Time Management - Marc Mancini

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Time Management
• Install only the software you need. Every program
installed takes up valuable space and slows the performance
of your computer. Most computers now come with
an assortment of programs already installed—many of
which you’ll never use. Remove programs you know
you’ll never use; if you can’t do this yourself, find someone
who can. (This will leave room for a time-wasting
game or two, which you’ll have to resist at a later date.)
• Learn the basics of the programs you use frequently, but
don’t get caught up with features you don’t need.
Program designers are sometimes tempted to include features
in new products just because they can. Many of
these features are realistically useful only to a relative
handful of people, but the rest of us get to pay for them
anyway. They also exercise a kind of irresistible fascination
for some people, who then spend hours exploring the
possibilities of a new program—or even an old one that
they suddenly discover can do things previously unrecognized.
Resist the temptation to become too expert in the
use of any program. There’s often a seductive self-deception
involved in learning how to invent 600 new page borders
that will do nothing to make you more productive or
save time.
Electronic Mail
Usually known as e-mail, this enormously convenient technological
development has become both a blessing and a curse.
Anyone who’s ever taken a two-week vacation and returned to
find over 1,000 e-mails in the inbox understands the curse. The
blessing, of course, is near-instant communication.
In order to at least maintain a time-managing balance
between the advantages and the disadvantages of e-mail, here
are some ideas:
• Don’t use e-mail for situations that require a “loop” of
gives and takes. For example, trying to set up an appoint-