Time Management

Things have been getting a little crazy at work.  When I first started things were slow enough that I could go by the time trusted remembering things and then dealing with them as they cropped up.

If things got a little heated I’d make a list and add the newest to the bottom.

As of late those two methods are not working.  I have a personal goal of 100% follow through meaning no requests got forgotten.  Dumped, re-prioritized, pushed aside, but not forgotten.  This book really helps get that done for system administrators.

I’ve read a lot of time management books and most of them don’t spend a lot of time on the particular issues of the sysadmin.  Prioritizing things is nice, except when your day is punctuated by a continuous stream of requests.  So prioritization has to be constant.  And if you are spending your time prioritizing, when’s the work getting done.

From the Jacket Review:

Time Management for System Administrators understands that an Sys Admin often has competing goals: the concurrent responsibilities of working on large projects and taking care of a user’s needs. That’s why it focuses on strategies that help you work through daily tasks, yet still allow you to handle critical situations that inevitably arise.

Among other skills, you’ll learn how to:

Manage interruptions

Eliminate timewasters

Keep an effective calendar

Develop routines for things that occur regularly

Use your brain only for what you’re currently working on

Prioritize based on customer expectations

Document and automate processes for faster execution

What’s more, the book doesn’t confine itself to just the work environment, either. It also offers tips on how to apply these time management tools toyour social life. It’s the first step to a more productive, happier you.

I haven’t applied the whole book so far, but last week was a particular hectic one with several emergencies and with this system I managed to deal with the emergencies and get a lot of things done as well.

CmdrChalupa Stamp of Approval: