Outline the desired results, not the methodology. What needs to be done and when should it be finished?
2.  Make sure the standards and the outcome are clear. To what degree of quality or detail?
3.  Clarify the decision-making authority the delegate has.
4.  Outline the resources available.
5.  Ask if there is anything else they need to get started. They’ll tell you. (This can save you time spent showing them.)
6.  Ask people to provide progress reports. Set interim deadlines to see how things are going.
7.  If appropriate, let others know who is in charge of the task.
8.  Give praise and feedback at the end of the project, and additional responsibilities.

 Always look for opportunities to delegate, even when there appears to be no obvious person to delegate to. There usually is. Your time is worth it.

Tomorrow is coming fast. Do you know where you are headed? The goals you set for tomorrow are your pictures of success. By setting them today, you aim your activities in the right direction. But a goal shouldn’t just be “I want to lose weight,” or “I hope to be rich someday.” Those goals are too vague. They’re like New Year’s resolutions—well-intentioned wishes that are short on substance.

So use a handy acronym known as SMART to clarify your goals. There are different variations on this formula. I have looked at them all and made a subtle change to the acronym that I think works better. The acronym stands for Specific, Measurable, Appropriate, Realistic and Timely. 

Specific

 Goals such as being happy, getting rich or having a good time lack specificity. But when they focus on more concrete aims such as getting married, reducing accounts receivable or taking regular vacations, they take on more definition. Being specific also means being focused. Many people find themselves frustrated because “there are just too many things to do and not enough time.” They can’t get more time, but they can specify fewer goals.

The s in “specificity” also stands for “substantial.” It means a goal is concrete and worthy of pursuit. You might decide that cleaning up your desk is a goal. But it’s not the sort of lifetime accomplishment you would want to be praised for in your epitaph. If cleanliness is an issue, then certainly establish a goal to improve. But put it in context with more important pursuits. What will you be proud of five years from now? If you had to write a resume right now, what would you want to put in it? Your accomplishments would be based on goals that are specific and substantial. 

Measurable

The second criterion a goal should meet is measurability. State your goal in a way that an outside observer could measure it objectively. For instance, “We will reduce delinquent accounts by one third,” or “I will take two vacations this year,” or “I will stop smoking in two months.”

 Something that is important can be measured with more than one goal. For instance, a sales rep might aim for specific sales dollars, profit for the territory, introductions of new products and an increase in distribution channels. It’s possible that she would be successful in one criterion, but not in another. Multiple goals provide greater perspective.

Appropriate

 An appropriate goal is within your area of power or responsibility. Don’t try to work on someone else’s goals. Appropriate goals are also consistent with your organization’s aims, culture or standards. For instance, it’s difficult to have a goal of increasing customer satisfaction levels while simultaneously introducing discount pricing. 

Appropriate goals also relate to your personal style. What are you capable of accomplishing, given your background, your skills, your training or your physical limitations? People who are only five feet tall have little chance of making the Olympic basketball team.

That’s not to say you shouldn’t extend yourself. It is possible to go beyond anything you’ve done before, and to push yourself past the limits you thought were unsurpassable. It is possible to stretch your imagination to conquer heights you thought were unreachable. Allow your dreams to flourish. But make sure you have the appropriate resources, time and makeup to turn your dreams into reality. 

Goals should also be appropriate to each other. For some businesses, a goal to increase sales by 20% by the end of the quarter may be inappropriate with simultaneously reducing bad debt accounts. In many cases, one or the other can happen, but not both.

Realistic

Goals should be a bit of a stretch, but not so much as to be out of reach. A goal might be achievable within the next three months, but this deadline may be unrealistic, given the other constraints you’re facing. In your business, don’t aim for a market share that is simply not going to happen. Often new businesses will make claims that seem to be very modest; a very conservative 1% share would satisfy them. In reality, that’s a huge amount! 

How do you know what is realistic? Look for relevant comparisons. Examine historical trends. What has been done in the past? Or look at economic indicators. What are the trends for the future? Or industry trends. What has the competition been able to achieve? Has someone else embarked on a similar journey whose results might indicate what is possible?

A dose of good old gut feeling also helps. Tripling your salary in your current job by the end of this year is a specific and measurable goal. But it’s not very realistic if you’re earning minimum wage by washing dishes at the local greasy spoon. In that case, perhaps your goal should be to find a higher-paying job or to start your own business. 

Timely

Put a deadline on your goals—this Saturday, the end of the month, the end of the year, your fiftieth birthday, whatever. Start with the end in mind. What will the final picture of success look like and when do you want it to happen? By determining the end time, you can then work your way back to see what you need to do on the way. The challenge you might face is that your goal seems overwhelming. You just don’t know where to begin. If that’s the case, break your larger goal into smaller ones.

Perhaps the SMART acronym should have one extra letter, and that is “p” for “passion.” Pursue your goals with passion! Don’t become complacent about not meeting them. For example, saying, “We didn’t meet our goal last month, but that’s all right, we’ll make up for it,” should never be good enough. Rework your goals if necessary, but pursue them with a renewed vigour and with a sincere desire to succeed.  Always give it your best, and then some. In Who’s Running Your Career, Caela Farren says, “Passion and purpose go hand in hand. Passion is the fire in the belly, the willpower, the courage you harness to achieve your mission despite all the obstacles and reversals.” Go for it!

Your time is worth it.

Our definition of knowledge workers mostly includes people who work in offices; managers, sales reps, service reps, researchers, engineers, supervisors, university faculty, municipal employees, and many others.

Our definition of a work week includes all of the work an employee is contracted to do during the day, plus overtime hours and weekend work. It includes lunch and breaks during the regular workday, but not after hours. Lunch and breaks typically take up about 4.5 hours per week, so a truer figure for work time might exclude this. Commuting is not included, because it varies by employee.

Our data includes results from TimeCorder data from time studies since 1990. Over that period of time the typical work week is 46.7 hours per week.

Excluding part time workers (i.e. those who work less than 30 hours per week), the percentage breakdown among those we have measured is as follows:

Categories of Hours Worked Per Week

We consider anything above 80 hours to be “danger time” because sustained activitiy at this level is likely to be dangerous to health, relationships, and even mental stability.  (Our database does not include individuals working those hours because our focus is on corporate employees.)  Perhaps the best advice for those who work danger hours is : Get a life – outside of work !

 Administrative tasks are not acknowledged in other analyses of managerial time, but are an unavoidable reality of work. In our time study consulting, we define administrative tasks as those that do not advance work toward achieving major objectives.. Instead, they are necessary requirements of the job. They might support the operations of the organization, such as filling out time sheets, reports, and paperwork. They might support the dissemination of information, through internal, non-planning meetings. Or they might support other workers, providing assistance by answering questions or filling in for others. Or they might be activities that could be delegated entirely to an assistant, to another department or to technology, with no changes to the manager’s performance.

In one of our questionnaires, managers are also asked “What things, outside of your control get in the way of your productivity?” Since we began asking the question in 1990, the issue of paperwork and administrative tasks continues to lead the responses to this question across all job categories. For managers and non-managers alike, the percentage is the same.  20% of respondents cite administration as an impediment. See Table 4 below for responses to the second open-ended question cited by more than 4% of managers.

The irony is that since 1990, computers and new software programs continue to proliferate; yet there is no reduction in administrative tasks. This is because for the manager, the computer is not an automation tool; it is an information-processing tool. With the increasing number of tools, or programs available, from word processing to spreadsheet analysis and presentation software, the options have also increased. Now, more scenarios can be checked out, more reports can be printed for review, more data needs to be inputted. It is no surprise then that the issue of paperwork and administrative tasks is seen as a huge impediment to productivity.

As shown in the table below, the administrative burden is massive and takes up 11.6 hours of the manager’s work week. This is 25% of his or her time. The activities in this category are also very interruptive; 43 of them occur each week lasting 16 minutes each.

Administration is also an area where managers would like to spend considerably less time than they do. Actual hours spent versus ideal expectations are the most dramatically different for this category compared to others. Managers spend 11.6 hours in administration time, but would ideally only like to spend 7.3 hours doing these activities. No one likes doing paperwork.

Administration time increases as one moves higher in the organization (see table below). Some of the time in this category is simply staying in touch through networking, writing and responding to e-mails or communicating with head office. Nonetheless, even when communication activities are excluded (some of which are routine and some of which are people management), administration for presidents is still 11.7 hours per week or 18% of the time.

How do you keep your administration time to a minimum? Please leave your comments and I will summarize them in another post.

These included all of the non-value added e-mails that employees need to sort through; internal announcements, queries from co-workers, items forwarded fyi, meeting confirmations and others.

Across a broad number of knowledge workers, these miscellaneous e-mails added up to 3.9 hours per week, much more than the 2.4 hours that employees said they would ideally li9ke to spend on these. Those with activities outside of the office face a larger burden; 4.5 hours per week for field supervisors and 6.2 hours per week for sales reps. Remember: there is a lot more time spent on value-added emails – this is just the “stuff.”

Many of these e-mails are avoidable. Employees find themselves overwhelmed by dozens, if not hundreds of e-mails per day. Curiously though, while everyone complains about the volume of incoming e-mail, few will admit to being the culprits for sending it out.

Remember, if you send out one e-mail and copy twenty people, you have in effect sent out twenty e-mails.

Employees can make better choices to control their incoming e-mail.

• Take yourself off distribution lists.
• Avoid the use of the Reply All function.
• Stop saying “Thanks”. Fellow workers already know that you are an appreciative colleague.
• Ask subordinates not to copy you without including a cover note
• Unsubscribe from newsletters that are really extended sales pitches
• Don’t try to persuade someone through e-mail. Use a phone or meeting instead.
• Keep your messages short. Avoid telling stories.

So what makes up each of these categories?

Pace Productivity Inc, based in Toronto Canada, has been conducting productivity studies of knowledge workers since 1990.

We examined data from outside sales reps – those whose activities take them out of their offices to customers’ locations. The pie chart above  shows how their main activities break down.

The selling category consists of activities designed to seek out new business. Sales reps need to find, cultivate and maintain relationships with new prospects and existing clients. By keeping the funnel full of prospects, they can maintain a steady stream of business. This includes such activities as marketing, cold calls, calls to existing customers, sales visits, presentations and writing columns.

On average, these add up to 10.8 hours per week or just 22% of the workweek. This is quite surprising to sales managers who might expect their reps to be actively selling for at least 50% of the time. The reality though, is that other activities need to be done, and they infringe on selling time.

The good news is that many individuals are able to achieve above average selling time. For instance, financial planners spend 27% on this category. And among them, some individuals achieve over 40% of their time selling by hiring a full time assistant to handle their administrative and order processing activities.

Typically, sales reps engage in sales activities on 39 different occasions per week. These are direct contacts with customers and prospects, primarily phone calls and meetings with both current customers and prospects.

Sales calls to current customers are longer than those with prospects. Specifically, sales calls with customers typically take 11 minutes each, while those with prospects are only 7 minutes. The prospect calls may be shorter because some of them are just voice mail messages that are left.

When sales reps engage in face-to-face meetings, they spend an average of 29 minutes per meeting with current customers. Meetings with prospects are longer, at 51 minutes. Thus, telephone conversations tend to be short, but once meetings occur, there is a greater opportunity for in-depth discussions.

Understand how your time is spent, and then strive to allocate your efforts to the highest priority activities. Your time is worth it.

•  Stick to your plan. If you have a written set of goals and strategies, this gives you a reason to stick to your course. (“Thanks, but I already have an investment plan, so you don’t need to send me a newsletter about stocks.”)
•  When someone persists, repeat your position, perhaps in a slightly different way. (“As I already said, our policy is to donate to charities that help children only.”)
•  Make sure you understand exactly what is being asked of you before you respond. The task might be much more time consuming than you thought.
•  Excel at just a few things, rather than being just average at many. Don’t try to do everything.
•  You have a right to say no. Remember that others may take you for granted and even lose respect for you if you don’t.
•  Be polite, but firm in saying no. You only build false hopes with wishy-washy responses. For instance, the phrase “I’ll try to be there” in response to a party invitation is giving yourself an excuse to avoid a commitment. It doesn’t do anyone any favours.
•  When a superior asks you to do a new urgent task;
• Remind her that you are working on other projects that she has already identified as top priorities
• Ask for help in deciding where the new task should fall on the list of priorities
• Ask “What you like to give up in order for me to do this?”
• Point out that you might be able to do everything, but not to the usual high standards that are expected.
•  Some experts recommend keeping your answer short. This way, you can say no without feeling the need for a lengthy justification. (“I’m sorry, I’m not available that night.”) On the other hand, others say that giving a longer answer with reasons reinforces your credibility. Let the situation decide.
•  Provide suggestions or alternatives to the person who is asking. (“I can’t do that task today, but how about next week,” or “How about asking John instead?”)
•  When in doubt, it’s easier to say no now, then change your mind to a yes later, rather than the other way around.

When You Have to Say Yes

Sometimes, saying no is simply unavoidable. Here are some techniques to use:

•  Tell the person you can agree to their request this time, but ask how the two of you might plan better for the next time.
•  Tell them yes, but remind them they owe you one. For example, they might cover you for a shift next time you need time off.
•  Tell them yes, but take control by saying you’ll come back to them with a timetable. For instance, say, “I expect I’ll be able to do that for you by the end of the week.”
•  Put a tough condition on your agreement. “If it would only take an hour, I’d be able to help, but I can’t give you more than that.”

 TASK STRATEGIES

Unpleasant tasks

• Unpleasant tasks rarely turn out to be as bad as you think.
• Complete these tasks first. Schedule them for early in the day. Give yourself a reward for doing them.

Complex Projects

• Something looms ahead of you: starting a small business, getting a job, preparing the annual budget. The job is too big or will take too long to do now, so you put it off.
• Break large jobs into smaller, more manageable tasks. Plan and complete a start-up task, no matter how small.

Indecision

• People delay because they can’t make up their minds.
• Determine a time for making a decision and the criteria for making it. Share your deadline with someone else.

Fear of failure (lack of self confidence)

• People don’t want to face the consequences of failure, so they delay. (Some people suffer from fear of success too!)
• Develop a clear mental picture of the completed task and how you will feel at that time. Maintain a focus on the end result, not just the process. Remind yourself how good you’ll feel when you’re finished.

Lack of interest

• You are tired or  lazy. You’ re just not very interested in the task.
• Reward yourself for accomplishments. Go out for special lunches when major projects are completed. If you don’t earn the reward, don’t take it.
• Schedule the task for when you will be at your peak.

Perfectionism

• People delay because they want to get the project perfect.
• Set deadlines for yourself. Tell other people your deadlines and encourage them to check up on you.
• Maintain your high standards, but recognize that sometimes 80% for you may well be 100% for someone else. Don’t spend hours conducting a detailed cost breakdown when a rough estimate would suffice.

Hostility towards a boss

• People delay because they don’t like the person who assigned the task.
• Review with your boss what exactly is needed. Clarify the expectations.
• Make a game out of unpleasant tasks. Give yourself points, or do a running commentary on yourself as you do the task.

Distraction, lack of focus

• Sometimes losing concentration causes delays.
• Create a to-do list with priorities.
• Block your time for projects.
• As you get distracted from a work project, make a rule that you are not allowed to move out of your chair, make a call, surf the net, pick up a book etc. until you return to your task.
• Complete something. Make a very small task for yourself and finish it. Very small. Then, make another one.

Unimportant tasks

Something needs to be done, but it isn’t that important. You have a leaky roof, but you don’t mind putting a small glass under it. The trouble is, things will get worse. Or you have a few repairs around the house that need to be done. All of a sudden you need to move. Fixing those repairs to make the house saleable will be difficult.

• Calculate the possible future cost of not doing things.
• Schedule time. Break tasks into small pieces.

ENVIRONMENT STRATEGIES

      Tailor your environment for work. Close your door, clean up the clutter on your desk.

• Remove distractions such as water coolers, snacks, in-boxes, coffee machines and magazine racks.

      If you work at home, treat your office as an office. Don’t go out to lunch before lunchtime or watch television before the end of the day.

• Tell your family that you are not to be disturbed in your home office

• Turn off your email notication to prevent interruptions.