Time Management | Feeding 5,000 is no picnic...

16Dec 2010 by Nigel Ring

Time Management pt 15 – Using an iPhone as a PDA

Administrative Skills, Equipping, Time Management

Earlier this year (January 4th - April 12th) I posted a series on Time Management which I have adapted from the Insight Time Management system of Charles Hobbs over the last 25 years. Throughout the series I focussed on a paper-based method as I considered that to be the best way to convey the principles of the system I use. However, many people use electronic devices (PDAs - Personal Digital Accessories) and I myself have used a Psion 5MX for more than ten years. In light of technology moving on I promised I would return to this topic once I had worked out how to adapt the system to, say, an iPhone. This is the device I shall now consider. The key elements are: 1. Appointments 2. Do it list…

12Apr 2010 by Nigel Ring

Time Management pt 14 – Summary

Administration in the Church, Administrative Skills, Equipping, Good Practice, Time Management

We have now completed the detailed material I wished to share but there are two more sections I shall include. First, a summary and then a look at applying these principles on a PDA. Summary Initially I set out to share my own experience, not to give a comprehensive overview of various different time management systems. I have particularly focussed on the day-to-day management of your Organiser, being the ‘vehicle’ in which the events that fill time are planned and monitored. Time management is about ‘writing your history in advance’, making the best guess you can about what the future holds and planning to achieve that. I encouraged you to define long term goals and expectations and then to break these down into intentional activities to help you achieve them.…

05Apr 2010 by Nigel Ring

Time Management pt 13 – Progressing the Do it list 3

Administrative Skills, Equipping, Good Practice, Planning, Time Management

Keep going! Processing the Do it list, as described below and in the previous two blogs, can appear very complicated. But it is in fact quite simple if you work your way systematically through the guidelines I am giving you. I want to urge you to persevere - it will quickly become ‘second nature’ and will redeem hours of your time to be used more effectively. So, keep going – we are nearly finished! Don’t fall just short of the finishing line!! Having looked at the symbols used when setting up the day’s Do it list we shall now look at those used to monitor progress and maintain continuity. There are two symbols in each category. Monitoring progress ^ In Process / Completed Maintaining continuity > Transferred x Dropped Monitoring progress The symbols ‘^’…

25Mar 2010 by Nigel Ring

Time Management pt 12 – Progressing the Do it list 2

Administration in the Church, Christian ministry, Equipping, Good Practice, Planning, Time Management

The symbols we use to monitor progress are During the planning process: * Urgent [J] Delegate (e.g. to Jan) ( ) Reference For Monitoring progress: ^ In Process / Completed > Transferred x Dropped Symbols used in the planning/prioritising process In the last post we saw that * highlights urgency. This is used at the time of planning the day’s priorities, as is the delegation symbol [J], where the initial refers to the person to whom the activity will be delegated, in this case my excellent and efficient secretary, Jan. How does this operate? If, while planning, I find an item on my Do it list that can be delegated, particularly if this allows it to be done sooner than if I undertook it myself, I will bracket the initial of the person concerned. The priority still…

12Mar 2010 by Nigel Ring

Time Management pt 11 – Progressing the Do it list 1

Administrative Skills, Christian ministry, Equipping, Good Practice, Planning, Time Management

Now that we have dealt with prioritising and have the Organiser organised it is time to bring practical application to your Do it list. When you write the list leave two imaginary columns on the left side – in other words indent the items. In the column nearest the list you write the priorities, A1 etc. So a list may look like this: | | |Phone John Smith 019234 567890 | | |Plan the Conference meeting agenda | | |Complete ministry proposal for the elders’ meeting | | |Brief staff about holiday arrangements | | |Report back to staff on trustees meeting | | |Monitor progress with Sally about Easter outreach | | |Ask Mike to set up meeting with local press officer Note the ‘2 columns’ of space beside…

09Mar 2010 by Nigel Ring

Time Management pt 10 – Organising your Organiser – 2

Administrative Skills, Equipping, Good Practice, Planning, Time Management

Having established the importance of different views in the time or diary section of the Organiser we will now consider the second element of the arrangement, the ‘Portable Filing System’. 2. Filing System Through the use of computers we are all familiar with folders and files. In past times we would have used a filing cabinet, but the principles are the same – drawers of folders each containing files or documents. Divisions Since we live life in a context of time it is helpful to consider how our storage system of information relates to the timeline of our lives. First, define the key divisions in your life. For instance, you may like to think in terms of 2 ‘drawers’ (there could be more) e.g. Home and Work. Alternatively you may…

Tag: Time Management