Time is among our most precious commodity: our lives are governed by it. It controls everything we do ­ from the minute our alarm clock shocks us out of bed, until the second our head hits the pillow, time rules everything, which is why it often feels as if there are not enough hours in the day to get things done.

Anyone who works hard to progress in a career knows how overwhelming it can be to manage time efficiently. New employees in particular often take on more than they can handle in a bid to impress. Then, if they are unable to complete the tasks, they end up coming across as inefficient, thus damaging their own reputation. Rosy Gray from Mosaic Learning says that good time management is invaluable. ‘It’s a key platform skill. If you don’t get it under your belt, it will be detrimental to your career. Being able to choose the tasks that matter is key to promotion.’

However, if you recognise yourself as someone who struggles to manage time effectively, don’t despair. Poor time management is simply a bad habit that, like all bad habits, can be remedied with a bit of change.

So what are the enemies of successful time management? Perhaps you’ll recognise a few of these little devils in yourself.

• A desk that is constantly cluttered
• Spending much of the day warding off distracting colleagues
• Answering text messages, personal emails and instant messages at work
• Never starting your day with a prioritised to-do list
• Putting off tasks or working through breaks
• Letting pushy co-workers dump their work on you
• Falling victim to that charming colleague you just can’t say no to, despite having stacks of your own work to do

We all fall prey to at least one of these organisational sins ­ it’s one of the drawbacks of living in a busy, technologically advanced world. However, identifying how we spend our time is one of the most important factors on the path to becoming more efficient. We’ve all used the expression, ‘Where does the time go?’ Once you know the answer to that question, you can set about prioritising tasks to complete in the time you have. At the end of the day, it’ll feel good to put a big red line through the last item on your to-do list.

According to Pareto’s Principle ­ or the 80/20 rule ­most people spend 80% of their time doing trivial things and only 20% actually getting work done. A depressing thought. That’s why being aware of how much time interruptions take away from your workday can really make a difference.

Of course, it’s impossible to avoid all distractions, but if you are aware how disruptive they can be then you’ll be able to avoid them. ‘As part of our training, we often get clients to think about what their goals are, which makes it easier to say no to the less vital tasks. If you can’t identify your own goals, you’ll wind up helping someone else achieve theirs,’ says Gray.

Another huge barrier to success is procrastination. How often do you put off a task because you’re afraid you’ll get it wrong? Procrastination and perfectionism go hand in hand. We’re often so afraid of not being able to do the task to our own level of satisfaction that we keep putting it off. Then, we’re left with too little time to complete the task to the ridiculously high standards we’ve set ourselves.

When it comes to workplace success, there are only three words that matter ­ ‘Get Over It’. You’ll get noticed more for getting your work done quickly and efficiently. So, hang up those hangups and get cracking!