We’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again: landscaping is a busy, fast-paced industry! No matter your position in the company, you must prioritize. Must Do’s Must Get Done! A great way to prioritize and organize is through time blocking.Time blocking can be defined as a scheduled time on your calendar to work on a specific project. You might consider this as a meeting with yourself. You are prioritizing a task by scheduling and dedicating time to ensure it gets done.
Some general examples might include time blocks for responding to emails and updating issues in Aspire or reviewing work tickets every Friday. You might block an hour a day to approve time entries, or a couple of hours a week to go onsite and get your eyes on the properties.
The key to time blocking is to treat it with the same importance as a meeting with a client. Of course, things come up and you might need to reschedule it but protect your time at all costs. If you are in the middle of an item you blocked time for, close your office door, put your head down, and get it done. If someone
interrupts, it is ok to let them know you are in the middle of something and will help them as soon as you are done (unless it is an emergency).
Aside from keeping yourself organized, time blocking allows your co-workers to know when you are available or not. If you sync your calendar with Aspire, your calendar will be viewable to your peers to view when you have free time. If it isn’t on your calendar, no one will know you are in the middle of working on an important item.
As an executive of a landscaping company, we suggest you implement time blocking into your culture. This could look like doing it yourself to set an example, talking about it often, and expecting it from your team. You might even ask your team to review their schedule at the end of every week and schedule time blocks for the next week.
To sum it up, time blocking allows you to prioritize tasks and communicate your availability to your team. When used, you will be able to give your full attention to the task at hand and in the long run, save time and increase your effectiveness.
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