I've gathered some material for you on the subject of time-wasting in
the workplace. Since this is not a question with a single, factual
answer, I am presenting the results of several surveys, plus a few
lists that are apparently subjective and not survey-based.
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"What are the biggest time wasters? Pace Productivity conducted
surveys among 690 employees and entrepreneurs across North America. We
asked two questions. The first was designed to find out what factors
impede respondents' productivity that are outside of their control.
The second is designed to find out how much people take responsibility
for wasting their own time."
Of the 30 items listed by the survey mentioned above, here are the ten
that received the most responses:
"1. Paperwork / administrative tasks 135
2. Customer requests: service / problems / complaints 115
3. Phone calls / phone interruptions / inquiries 101
4. Computer / system / equipment problems 86
5. Paperwork / administrative tasks 71
6. No internal support / other departments' inefficiency 58
7. Interruptions by phone or in person 52
8. Unspecified interruptions 45
9. Time manangement 44
10. Traffic/travel 43"
Get More Done
http://www.getmoredone.com/research3.html
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"The survey was developed by OfficeTeam, a leading staffing service
specializing in highly skilled administrative professionals. It was
conducted by an independent research firm and includes responses from
613 men and women, all 18 years of age or older and employed... Survey
respondents were asked, 'Which one of the following would you say is
the worst culprit in terms of wasting the most time?' Their responses:
Meetings that last too long 27%
Unnecessary interruptions 26%
Socializing too much with colleagues 21%
Disorganized work area 21%
Don't know/no answer 5%"
Office Team
http://www.officeteam.com/PressRoom?LOBName=OT&releaseid=336
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Here is a list of 20 biggest time wasters, from Alec MacKenzie's book
"The Time Trap":
"Charles Hobbs credits Mackenzie with doing the definitive study on
time wasters. Here are the 20 biggest time wasters that Mackenzie
found in the workplace:
* Management by crisis
* Telephone interruptions
* Inadequate planning
* Attempting too much
* Drop-in visitors
* Ineffective delegation
* Personal disorganization
* Lack of self-discipline
* Inability to say no
* Procrastination
* Meetings
* Paperwork
* Leaving tasks unfinished
* Inadequate staff
* Socializing
* Confused responsibility or authority
* Poor communication
* Inadequate controls and reports
* Incomplete information
* Travel"
The Vasthead
http://vasthead.com/Time/tm_pap2.html
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"Some very common time wasters addressed in our 'Time Management Made
Simple' training program:
1. Not enough time scheduled for necessary, top priority tasks
2. Interruptions, drop-in visitors, distractions, telephone calls
3. Doing-it-yourself, involved in too many detailed, routine tasks
4. Always crises, fire-fighting
5. Lack of objectives, deadlines and priorities
6. Lots of paperwork, reports, reading material
7. Leaving tasks partly done, jumping from task to task
8. Procrastination, indecision, daydreaming
9. Lack of self discipline
10. Socializing, idle conversation
11. Failure to do top priority tasks first
12. Constantly switching priorities
Training Expert
http://www.trainingexpert.com/timetips.htm
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"SOME COMMON TIME WASTERS
1. Telephone Interruptions
2. Drop-in Visitors
3. Meetings
4. Crisis Management
5. Lack of Objectives, Priorities a Daily plan
6. Cluttered Desk, Personal Disorganisation.
7. Ineffective Delegation
8. Attempting too Much at Once
9. Lack of Clear Communication
10. Inadequate, Inaccurate Delayed Information
11. Indecision and Procrastination
12. Confused Responsibility and Authority.
13. Inability to Say "No".
14. Leaving Tasks Unfinished
15. Lack of Self-Discipline
MORE COMMON TIME WASTERS (IN RANK)
1. Planning (lack of).
2. Priorities (lack of)
3. Telephone interruptions
4. Disorganisation/cluttered desk
5. Procrastination
6. Visitors
7. Lack of Self Discipline
8. Ineffective delegation
9. Attempting too much
10. Inability to say 'No' "
All That Women Want
http://www.allthatwomenwant.com/timemanage.htm
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The biggest time wasters for salespeople:
Progressive Distributor
http://www.progressivedistributor.com/progressive/online%20exclusives/TimeWasters.htm
Time Management:
http://www.nwlink.com/~donclark/leader/leadtime.html
Common time wasters for college students:
Eastern Illinois University
http://www.eiu.edu/~eiu1111/instructors/specific%20resources/timewaster.htm
More common time wasters for students:
Mohawk College
http://www.mohawkc.on.ca/dept/counselling/strat/TM_time_wasters.htm
Even more time wasters for students:
University of Wisconsin, Platteville
http://www.saf.uwplatt.edu/counsel/study/tmwaster.htm
Five Common Time-wasters and How to Avoid Them:
SCORE
http://www.score.org/om_5.html
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Google search strategy:
Google Web Search: "time management"
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=%22time+management
Google Web Search: "biggest time wasters"
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=%22biggest+time+wasters
Google Web Search: "worst time wasters"
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=%22worst+time+wasters
Google Web Search: "common time wasters"
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=%22common+time+wasters
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I hope this information is useful. If anything is unclear, or if a
link does not function, please request clarification; I'll be glad to
offer further assistance before you rate my answer.
Best regards,
pinkfreud |
