Page 151 - Time Management

Time Management
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without too many features that I don’t need?” and “Will I benefit
in any way from these features?”
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For example, let’s go back to the venerable fax machine. You
might seek the following features, since they would enormously
benefit your efficiency, productivity, and time management:
• Automatically feeds multi-page documents from a loader.
• Prints on plain, bond, letter-size paper, rather than thermal
fax paper.
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• Sends documents automatically to multiple stations.
• Stores text in memory when paper or ink/toner runs out.
• Memorizes frequently used numbers for one-touch or
speed dialing.
• Time-delay transmission allows sending documents when
phone rates are lower.

To find a fax machine that has all of these features would be
marvelous. The problem: the Pareto Principle. 80% of your
usage will come from three or four features. But a model with
all these capabilities may also possess dozens—even hun-
dreds—of options that you may almost never use. The addition-
al functions add to the cost, could complicate operations, and
will multiply the chances of something going wrong. You may
even forget about these extra features.
You should also read research reports or articles and talk
with friends before making a decision about makes and models
of time management tools to purchase (see Figures 10-1 and
10-2 on pages 137-138).

Is It User-Friendly?
A true story. A teacher asks her first-graders to define the
word genius. One student’s response: “Genius: When you
turn on a machine and it works.” That youngster already
understands that devices aren’t always user-friendly. It
shouldn’t take a genius to figure things out.
Along with technological advances come technological com-
plexities. The Pareto Principle, which maintains that we get 80%

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