Time Management Tips for Credit Professionals
By Michael C. Dennis MBA, CBF, LCM

Here are some atypical time management tips that should help the typical credit professional:

• Forget about creating a to-do list, generate a must do list.

• Do not confuse activity with accomplishment. Being busy is not the same thing as being productive. Choose quality over quantity.

• Disregard urgent tasks in favor of important tasks.
  Ask:
  Should it be done at all?
  Can someone else do it?
  When must it be started and when must it be completed?

• Learn to say "no" to extraneous demands on your time. This is the only way to eliminate low value added activities.

• Delegate as much work as you can. The best way to get things done is not to do them yourself, but to delegate them to someone capable of doing them for you.

• Expect excellence from your subordinates. If there is time to fix mistakes, there must be time to prevent them.

• Attend fewer meetings. Find a reason or an excuse not to attend meetings that you know or expect to be unproductive.

• Allow voice mail to pick up incoming calls whenever you are involved in important work.

• When dealing with collection agencies calls and solicitations:
  Be blunt
  Be brief
  End the call

• Finally, try to take five minutes of quiet time in your car [with the radio and engine off] before going into the office to plan your activities, to consider what is truly important, and to decide what tasks demand your immediate attention.