• The timescale or timeframe is the overall period during which something should happen or be completed. The lead time is the period of time it takes to prepare and complete or deliver something.
  • The times or dates when things should happen is a schedule or timetable.
  • If work is completed on schedule, it is on schedule; completion before the planned time is ahead of schedule and later is behind schedule.
  • A period when a machine or computer cannot be used because it is not working is downtime.
• If work happens later than planned it is delayed; there is a delay. If you then try to go faster, you try to make up time. But things always take longer than planned because of circumstances beyond your control. In that case … well, deadlines might become guidelines. What can you do to improve you time management? Here are some tips:
  • Use a diary (AmE calendar) to plan your time. Software packages such as Outlook include this function, but many people prefer a wall chart with stickers and colour-coding to show different acivities.
  • Plan your day in advance. Make a realistic plan and then prioritize the tasks. Do the ’A’ tasks first – the important, unpleasant, or time-consuming ones. Then you’ll turn to less important ones with a clear mind. Don’t get distracted by doing the small, easy tasks first.
  • Use checklists.
  • Know and use the filing system on your computer properly. A lot of workflow in business involves electronic paperwork, and you need to know how to access documents, modify them, share them and archive them.
  • Avoid interruptions and distractions, which stop you doing what had planned.
  • Delegate
  • Don’t try to be a perfectionist in everything. It takes time to get things absolutely right, and time is money. Short cuts can be acceptable; a ’quick and dirty’ solution may be OK. Try to balance quality, cost and time.
  • But of course you know all that, and you have already implemented these suggestions. You use careful time management to plan your workload. You never put off unpleasant tasks or lose concentration. Because of this, your work is stimulating and rewarding. You do everything with calm and focus. At the end of each day you go home with a sense of achievement. You say to yourself, ’The world is a better place today because of what I did in my job. Right?

 Video 1: Rory Vaden: How to Multiply Your Time?

1. What does the expression „Multiply Your Time” mean?
2. What is the Focus Funnel?

a.,

b.,

c.,