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Everyone in business is guilty of wasting time, be they the receptionist right through to the CEO. However, for a company to get the most value from an employee's time they need to implement standards to minimise this 'dead time'. It's all about taking advantage of those moments when you're not in the office but you have a couple of moment to spare.

Do you agree with them all? Are we missing some? Email us your tips, thoughts or arguments. Let us know what you think.

Rules to Managing Dead Time

  1. Do you use suspend on your notebook?
  2. Do you set Outlook to work offline so you can do emails on the go?
  3. Do you have a word document with a list of your tasks?
  4. Do you make your calls when you're in the car?
  5. Do you use an XDA II, Smartphone or Pocket PC?
  6. Do you use an audio device such as an Zune or iPod
  7. Do you carry a trade Magazine with you?
  8. Do you tweak your system?

  1. Do you use suspend on your notebook?

    Being developers, it's often the case that we have to take our notebooks to visit a client or even home for the day. Using the suspend option is a great way to make sure time isn't wasted. Instead of shutting down and restarting (which as we know can be a lengthy operation) using suspend you can be working again much more quickly, meaning you can utilize that extra 10 mins in the car or on the train.

    Your notebook will also be configured so that if it is left in suspend for a long period of time (more than 10 minutes) it will automatically  hibernate. However, your notebook will not automatically suspend or hibernate if the lid is simply closed. Both of these settings are in the Power Options in Control Panel.

    Power options

  2. Do you set Outlook to work offline so you can do emails on the go?

    This point follows on from the previous one. Chances are that when on the go you won't have access to an internet connection. If you're like me, the first thing on your list to do will be to process some emails. In Outlook choose File/Work Offline. This will allow you to process your emails as normal and then Sync with Exchange when you get back to the office. If you are using Outlook 2003 you need to enable Cached Exchange Mode.

    Emaitsl Accoun

  3. Do you use a Word document with a list of your tasks?

    As far as managing your tasks, Outlook tasks just aren't intuitive enough to do the job. We find it works much better to simply keep your tasks as a list in a word document, and just cross them off as you complete them. If you use suspend in your notebook, this document will be open all the time so it's available for quick reference.

  4. Do you make your calls while you're in the car?

    Quite a lot of time is wasted driving to and from clients. Obviously you can't be typing on your notebook as you're driving, but you can make calls (using a hands-free kit). Before you leave the office print out a list of the people you have to call, or put them in your Word document of tasks and then can get them all out of the way freeing up your time in the office to work on other things.

  5. Do you use an XDA II, Smartphone or Pocket PC?

    Today's phones are getting quite advanced. Internet connections, MP3 playback, and photo and video capture. We think it's a great idea to have an XDA II, Smartphone or Pocket PC. The XDA II is prefereable because it has a bigger screen and you can write on the screen, but all three run on a stripped down version of the Windows operating system. You can even write applications specifically to run on your phone or Pocket PC, such as a copy of your corporate database. This can be handy because if you need to add a contact to your database you can do so easily, and simply sync the data with SQL Server when you get back to the office.

  6. Do you use an audio device such as an Zune or iPod

    Zune

    You will always be carrying around a personal audio device such a Microsoft Zune or iPod. With the huge amount of audio media around today there is also a tonne of educational content you can listen to. You will be watching and downloading relevant pod-casts and recordings.

    For example:

    Audio books are another great way to pass time on long journeys or even at the gym. A couple that I love are:

    Note: Please see our Rules to Better Team Members for why we don't like music in our workplace.

  7. Do you carry a trade magazine?

    There are times when for one reason or another you just can't work on your notebook. Maybe the battery has run out, or maybe you're only waiting in reception for 5 minutes and it's just not worth opening it up. For these times you will always carry a trade magazine. Think of it as a great opportunity to catch up on that article that you otherwise may not have had a chance to read.

  8. Do you tweak your system?

    Tweaking your notebook to make it run faster and more efficiently can be a very time consuming task. It also requires periodic readjustment due to your changing requirements.

    Disable Unused Services

    For example, do you really need all those services to automatically start every time you restart your computer?

Acknowledgements

Adam Cogan
Adrian Foyn
Tim Fletcher