When you start a new job it is very important to find out about the daily work schedule and the daily or weekly meetings you are supposed to attend. Daily and weekly duties and responsibilities also have to be included in your work schedule, as well as scheduled overtime if you are expected to do some. Most office workers in Hungary work 8 hours a day, starting between 8 and 9 a.m. and finishing between 4.30 to 6 p.m. depending on the length of their lunch break and starting time. Part-time work and flexi-time are not the norm, while some jobs, like customer services, may involve working a rotating morning and afternoon shift.

If you want to work efficiently, you need to organize your day. The best starting point for creating your own schedule is your job description, and your manager or supervisor should be able to help you by drawing up a detailed list of tasks and responsibilities. Some companies have realised that long working hours do not mean that more work is done in the office, as people get more and more tired as the day goes by. Research shows that efficiency can be increased by taking short breaks besides the lunch break, so those should also be built into your schedule. Making a daily to-do list can save you a lot of time, especially in the first weeks until you settle into a routine.

If you feel you waste too much time during the day in your present job and need to finish your tasks after normal working hours or you often find staying on schedule challenging, as a first step you should monitor your work habits for a couple of weeks to determine how efficiently you manage your time. Then you can put this information to good use by drawing up a weekly schedule, including

– daily tasks: checking mail and answering, scheduling meetings, filing documents, collecting packages and mail that need to be sent

– weekly tasks: writing a weekly report, meeting your supervisor, department meeting, all-staff meeting, scheduled overtime, filling in time report sheets

– job-specific tasks: working late shifts, on-call duty, checking office supplies, billing clients, checking office equipment (computers, photocopiers, printers), data entry, giving presentations, visiting clients, doing paperwork

Then you can start working out which of these time management tips are helpful in your line of work and try them out even if they don’t seem very useful at first glance. You never know what might work until you’ve given it a week or so.

Time management tips:

– make a daily to-do list

– set a timer if you tend to waste time daydreaming

– set deadlines

– prioritise your tasks in four categories: urgentand important, not urgent but important, urgent but not important, neither urgent nor important

– avoid spending too much time chatting to colleagues

– check your e-mails twice a day at set times

– do more difficult tasks in the morning, as most people can concentrate better at this time of day

– review your notes, assignments and calendar weekly, not to miss something important

– identify resources to help you: colleagues with special expertise, experienced supervisors, company databases, etc.