The REAL Problems That Time Management Addresss

When I am introduced as a time management coach and consultant, many people come up to me and tell me – quite naturally – “Everyone needs help with time management. I never find the time to do anything.” That is not the real problem.

Eliyahu Goldratt’s Cause-Effect-Cause analysis (see his “The Goal” and “It’s Not Luck”) allows us to drill down to a small handful of root causes that manifest as so many symptoms. I analyzed the root causes of the “no time” symptoms that many people present, and came up with a few (surprising) causes.

For example, constantly being late for appointments is not the problem, it is a symptom of starting late, incorrectly estimating transit time, forgetting something and having to go back for it, not keeping track of appointments, distraction, interruption, unrealistic expectations, getting lost, etc. Underlying all of these are factors such as lack of sufficient organization, lack of sufficient planning, inefficiency, and lack of sufficient discipline.

Another example of a symptom is the “too much work / not enough time” syndrome. It reflects inability to say no, attempting too much, insufficient delegation, too much clutter (i.e. unnecessary tasks on your plate), inefficiency, unrealistic expectation, consequences of action, etc. Underlying these problems are the same factors!

Let us try one more example symptom, completing tasks late or leaving things unfinished. The problems that display these symptoms include distractions, inability or reduced capability, pacing yourself too slowly (or marching to the wrong drumbeat), lack of preparation, improper process or sequencing of tasks, interference of thought and action (think first and act afterward otherwise the thought gets in the way of the action), conflicting priorities (pulled in different directions), etc. What are the underlying factors? The same!

Therefore, the REAL problems that must be addressed by any time management program is the lack of sufficient organization, lack of sufficient planning, inefficiency, and lack of sufficient discipline.