Time management and efficiency is particularly crucial for those in the small or medium-sized business arena. With fewer employees, there is always more to do and little time in which to do it. It is therefore important to adopt a few helpful ways to save time and eliminate wasted time. No matter how clever a person is, one may never change the fact that there are indeed twenty-four hours in a day. How one uses those hours is the issue.

The first step is to identify where you may be wasting time. It is easy to overlook the 30 minutes here and there spent socializing, reading forwarded emails or surfing on the internet for a great place to take your next vacation. A good way to spot time-wasting activities is to track your daily activities for a short amount of time. Keep a journal and log when you start one activity and complete another. Be honest with yourself. The truth just might set you free. Once you identify problem areas, take steps to correct them. If you are dealing with employee time-wasting, it may be a good idea to call a meeting and set some new standards and time management goals. Make these goals available to employees in writing, and be consistent.

Now that everyone's on the same page, implement a time management plan. Utilize technology that helps track and schedule the day. Outlook is a good tool for setting appointments and reminders. Not only will you efficiently use your time, but you will also minimize missed appointments. Prioritize carefully and stick to your plan. At the start of each day, have a plan regarding what you would like to accomplish. You may have 15 tasks on your desk to complete, but only 8 are crucial for today. Get those done first and then move on to the remainders.

When it comes down to it, you may not have the time to get everything done yourself. Intelligent and thoughtful delegation is an important tool often overlooked. Which tasks must you complete yourself? Do you have someone on staff you trust to work on the other issues? If so, delegate and trust your employee to do his or her job. If not, hire and/or train someone for you to pass assignments down to if the need arises. Do not try to do everything yourself.

Establish routines and set time limits on predictable tasks. Much of time management has to do with common sense. If you have paperwork to do, which is a top priority, budget a certain amount of time each morning to get the paperwork done. If part of your job is to meet with managers, schedule the time and then stick to a pre-set timeframe. Keep focused and avoid digressions from the issues at hand. Socializing can be done after work. Rather than wasting time waiting for meetings to begin or for appointments, always have something with you that you can work on.

Time management involves discipline, but the results of putting a plan into place can be extremely rewarding. Get your entire staff on board and make productivity a priority. Cut back on wasted time and enjoy checking off task after task on your list of things to do.