Time Management - Marc Mancini

Rocks, Blocks, Goals, and Clusters 63
stamps out only once, for
example. More important,
you’re not letting the semichaotic
flow of incoming
bills dictate your behavior.
Clustering works especially
well with outgoing
phone calls. You assemble
your list of phone calls to
make the night before,
then make them all during
one block of time, preferably
when the people
Clustering The activity of
organizing and assembling a
group of tasks that have
something in common. For example,
tasks might be grouped together
because they’re all small, requiring little
time and/or effort. Gathering
together documents that need to be
photocopied and copying them all at
the same time is an example of clustering.
So is returning all phone calls
during the same hour or researching
several topics at the same time.
you’re calling are likely to be in and not barraged with calls
from others.
Clustering also works in reverse. Phone calls, for example,
tend to stream in most heavily at certain times during the day.
You should be prepared to receive them and to shape the rest of
your daily schedule accordingly. Typically, the blocks of time
between 10 and 11 a.m. and between 2 and 3 p.m. see the
greatest amount of business telephone activity. Pareto analysis
indicates that 80% of all calls generally come during 20% of the
Leak-Proof Clustering
Personal productivity coach David Allen warns that lists
work only when they’re “leak-proof.” For example, if
you cluster all of the documents you need to take to the copier but
overlook one, you’ve totally defeated the purpose of clustering.That
single extra trip to the copy machine can render the entire strategy
ineffective.
So when attempting to cluster your phone calls, for instance, try to
be certain you’re listing everyone you need to call.The more complete
your list—the more comprehensive the collection of items you’re
clustering—the more effective the strategy will be.You might also consider
asking your assistant, if you have one, to hold your calls during
certain times, promising to have you return them at a more convenient
time.