A strategy for managing time during tax season: manage your time by finding your own time-management style and working with it.

• Author: Leitschuh, Cheryl

During tax season, do you feel like the white rabbit in Alice in Wonderland? "I'm late! I'm late! I'm late!" As a CPA, you might be aware of all the time management tips in the world, but, during times of increased stress, your natural style emerges. So, you can decide to work against your natural time management tendencies or you can work with your natural flow to improve your productivity.

Time management tendencies

So, what are natural time management tendencies? There are two. One is that of the time manager, a person who appreciates promptness, speed, brevity, and punctuality. He or she measures things by the clock and typically decides in advance how to spend time on each task or project. Planners and to-do lists work well for this type of personality. Predictable tasks lend themselves well to this personality.

The other time management tendency is that of the process manager. For this person, time is related to many complex factors. He or she typically makes decisions intuitively, in the moment, and as events play out. People issues, intangibles, and agreements are most suited to this type of personality.

You might think that all CPAs are time managers simply because of the work they do. But, based on the coaching work I have done with CPA clients, I have not found this to be true. Instead, there is an assortment of time manager and process manager personalities throughout the CPA profession. Each needs a different approach to time performance management that suits his or her personality and yet gets the work done. Following are three powerful time management tips tailored to each of the tendencies.

1. Plan

   For time managers, planning involves making a list and checking it twice. For process managers, planning involves piles and possibilities. We have all heard the saying, "Plan well in advance and stick to your plan." This type of thinking will work well for the time manager but will frustrate the process manager.

   Time managers perform best if they take time during the day to create a to-do list and have an action plan for each day. Process managers need to have three to four working items on their desk. With more than four, they feel overwhelmed. Less than three, they feel bored.

   Regardless of your time management style, schedule three times during your day to do a time management performance check. The start of the day, mid-day, and late afternoon are typically recommended. The length of this check-in should be five to ten minutes...