The “Course Topics” series from Manage Train Learn and Slide Topics is a collection of over 4000 slides that will help you master a wide range of management and personal development skills. The 202 PowerPoints in this series offer you a complete and in-depth study of each topic. This presentation is on "Routine Time".

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Routine Time
Time Management
MTL Course Topics
Routine Time
TIME MANAGEMENT

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Routine Time
Time Management
MTL Course Topics
The Course Topics series from Manage Train Learn is a large collection of topics that will help you as a learner
to quickly and easily master a range of skills in your everyday working life and life outside work. If you are a
trainer, they are perfect for adding to your classroom courses and online learning plans.
COURSE TOPICS FROM MTL
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Copyright Manage Train Learn 2020
onwards.
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Commons license.

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Time Management
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ARE YOU READY?
OK, LET’S START!

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Time Management
MTL Course Topics
INTRODUCTION
Routine tasks are "earth" tasks. They are the things we do to
keep body and soul together and the workplace functioning.
For us as individuals, they are the set piece habits around
which our day is built; for the organisation, they are the
procedures by which regular work and maintenance work
gets done. As one of the four time zones, we should aim to
spend up to a quarter of our time each day on routine
activities.

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TYPES OF ROUTINE WORK
Routine work is work that maintains systems, whether an
organisation's systems or the physical systems of the human
body. In work terms, they include the following:
1. Habits: the things we do each day which form the
skeleton to the rest of our activities
2. Systems: the routines and procedures which we follow to
carry out standard and repeated tasks
3. Prescriptions: the recipes and administration procedures
which are done by the book
4. Chores: the unpleasant but necessary jobs that keep
things spick and span
5. Rituals: the repetitive tasks that convey meaning of the
things that are important
6. Maintenance: the work we do on the organisation's
systems and structures to keep things going
7. Paperwork: the reports, records and formalities.

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THE ELEMENT OF EARTH
The earth element represents the source from which we
obtain our nourishment. It is the basis upon which
everything else is built; it is the rock, the core, the
groundwork.
The Qualities Of Earth: solid; steady; secure; firm; practical;
rational; objective; unchanging; common sense.
Earth tasks:
1. habits, routines, and rituals
2. bodily needs: eating, sleeping, physical health
3. responding to climate, atmosphere, surroundings
4. procedures
5. fixed needs of the day
6. imposing order and discipline
7. readiness and preparation.
How We Connect With Earth: We feel the earth through
being symbolically "grounded" with our feet.

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HABITS
Habits are those things we do regularly without having to
think about them. The benefit of habit tasks is that they can
be done on automatic pilot and thus rest the conscious
brain. These tips can help you make the most of time spent
on habits:
1. identify the triggers that set habits off; do them at set
regular times
2. use sequences and checklists to memorise habit tasks
3. look for shortcuts
4. look to double up activities. This is known as the Shoe-
shine Principle: while you're getting your shoes shined,
you can do something else such as make a phone call or
read a newspaper.
5. aim for an optimum time to complete the habit
6. prepare and arrange your materials before you start;
tidy up as you go
7. aim to eliminate bad habits and replace them with good
ones.

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ROUTINES AND PROCEDURES
All workplace organisations require routines, systems and
procedures. They form the backbone around which the
organisation keeps control. In bureaucratic organisations,
work tasks are centred around procedures. Even in non-
bureaucratic organisations there is still a need to devise
procedures for regular and repeated tasks.
The most time-efficient way to carry out routines and
procedures is to first make sure they are absolutely
necessary and then work steadily towards making them as
quick and easy as possible.
Efficient routines and procedures can provide the vital edge
in a business if you review your administration at regular
intervals. In the 1950's, the retail chain, Marks and
Spencer's, reviewed their paper systems and purged
themselves of 20 million pieces of unnecessary paper.

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THE FIVE S'S
The five S's is a Japanese methodology which, at one level, is
a standardized way of doing things efficiently but at another
level, is a way of managing. The 5 steps can be applied to
routines for any physical materials management, including
stores and paper. The 5 steps are known in Japanese and
English for 5 S’s.
They are:
1. "Seir" or Sorting. Go through all your materials and keep
only the essentials. Store or discard the rest.
2. "Seiton" or Set in Order. Find a place for what is needed
and put things in their place.
3. "Seiso" or Sweeping. Clean as you go. Tidy up at the end
of the day. Put things back in their place.
4. "Seiketsu" or Standardize. Ensure everyone knows the
system
5. "Shitsuke" or Sustain. Operate this way until a better
method comes along.

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TIME-SAVING TIPS
It is in routine work that the greatest opportunities exist to
save time. The following tips will help you establish the
quickest times to do necessary work:
when you do routine work, eliminate interference or
distractions from outside.
1. organise the work layout so everything you need is to
hand
2. time the tasks and see if they can't be done more
quickly
3. automate and use labour-saving devices where you can
4. bunch similar jobs together, eg phone calls and letter
writing
5. aim for continuous workflows with no hold-ups or
delays
6. obtain materials "just in time" for your needs
7. when you have defined the optimum method, train
everyone, until you find a better method still. Then train
them all again.

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GOING WITH THE PACE
Although many administrative tasks can be shortened in
time to improve efficiency, - with some being eliminated
altogether,- it is important to recognise that many routine
tasks cannot be shortened without a serious impairment of
quality.
Some of the jobs that can't be done in a rush and need time
to be done properly include: working with animals; working
with plants and flowers; working with children; working
with people's development.
Good time managers know when they have to work with
the pace of things. They develop the ability to go with the
flow; they learn to have patience.
"Dear God, I pray for patience;
And I want it now!" (Oren Arnold)

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GOOD THINGS TAKE TIME
A samurai of ancient China had a reputation for impatience.
Seeing he needed to learn a lesson before he became
dangerous, a Zen master invited him to dinner. The samurai
arrived and sat down. As time passed, he became restless.
"When will dinner be served?" he asked impatiently.
"Not much longer," replied the Zen master.
A few minutes passed but no meal appeared. This continued
for what seemed to the samurai warrior like an age. Just
when the samurai was about to get up and leave, the Zen
master entered the room carrying the meal.
The samurai sat down and drank miso shiru soup.
"This is wonderful!" he exclaimed. "How did you make it?"
"Nothing special," replied the Zen master, " except one
thing."
"What's that?" asked the samurai.
"Time," replied the Zen master.
(Benjamin Hoff: "The Tao of Pooh")

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CHORES
Routine work can either seem to drag or fly depending on
the way we look at it. If we regard routines as chores, the
time will hang heavy as we think about more pleasurable
alternatives. If we change our attitude and work with the
flow and pace of the job, the time will pass quickly.
Here's how:
1. focus on the task, rather than wishing you weren't doing
it
2. think about what you are doing, rather than something
else
3. do it not because of any immediate gain but because
you want to do it
4. feel the therapeutic effects of doing routine tasks in
which you can switch off
5. work out a rhythm in the job and lose yourself in it
6. turn it into a game, a challenge, or a learning adventure.

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RITUALS
A number of the tasks we carry out routinely are ritual
tasks. These may not have an immediately obvious or
practical purpose, - some people might even dismiss them
as a waste of time, - but they may be important ways in
which we re-connect with the values that go to the very
(earth) core of our organisational lives.
Rituals include:
• the annual appraisal
• the monthly department get-together
• the "At-home" nights
• the boss coming to dinner
• the Christmas speech
• the pensioners' outing
• the filling-in of the weekly time sheets
• annual seminars
• bi-monthly sales conferences
• the visit by the Managing Director.

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THE HYGIENE FACTORS
It is a well-researched fact of organisational life that we do
not work well when the physical surroundings are unsafe,
uncomfortable or distracting. The American psychologist
Frederick Herzberg called these the "hygiene" factors and
believed that they can have a de-motivating effect on our
work if they are not attended to.
Working on the hygiene factors means spending time
attending to the following:
• the provision of meals and refreshment facilities
• heating, lighting and ventilation
• the provision of good toilets, cloakrooms, and
washrooms
• regular breaks
• safe working systems
• comfortable seating
• pleasant, light and airy rooms
• pleasing decor.

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MAINTENANCE TASKS
Just as we need to regularly maintain the physical body
through healthy eating, healthy exercise and healthy rest, so
we need to regularly maintain the state of the team and
organisation to which we belong. If we fail to look after the
team's maintenance needs, no matter what our other tasks,
the team will fall into a state of disrepair and not be fit
enough to perform well.
Some of the team maintenance tasks include:
1. regular get-togethers for no other reason than you like
to be with the team
2. time taken to deal with individual problems, anxieties,
and worries
3. time given for positive strokes, praise and recognition.

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PAPERWORK
The amount of paperwork generated every day in our
workplaces is huge, much of it excessive and time-wasting.
1. 15 million miles of paper are used every day around the
world
2. 2 billion letters are posted every day world-wide
3. 60 million photocopies are made every hour worldwide
4. the UK government issues 2 billion forms a year ie 36
for every man, woman and child in the country
5. an average office has 20,000 pages of paper being
hoarded for no apparent reason
6. we leave around 40 hours worth of paperwork lying
around on our desks at any one time
7. it is estimated that we spend 45 minutes a day looking
for lost paperwork
8. each piece of paper on our desks will distract us 5 times
throughout the day.

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DESKMANSHIP
To overcome drowning in a sea of paperwork we need to
learn and practice the three golden rules of deskmanship:
1. Rule 1: aim for a clear desk
2. Rule 2: handle every piece of paper only once, moving
incoming correspondence immediately to its next
destination.
3. Rule 3: have a regular clear out of files.
You can also observe the following rules:
• always stop and ask if a piece of paper is really necessary
• send replies to people on the paper they sent you
• phone instead of write
• only use paper if it is vital to record something
• wean yourself off junk-mail
• control the amount of photocopying you need
• keep a reminder of the 3 Golden Rules beside your desk.

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PAPER CONTROL
If you have to keep your paperwork, here are 3 things you
must do to keep it under control:
1. Mark It. Simply put a small mark on the top right-hand
corner every time you handle a piece of paper that is lying
around without a proper place. After about 20 aimless
marks, guilt should kick in and force you to do something
about it.
2. Sort It. Don't dither. Make up your mind to do one of 5
things with your piece of paper: bin it; file it; store it as a
record; send it to someone for action; do whatever you
must to end its presence.
3. Store It. Stored paperwork needs 3 simple systems: a
colour-coding system to make it easier to find; an out-take
system to keep track of it if it is removed; and a bring-
forward system for actioning it.
Taking time to develop these systems will save you time in
the long run.

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THE FOG INDEX
The fog index is a way to measure the length of sentences in
reports, memos and e:mails. The formula was developed by
Robert Gunning of the Clear Writing Institute of Santa
Barbara in California.
A sample of 200 words is taken from any piece of writing.
The average number of words per sentence is worked out.
For example: 23.
Words with more than three syllables are counted and then
halved. For example: 25.
The two figures are added together to form the fog index. In
this case: 48.
In conversation, most people use a fog index of between 30
and 35. This is also the average of most newspaper articles.
For best understanding, aim for this in reports, memos and
official communications.

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THAT’S
IT!
WELL DONE!

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Time Management
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THANK YOU
This has been a Slide Topic from Manage Train Learn