Time Management Strategy: You Can't Undo Yesterday, But You Can Prevent Tomorrow

Technology, time management strategy friend or foe. When you read the word technology you probably think of technological devices, tools, and software. But did you know the word also refers to methods used to solve problems? When technology works in terms of the technological devices we all depend on everyday, they can be excellent time management tools. But when those devices fail you, and you know they will at some point, they can suck up hours of your time without any evidence of progress being made to restore them to their intended functionality. That’s where and when you need to use technology in terms of a method to solve problems to your advantage.

In all likelihood when your technological devices fail you it will be at a most inopportune time, and it will cause you a great deal of pain and suffering. Plus you won’t even realize how the way you’re using those devices today will leave you vulnerable when they no longer work as they’re supposed to. Perhaps I’m a little bit of a cynic because I’ve had the hard drive on my computer crash about every two years. Consequently, I’ve learned some hard lessons that could prevent you from experiencing some of the time consuming angst that I’ve been through. And that’s where developing your own technology in terms of a method for problem solving will pay off as part of your time management strategy.

You know you’re supposed to back up your computer regularly, but you just don’t do it. Realize there are a number of ways that you can back-up the information you have on your computer: copying your files onto CD’s or DVD’s, storing your information onto an external hard-drive, and sending your information to an external storage database service. At different times all three could come in handy, but you want to plan for what you’ll do and what works for you. If you intend to manually back-up your computer yourself onto discs or an external hard-drive the only way it’s going to happen is if you schedule it in your calendar on a weekly basis. These tools allow you the freedom of transportability. The easiest and least demanding option on your part is to simply join a service that will automatically back-up your entire computer at specified time intervals anytime your computer is on. These services have become reasonably priced and you never have to worry in the case of fire or flood that both your original equipment and back-ups are damaged, or that they won’t be available outside of normal business hours because you know that’s exactly when you’ll need them.

Incompatibility is the next big issue. You can’t control what programs and devices the developers of your operating system are going to allow you to work with unless you’re a Linux user, and fully understanding programming yourself. You usually don’t anticipate incompatibility problems that erode gigantic blocks of your time because sometimes the software that actually comes pre-installed on your computer doesn’t work like it’s supposed to. Windows XP 2007 and Vista are supposed to work with Adobe Acrobat 8 and they are sold to you with your system, but they don’t work together. How cool is that, please recognize that comment is intended to be extremely sarcastic. This is where if you can use technology to develop specific methods to free yourself from being a hostage to an operating system, a software package, or a device your tomorrow will be a whole lot better than your today will be if these technological tools fail you. For now anyway, Google is providing free database access where you can make sure your emails aren’t lost on a hard-drive that doesn’t function so you can’t transfer them onto a new computer like you’re theoretically suppose to be able to. This is also true for your calendar and even documents. Take a few moments now to develop a time management strategy for how you will use technology to deal with technology in the event of the catastrophic failure that’s in your future.

If you’re like most human beings you’ve left yourself technologically naked and open to a time management failure. Evaluate where your vulnerabilities are. Identify third party solutions that will remove that vulnerability. And never leave yourself defenseless again.