My Tryst with Time !.

Wondering wondering..whats gonna me inspire me this time around?!..Jeez i have so many thoughts running in this scrambled brain of mine day in and out and when it comes to putting it down on paper..it goes like....teeeeeeeeeeeeteeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeteeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!

Anyways, I was reading this article on time management which runs through the experiences of successful people who truly know how to balance their busy work lives and also relax. All of them were really valid points to ponder on and that what really got my old tinkers chiming! There!..My inspiration..for now at least.!

Time management is really one thing you can credit the westerners for. "Born Managers" as one of my friends puts them as, they are truly born with it! Let me prove my point here with a comparison of work trends. Me V/S Cute smart westerner who one day hopefully I would get to work with!.. :D

Me:

I am assigned a task to do. On an average, it should not take more that let's say 2 hours. But if i had to provide an estimate of how much time it would take, I would definitely give a "ballpoint" figure of 1 day :D .!(I love using the cliched IT jargon!..It sounds so wordy!)

So let's see, what do I do in those 8 hours. First, minus 2 for lunch,tea and coffee breaks. Minus another two hours for compulsive email checking, meetings of endless mindless nonsense, etc etc.!

Then, coming to the actual job!..I can't prioritize for nuts. Given a list of activities or for that matter a task my first thing would be "Where do i start"..I tried coming up with a Master list of the "to do" activities priority wise. At the end of it I would end up with multiple lists. Then I would simply say to myself..Fuck it!..Let me just start!..And I would, with no aim in my head as to what is it I am finally trying to acheive here. In short, it would be an effort that I putting in for which I have no idea of what the end result should be!!

So in this "goaless" pursuit of "semi (kaam chalau) completion state I would waste my time in non important activities. End result..At the end of the day when I would ask myself what have i really really done..the answer would be zilch zero!!

One of the places where I really faced a problem because of this erratic senseless management was when I was "officially" leading a team from onshore in London. Man, the day was packed. Meeting after meeting. To top it all I would understand nothing in these meetings because it would be so unstructured.. Desis would literally literally make things messy!..Any meeting we had would be a classic case of "too many cooks..too many fundas...too much too much too much". At the end of these meetings I would for one walk out with a glazed look and my manager would give me that knowing look conveying "yeah I am in the same boat..but heck I get to go home early...m the one managing...u wud be the one staying up in the night :D:D"!...

That's one of the reasons i hated Infy projects..It would start with chaos, continue in chaos and produce something causing chaos!!.So what used to really happen can be depicted by this equation:

Unstructured Projects+My confused state = 8 hours of not knowing what to => Late nights when finally i would have the eureka moment!!!!!

Now, let's look at the work life of the "Cute westerner whom I would want to work with some day"!

The biggest difference that I would find in the scheduling of activities can be stated in few simple words:

1) Prioritize prioritize prioritize
2) Say NO!
3) Be clear on when an outcome is expected. If email responses are going to be delayed mention it clearly
4) KISS motto for the meetings!..*
5) Time is a premium. Walk fast, eat fast, talk less gibberish and to the point etc etc..!
6) Finally, SHUT DOWN THE TERMINALS AT 5 30!..And go for a beer!..Or take the dog out !..

So there! Need i say more about why I want to work with the cute westerner!...I need a time manager :D:D:D:D!!

Nyways, as shown in the picture above I would always have a "funda" to compensate for my tardiness. Luxury of being a SE you see!.. . For now, I''ll survive with that! :D

Laterzzzz!!...

* KISS= keep it short simple!..What were you thinking ;)!..