Time Travel: What’s Your Speed and Direction?

Eric Garner

Our personalities are the key to finding out what kind of time manager we are. Whether we tend to do too much or too little, overwork or underwork, buzz around like a bee or freeze through procrastination, all comes down to one thing: which of the following Time Travellers are you?

1. The Perfectionist. The Perfectionist is one of the worst examples of a workaholic. They fill up their days with work activities in the belief that everything they do has to be as perfect as possible. George Bernard Shaw was a typical workaholic. He wrote mechanically every day of his career. Looking back on his life, he said, "When I was a young man, I observed that nine out of ten things I did were failures. I didn't want to be a failure, so I did ten times more work."

2. The Socialiser. The Socialiser is not a good time manager. If you are in conversation with a Socialiser, you'll know this for they are the hardest people to break away from. Socialisers simply love to be with people, talk about people, and be of service to people. This invariably means putting time and other duties into second place.

3. The Achiever. Achievers have mastered the art of looking like perfect time managers. They seem to be good at everything they take on, seem to manage things with effortless ease, and seem to enjoy themselves in the process. But, beware, a lot of the impression may be false. Achievers are good at show and not so good at substance. When you are dealing with an Achiever, always look under the surface at what they've actually achieved.

4. The Artist. When you are dealing with an Artist time personality, you'll know it. They look different, dress different, and behave different from others. They also have a cavalier attitude to time which they regard as a constraint and restriction. They thus arrive late or early, ignore rotas, and frequently miss deadlines. But the work they produce is invariably one of a kind and in their eyes makes up for their lax attitude to time.

5. The Analyser. The Analyser has a touch of the absent-minded professor about them. They can easily get so wrapped up in their thoughts and ideas or in conversation with others that they can forget the routine details of daily life - such as preparing a meal, going to bed on time, keeping appointments. But while their outer life may be muddled, their inner world of thoughts is invariably rich and gifted.

6. The Procrastinator. The Procrastinator is a person who hesitates to act because he or she is unsure whether they should. It may be because something hasn't been decided, or information isn't yet available or because a higher authority hasn't sanctioned it. Procrastinators are the great doubters, questioners and hesitators. In workplaces, Procrastinators prefer to let others own their time rather than own it themselves. They will therefore drop anything at any time if asked to, no matter what the cost in piled-up work or stress.

7. The Hurrier. The Hurrier is a person who manages to combine a wide range of activities in a short space of time. Everything they do is done at a quick pace: they move quickly, talk quickly, think quickly. They are multi-talented and never say No to any job that comes their way even if they move on to something more interesting before they finish it. They are the human equivalent of the Hare in Aesop's fable.

8. The Rebel. Rebels are life's fighters. They believe that time is something to be challenged and beaten. They thus like to run late for deadlines, coming to life in the tension this creates and knowing that they will beat it in the end. They push time to the limit. They embody the sentiments of Edna St Vincent Millay who wrote: "My candle burns at both ends; it will not last the night. But, ah, my foes and oh, my friends: it gives a lovely light."

9. The Wanderer. Wanderers are people who enjoy the freedom to do what they like. In organizational settings, this can cause a problem. They may not be totally committed to the work ethic and may go at their own speed which makes them appear lazy. On the other hand, Wanderers are far more in tune with the pace of the world and may achieve a far higher level of contentment than the rest of us.

When you know the kind of Time Traveller you are, you can make adjustments in your plans to iron out the features that don't serve you well and enhance the ones that do. That's the secret of successful Time Travel! 

© 2005, Eric Garner, ManageTrainLearn.com For instant solutions to all your management training needs, visit http://www.managetrainlearn.com and download amazing FREE training software. And while you're there, make sure you try out our prize quiz, get your surprise bonus gift, and subscribe to our fortnightly newsletter. Go and get the ManageTrainLearn experience now!

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