Series: Lessons in Self Management 2

Self Management : Meaning & Importance

When one speaks about management these days most of us imagine a manager in some large company managing and supervising people and ensuring that things are getting done through the day.We feel that management has to do with other people only; manging other people, supervising other people, ordering other people, appraising other people, handling other people, and so on. 

In truth all management is getting things done, fulfilling a commercial task in an efficient manner, having an organizational goal , breaking it down to things to be done on a daily basis and then ensuring the daily requirements are met as per plan.

So, where does self management come in over here and what's its' importance in general management or day to day activities? That's the question many would like answered. And that's exactly what I attempt to do here.

Self Management would mean a host of different things to different people.  For a student self management would mean being able to manage his time in such a way that he could complete all his assignments as per deadline. For a house wife it would mean being able to manage her time as well as her resources to complete all her house hold chores in time, prepare healthy and tasty food inside the monthly budget and probably save some money at the month's end. For a football team manager self management would mean being able to have enough time and energy at the end of the day to think about team combinations, building a team strategy and ensuring that personal problems do not come in the way of his strategic thinking.

For me self management is the skill, ability and acumen to plan my day for successfully completing my to do list and de-cluttering my mind  of useless thoughts and energy sapping negativity.

The most important point to understand when it comes to self management is that; if one is unable to manage himself the management of others is a pipe dream. And also  the key to self management lies in acknowledging the fact that all forms of management requires the proper use of time. 

People say that one must learn to manage time. I say that it's not possible for us to manage time because it is absolutely impossible to do so knowing the fact that no one has control on time , it just keeps going away and you can do nothing to stop it.

So self management is imperative, essential and the source from where success begins. So my tip to everyone concerned about self  management would be :

1. Do not try to control time , instead try to plan your activities and execute your plans flawlessly and ruthlessly. 
2. While planning your activities make to-do-lists and ensure that you run your day accordingly
3. Ensure that you make less or no mistakes at all, because rectifying mistakes consumes priceless time and saps you of your energy.

Try this till the next article comes in a few days.

Cecil David