7 Management TipsStraight from Harvard

Insightful. Actionable. Innovative.Top-tier advice from Harvard Business Review

BlazeThrough YourTo-Do List

Self-discipline is challenging.Employ these three tips tomake your work moreefficient every day:

Get three things donebefore noon. Statistics showthat the team ahead athalftime is more likely towin the game. Enjoy yourlunch knowing that youaccomplished at least threetasks in the morning.

Sequence for speed. Breakprojects into parts. Take onthe longer pieces at thebeginning and make sure eachsubsequent part is shorter. Ifyou leave the longest parts forlast, you are more likely torun out of steam before theend of the day.

Tackle similar tasksat the same time.The mind thrives onrepetition. You canbuild momentum bytaking on similarprojects at the sametime.

Act Like YouAlready HaveWhat You Want

Your mind can be your bestasset. However, doubts, fears,and anxieties can impede yourability to deliver. Be cognizant ofyour mindset.

Whether you’re concerned that you don’thave the respect of your peers or that acustomer isn’t calling you back becauseshe’s gone to a competitor, overthinkingthe issue only serves to compound theworry. Instead, pretend you have whatyou want. Act as if your peers respectyou or as if the customer is loyal. Thesemay be fantasies, but what you’reworrying about may be as well. It’sbetter to stop the worry and actconfidently; chances are better thatyou’ll get what you want.

Know WhatMatters - QualityOver Quantity

Mulitasking can cause trouble when it comesto output. Overextending yourself should be areal concern. However, single-tasking cancreate issues in terms of productivity. Youneed to multitask to keep up in today'sfast-paced world.

Instead, identify the tasks that willcreate the most value and focus onthose. By prioritizing value over volumeand sharpening your focus on tasks thattruly matter, you’ll increase the qualityof your work and, ultimately, the valueyou provide. What to do with all thosetasks that didn’t make the high-valuelist? Put them on a “do later” list. If theycontinually fail to make it to thehigh-value list, ask yourself: why dothem at all?

Schedule RegularCheck-Ins...WithYourself

When a company is breaking new ground,the number concern should always be how tostay on track and always achieve at thehighest possible level. Make time regularly toseriously self-evaluate.

Every week, take a quiet hour toreflect on recent critical events—conflicts, failures, opportunitiesyou exploited, observations ofothers’ behavior, feedback fromothers. Consider how youresponded, what went well, whatdidn’t, and what might be moreeffective in the future.Never cancelthis meeting—it’s crucial.

Grow BeyondExcuses AndPush Yourself

Do not make the mistake of clinging to poorbehaviors because you assume they areinherent to your character or personality."That's just the way I am!" has no place in athriving workplace.

Instead of insisting that youcan’t change, think about howthese behaviors may be impedingthe success of those around you.Don’t think of these behaviors ascharacter traits, but aspossibilities for improvement.You’ll be surprised how easilyyou can change when it helpsyou succeed.

Imagine YourselfStarting FromThe Beginning

When evaluating your performance, thinkabout what you would do if you were to startin your role anew. Identify what you woulddo different if you could start over.

Taking this step backcan help you evaluatethe strategies andapproaches you arecurrently using, seethings that are toodifficult to see whenyou are entrenched, andreenergize yourself forthe challenges ahead.

Ditch Either/OrIn Favor OfBoth/And

Leaders need to be a lot of different andpotentially contradictory things. On the onehand, they should be determined, analytical,and organized. On the other hand,characteristics like empathetic, charismatic,and communicative also serve a purpose.

Rather than categorizing yourself asa certain type of leader, explore thenuances that a complex,fast-moving business environmentrequires. Leaders need toconfidently deliver tough messageswith analytics as evidence, but theyalso need to be sensitive to howpeople receive those messages. Mostleadership traits are not an either/orchoice, but rather complementarysides of effective management.