Don’t ignore tasks that are in…
Quadrant 1: Important and urgent. This is the ‘just do it’ box. If an action is in this box, just get on with it. This can include firefighting, so it can be quite a stressful box to be in. You need to try to limit time in this box to a maximum of 10 to 20 per cent of your day, although given the immediate nature of many pharmacy interactions, this can be a difficult area for pharmacists.

Spend more time doing tasks that are in…
Quadrant 2: Important but not urgent This is a great box to be in. It’s the stuff that feels good, that adds value to your life – when nobody is chasing you. The trick here is to schedule in time for tasks in this box. A classic example is training and staff development. It may not be urgent, but it is very important if your team is to improve its activity and efficiency. 

This is the quadrant we should spend most of our time in. But, be honest: how much time do you really spend on important but non-urgent tasks? 10 per cent? Nothing? If the only action you take after reading this is to block some time out of your diary for these tasks each week, you will have gained something tangible.

Watch out for tasks that are in…
Quadrant 3: Urgent but not important These are the activities that steal productive time – the phone ringing, someone else’s deadline. It’s easy to fall into this box if you’re not careful. For example, you find yourself saying ‘yes’ to something you really don’t have time for. The action that works here is to push back. 

Ignore tasks that are in…
Quadrant 4: Not urgent and not important. These activities are simply dealt with: ignore them. Timewasters, paper exercises and pointless phone calls should all be ignored.

Just thinking about the above will give you a clearer view of the systems you need to change and whether more can be delegated across the pharmacy team