TIME MANAGEMENT IN THE WORKPLACEshort and to the point, while remaining friendly.
Coworkers will appreciate your brevity. If you
think certain e-mails are a waste of time, chances
are your peers do, too. If forwarded joke e-mails
seem pointless, don’t forward them yourself.
When calling someone, let him know you
won’t take more than a few minutes of his time.
He will be relieved that you are taking his time
seriously and will be more likely to be responsive
to your conversation.
Be aware of other people’s verbal and non-
verbal cues. If someone doesn’t immediately
engage in casual conversation when you walk
into her offi ce, realize that she might be trying to
focus on an important task and doesn’t want to
be interrupted. When you walk into someone’s
offi ce uninvited, don’t immediately launch into
a discussion; instead, ask if this is a good time
to talk and be respectful of the person’s answer.
If she responds that it isn’t a good time, don’t
insist; ask her if you can schedule some other
time to talk.
When you communicate with your boss, be
especially mindful of time. Some people get so
little attention from their bosses that they hoard
it when they fi nally have it. But if you suffocate
your boss, she will be impatient with you for
not valuing her time. Before meeting with your
boss, make a list of issues you want to cover and
mentally outline your conversation. Pay atten-
tion to your boss’s signals to determine how
much information and detail she likes. Then
deliver it, stay on point, and move the conversa-
tion along briskly. You want to provide prime