Can you micromanage yourself?

Here's a great article from 43 Folders: Harnessing your interstitial time, which could help you improve your time management skills. The article is about mining those unexpected moments when you unexpectedly have extra time on your hands (being on hold, for instance). The idea is that you can train yourself to use these moments more productively.

"The point is to get in the habit of challenging yourself to see what you can accomplish over very small, unscheduled periods of time. Like bird watching or shell collecting, these habits will improve with your ability to recognize this pattern quickly."

A few of the tips you'll find in this article:
- 1-2 minutes - Review your inbox, answer an email, or take out the trash
- 2-5 minutes - Return a fast phone call or draft a short email
- 5-10 minutes - Proof a draft report, finish your time sheets, or call to follow-up on a request you've made
- 10-30 minutes - Draft a new blog post or work report, research a client question on Google, or cull your Current Work file

43Folders is rapidly becoming one of my favorite spots for productivity tips. You might want to bookmark it.