At one period in my work, I conducted corporate trainings on the topic of stress management. Later, this topic evolved and became “time and stress management.” The lack of time itself was one of the main sources of stress, and that is why it had to be given special attention. That is how I became acquainted with the theory of the “four quadrants of time management,” as well as the famous “Quadrant 2,” where people who truly manage their time well are said to be located. Although this theory is very popular, I felt like presenting it together with my own comments on it.
And so, we manage our time by making decisions about what to do and what not to do, what to do now and what to do later. The more ambitious and responsible a person is, the more things they want to do, and the more often they have to make such decisions. One day, these ambitious and responsible people may become managers (although this is not mandatory) and turn into managers stressed by the lack of time (the very ones for whom time-management trainings are organized). In such trainings they are told that time management is a matter of setting priorities, and that the main factors behind prioritizing tasks are two: importance and urgency.
It is precisely from the combination of these two factors that the four quadrants of time management emerge. Here they are:
| Urgent and Important | Not Urgent but Important |
|---|---|
| Quadrant 1 – activities: • Crises • Urgent problems • Important projects with deadlines |
Quadrant 2 – activities: • Preventive measures • Building relationships • Discovering new opportunities |
| Urgent but Not Important | Not Urgent and Not Important |
| Quadrant 3 – activities: • Interruptions, some phone calls • Some letters/emails • Some reports and documents • Pressing issues • Routine activities |
Quadrant 4 – activities: • Busywork • Some mail • Some phone calls • Relationships with people who waste our time • Pleasant activities |
According to this theory, the people who manage their time best are those who spend the most time in Quadrant 2 (important but not urgent matters). Examples of such important but not urgent things are:
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exercising — it is not urgent, but if done regularly, it prevents illness, which immediately throws us into the quadrant of urgent and important matters (and will subsequently require far more energy and resources to deal with than the “prevention” of health);
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communicating with colleagues — delegating authority, training collaborators, receiving feedback from them, building trust (all of this helps them, in the long run, to do their work more effectively and in less time);
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thinking strategically and long-term — in other words, optimizing work processes;
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learning and self-development — not only because innovations are a competitive advantage, but also because this makes them feel more alive, more fulfilled, and more whole (the true criteria for success in life).
Although at first glance this seems to be about time management in the workplace, Quadrant 2 actually encompasses everything in a person’s life — both professional and personal. Stephen Covey, who has consulted a large number of CEOs of large corporations, writes that although they had managed to climb to the top of the ladder in their professional careers, at the same time they had failed marriages, alienated relationships with their families, poor health, and no personal life. This, he says, does not look like great success. He adds that when a person is climbing the ladder of success, even if they are climbing very fast, if the ladder is not placed against the right wall, they will not reach the place they desire. His warning to people interested in managing their time is that before they begin climbing the ladder of success, they should check what success means to them. In short, what are the truly important things for them.
For this purpose, it is helpful to imagine how one would like the end of one’s life to look (or, as Covey writes, to imagine what other people would say about them on the day of their funeral). The irony in this case is that death and time are very closely connected. In English, a final deadline is called a “deadline,” and since time measures the length of our lives, to manage time means to make decisions about how to manage our lives. It is precisely our death that is our true deadline, and therefore only it can tell us what the truly important things are.
The search for answers to these important things, as well as finding time for them, are, in the language of organizational psychology, activities in Quadrant 2.
And here comes another important aspect of time management — good time management is based on the ability to say “no.” People who have difficulty saying “no” also have problems with time management. Sooner or later they realize that when they say “yes” to other people’s expectations of them, at the same time they are saying “no” to their most important inner needs, if these are different from the expectations of others.
“When you feel that you do not have enough time, what you lack is not time, but space. You have lost your space to be who you are, what you are, and who you are here and now. When you are pressured and there is no time left, it is time to make space for the spirit…
Martin Luther, the leader of the Reformation, understood this very well. He used to say that he prayed for one hour every morning, but on days when he knew he would be ‘buried in work,’ he spent an additional hour in the morning ‘on his knees.’ For the logical mind, this does not make much sense. On a day when he needed more time to deal with additional work, he spent twice as much time in prayer. Most people tend to do exactly the opposite. For them, the time spent in spiritual reflection decreases in proportion to the demands of the outer world.”
Michael Tamura, You Are the Answer, pp. 44–45
It becomes clear that Quadrant 2 — important but not urgent matters — is about opening space in our lives, in which there is more room for the soul and care for it. The challenge here is to unite two seemingly incompatible things — the limitations of time (which cause us stress) and the boundlessness of the soul (which connects us with eternity). We unite these two by making decisions about how to manage our time (our lives) starting from the most important priority — care for that which does not die.
Another way to say the same thing is: when you are under pressure and have no time left, it is time to make space for the spirit…
Kameliya Hadzhiyska
