Tài liệu Techniques to Counter Common Time Thieves ppt

Techniques to Counter Common Time Thieves
By Sue Dwan
Dwan & Associates Ltd
Smashwords Edition
Copyright 2012 Sue Dwan
Cover Image by Microsoft Office
Used with permission from Microsoft
Smashwords Edition, License Notes
Thank you for downloading this free ebook. Although this is a free book, it remains
the copyrighted property of the author and may not be reproduced, copied and
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please encourage your friends to download their own copy at Smashwords.com, where
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Limitation of Liability
The general information and advice contained in this ebook is offered with the aim of
assisting those interested in improving their time management skills. The information
is not intended as an exclusive solution and Sue Dwan, Dwan & Associates Ltd, is not
responsible for the application of the principles and steps taken in any undertaking.
Please note: New Zealand spelling, which is different from American spelling for
some words, has been used throughout this text.
Contents
Introduction
Chapter 1: Some Ideas about Time
Chapter: 2: Tine Thief: Meetings
Chapter 3: Time Thief: Telephones
Chapter 4: Time Thief: Email
Chapter 5: Time Thief: Interruptions
Chapter 6: General Tips
About the Author
Introduction
I heard Engelbert Humperdinck singing a pitiful lament the other day – “If I only had

time”, he anguished, “Only time”. I realised I hear that same lament almost daily, but
from ordinary folk – not singing icons. It got me thinking about common time thieves
and how they live amongst us, wearing a number of clever disguises.
They’re colleagues who interrupt you when you’re deep into something and say,
“Could I pick your brains about something?”, or, “Could you help me with…It’ll only
take a minute…”, or, “I know you’re busy, but ”.
They’re filing cabinets bursting with ancient and new files that may be unlabelled, and
so creatively alphabetised that you can’t find anything for looking. They’re piles of
papers on your desk that get bigger and bigger, a repository for the ‘I’ll get around to
this, this week’ work, but you never do.
They’re the time spent compulsively checking emails (despite being busy doing
something else) when you hear the inbox alert, and the time spent forwarding on jokes,
chain mail and amusing video clips. They’re the hours you spend reading all incoming
emails, yet put off responding or processing them for another day. And that day may or
many not ever come. They’re the emails you deliberately ignore reading because
you’re busy doing other things or because you have an inbox with 2000+ emails and
you’re overwhelmed at the thought of them all.
They’re the meetings that leave you frustrated and angry that your time has been
wasted. They’re the meetings with no agenda, the ones that start late and finish late
and where most of the time is spent on minor issues, leaving little time for the big
issues that need attention. They’re the meetings where the same topics are ‘put forward
to the next meeting’ at every meeting, so they’re never, ever addressed.
They’re the days you know you haven’t achieved anything; despite your efforts to be
unavailable to others, your intentions to tackle important tasks and your to-do list.
They’re the days when you can’t quite put your finger on why your best laid plans
have gone to pieces, yet again. They’re the days you take work home to do after
dinner, because you never get everything done during the day.
If any of these scenarios hit the mark for you, it’s timely you are reading this little
book. You needn’t sing Humperdinck’s song. There are simple, yet highly effective
strategies to use to arrest time thieves in their tracks. It’s up to you really – do you

want to be known as a lamentable singer or a person of decisive, smart action that gets
results?
*****
Chapter 1: Some Ideas about Time
The interesting thing about time is that it dominates our entire life. The demand for it
has absolutely no influence over its supply. There is never 'enough' of it, and what we
have is all there is. It can’t be seen or physically touched, it is an abstract concept, yet
we know when it’s temporarily unavailable or gone completely. Individuals have their
own ‘temporal alignment’ (a time orientation) to either the past, present or future; and
they may also view time as ‘linear’ or ‘cyclical’, depending on their cultures and
cultural norms.
Time can’t be stored or brought back, yet it can be ‘earmarked’ and juggled around, to
fit things in.
And time is ‘costly’, as the actual cost of an hour of an employee’s time far exceeds
the hourly wage or salary rate paid to them. Per employee, an employer pays more
money for their annual leave, sick leave and bereavement leave; pays accident
compensation levies, training and development costs, a subsidised superannuation
scheme or car park entitlements, and administrative time to process wages, income tax
and superannuation savings. Moreover, there are the direct and indirect costs
associated with business premises (electricity, insurances and the like), plant and
equipment.
Also, a typical 40 hour working week doesn’t necessarily mean a 40 hour working
week. An 8 hour working day gives employees 480 minutes per day to use. If we
deducted the typical morning and afternoon tea breaks (say, ¼ hour each) and lunch
breaks (say, ½ hour), the 480 minutes is reduced to 420 minutes. If we factored in the
time wasted by a lack of efficient and effective systems, interruptions, unnecessary or
unproductive meetings and our own (and others’) time-wasting habits, the 420 minutes
could be reduced another 60 minutes, to 360 minutes – that’s about 6 hours’
productive time each day – and a 30 hour productive week, to work within.
Time management techniques are really self-management techniques. If we don’t learn

to manage ourselves first, and if we don’t use proven time management techniques to
work smarter, not harder, then we won’t be efficient or effective in the workplace. We
may be busy, to be sure, but we may not be the least bit productive.
Time is best utilised by:
Thinking, then planning
Time spent thinking about what is required of us and planning how we will do our
work before launching ourselves headlong into it, is time well spent. The old saying
'more haste, less speed' (the faster we try to do something increases the likelihood
we’ll make mistakes, which may then take longer to rectify, than if we’d planned the
piece of work in the first place) could refer to time and self management. Vilfredo
Pareto, an Italian economist who thought about distribution issues in the early 1900s,
observed that 80% of the land owned in Italy was owned by just 20% of the
population. His distribution concepts were expanded and adapted to different settings,
for example, 80% of profits come from 20% of our customers; or, 80% of our sales
come from 20% of our salespeople. The point is, we need to focus our effort on the
20% that makes a real difference or contribution, and base any decisions on work
allocation, time and resources, on this.
Doing the right thing, versus doing things right
There’s a world of difference between doing the right thing and doing things right. If
our focus isn’t on the right task, at the right time, we’re in difficulty. We can spent an
inordinate amount of time on doing things right, but if we’re not doing things right on
the right task, at the right time, it is simply a waste of time, money and effort.
Developing plans
Any planning sessions should be followed by documented action plans to record what
needs to happen, what resources are required, when the actions are required by, how
progress will be monitored and who will be responsible for particular pieces of work.
Plans can be for the short, medium and long term, and a simple action plan format will
suffice for small to medium sized plans. Documented plans provide focus, direction
and the identification of any constraints that may need to be accommodated in their
execution.

Focusing on the important
Everything we do for our job is important, and yet some things may be more important
than others, in the bigger scheme of things. This means we need to constantly prioritise
our work in terms of the important and the urgent. Minor issues, if left long enough,
have the potential to become really important, then urgent. The key is to ensure
everything gets done efficiently and effectively in a timely fashion. There can be no
'too hard baskets' left in the corner of the office, anywhere, ever.
Using systems
The way to avoid wasted time, money and effort is to develop and use effective,
efficient systems. These include systems for filing, handling email, reminders of
unfinished work (bring-ups), the management of customer relationships, purchasing
supplies, regular maintenance and anything else you can think of. If it takes ages to
find information, files, products or resources because you don’t have everything at
your fingertips, it’s time to review and redevelop your existing systems so you do have
everything you need, close at hand. Systems need to be used consistently and if you
don’t do this – if you prefer a random, come-what-may approach – you will set
yourself up (and possibly those around you) for ongoing problems.
Eliminating time thieves
Time thieves can be eliminated if:
* people have a genuine desire to work smarter, not harder
* there are good systems in place and they’re used consistently
* people can change their beliefs, thoughts, words and actions around how things are
typically done. Changing long-established habits can be challenging, so genuine
intent and consistent action is needed.
Being gracious with people, 'mean' with your time
It is good manners and professional to be gracious with people. This can be done at the
same time as being mindful of your daily schedule, the appointments you have to
attend and the work you need to do in-between times. ‘Being mean with our time’
requires us to use a number of different communication techniques to keep a clear
focus, redirect straying conversation topics and stop conversations after a pre-

determined period of time.
Achieving, not doing
Being busy doesn’t necessarily mean we are achieving results (being productive). The
key to success is to do what’s required within known constraints and achieve what we
are tasked to do.
Knowing what to do to improve our time management practices isn’t enough. Lasting
improvement requires:
1. knowledge of effective time and self management techniques
2. serious intent (to change one’s thinking, habits and daily practices)
3. undertaking specific actions
4. being consistent in applying specific techniques or taking specific actions
5. regularly reviewing one’s progress
6. fine-tuning one’s techniques, until you achieve mastery!
*****
Chapter 2: Time Thief: Meetings
One of the biggest drains on people’s energy, patience, organisational resources and
time, are meetings. You can reduce meeting time thieves by adopting the following
tips:
Preparation
* Develop meeting rules/protocols/etiquette to use at every meeting.
* Ensure all meeting participants have a copy of the meeting rules/protocols/etiquette.
* Train people to be effective and efficient chairpersons/facilitators.
* Appoint a meeting chairperson/facilitator who can control and direct meetings
appropriately.
* Ask that all participants come prepared and expect them to be prepared on the day.
* Ensure meetings can’t be interrupted by putting a 'do not disturb' notice on the door.
* Ask for agenda items several days before the meeting; have any 'other business' at
the end of the agenda, not at the beginning.
* Use a concise, realistic agenda and stick to it; put the most difficult or important (and
time hungry) items first.

* Set a time for each agenda item.
* Set clear start and finish times for every meeting.
* Ensure there are a workable number of participants, not more than the meeting
warrants.
* Ensure the venue is appropriate and conducive for a meeting.
* Ensure the meeting is actually necessary, not simply a habit.
* Only go to a meeting if it’s one you must attend.
* Don’t cancel meetings unless it is essential to do so.
* Eliminate all unnecessary meetings – don’t have them if they’re not absolutely
necessary. Conduct a review of all meetings and determine whether they are mission
critical, nice-to-haves or historical habits.
* Cost out how much meetings actually cost the organisation, per hour of meeting
time. To do this, take the number of people attending each meeting, and add the
actual dollar cost of the attendees, per meeting hour (this includes their hourly rate
and the dollar value of associated labour costs – i.e., annual leave, sick leave,
superannuation, professional development, car park, etc. This could be about another
20-30%.
* Schedule regular, standard meetings at the beginning of each year so they’re firmly
established in everyone’s diaries, and so time isn’t wasted throughout the year
getting large numbers of people to agree on meeting dates.
* Ask any known quiet meeting participants to change their approach. These are
people who rarely speak/won’t contribute at all unless directly asked to say
something, and then may complain about all the dominant speakers. Tell them you
need their contribution because their views are important; that you need them to
speak up and be counted; and offer to coach them so they develop confidence and
the skills to do so.
* Ask any known dominant meeting participants (those who have a great deal to say
about everything and may rarely listen to others) to change their approach. Tell them
you need their contribution, however, you also need to hear others’ contributions as
well. Suggest their enthusiasm to contribute is inhibiting those less confident or

vocal. Ask them to participate in an exercise at the next meeting to note: the
dynamics around the meeting table (who does what, how often, etc.); the times they
themselves speak or talk over others; the body language of the participants when
they and others are speaking. Debrief with the person after the meeting and discuss
the findings from their perspective and your perspective. Offer to coach them so
they can contribute, without dominating meetings.
Actual meetings
* Ask that all cell phones be turned off.
* Ask people to be focused on the agenda items and to be ‘laser-like’ (to the point, not
rambling) in their communications.
* At the beginning of the meeting, identify its purpose and desired outcomes.
* Start and finish meetings on time; don’t wait for late arrivals and don’t go over
material latecomers have missed.
* Stop participants who interrupt others when they’re speaking or who are dominating
the conversation.
* Record the meeting using a simple action plan format; i.e., decisions made, who’s
doing what, by when, resources needed, what outcomes are required.
* Challenge any poor timekeeping throughout the meeting.
* Challenge any lack of focus in the discussions or when people stray off topic.
* Ensure any tasks are allocated to individuals before the meeting ends and follow up
on the agreed actions at the next meeting.
* Ensure the first agenda item on every agenda for every meeting, is to report back on
the agreed actions since the previous meeting.
* Ensure everyone around the table has a chance to speak.
* Ask for clarification of issues, or refocus the meeting when needed.
* Expect professional behaviours and challenge participants who don’t behave
appropriately.
* At the end of a meeting, ask yourself (and the participants) if the outcome of the
meeting was worth the time and the combined cost to the organisation. For example,
what did we achieve? What was the value of this meeting? Was it worth our time

and the cost to the organisation? What other ways could we have achieved these
outcomes?
*****
Chapter 3: Time Thief: Telephones
Mobile phones, landlines and Skype means we can be available 24/7. But do we want
to? Possibly not. Should we have to? Not necessarily. You can reduce telephone time
thieves by adopting the following tips:
* Make personal calls in personal time, not company time.
* Plan your telephone calls (the people, your purpose, the desired outcome) before you
pick up the phone.
* Cluster telephone calls – do them at a predetermined time through the day, e.g.
10.15am, then again at 2.30pm.
* Clear answerphones regularly – do it throughout the day, at set times, e.g. 10.15am
and 2.30pm. Note who you need to contact and return the call at the predetermined
time, or earlier if the call is urgent.
* Divert your phone or turn on its answer service when you don’t want to be
interrupted from your work.
* When leaving messages, tell callers the time you will be available to speak to them,
should they wish to call you back.
* Develop a cue card system (or the electronic version of the system), to take notes on
the content of your calls. This way you won’t forget what you’ve discussed or what
you promised to do.
* Regularly update your personal message options on your phone; i.e., stating when
you are away from your office or are on annual leave.
* Speak slowly when recording your voice messages (on your own and others’
telephones) and repeat your phone number and name twice.
* Take personal chats with friends out of the work day, if you can; ask to call them
back later on at a time that would be more suitable, or suggest catching up over
lunch.
* Take accurate messages and ask the same of others (name, date, subject and contact

numbers).
* Develop and use message pads to help record important information.
* Buy a headset if you spend a lot of time on the telephone; this leaves your hands free
to write notes while talking, and it saves getting a sore neck or sore hands from
holding the phone at a particular angle for too long.
* Never hold on when an operator asks if you’d like to wait; instead, leave a message
with the best time for them to call you back.
* Let callers know your time constraints; i.e., “I’ve only got 5 minutes to chat right
now”.
* Store often-used numbers in your phone and use speed dial when calling them.
* Be assertively polite; keep your focus on every call.
* Time limit each call you make or respond to, for example, 10 minutes maximum.
* Recognise that making and receiving calls will take up a great deal of time in a
working day and plan for that reality. The call that will ‘only take a minute’, rarely
does.
* Use caller ID to screen calls.
* Learn conversation-finishing techniques, to control the duration of telephone calls.
For example, “I’ve got to finish this call now, I have a meeting to go to”, or, “To
summarise then, you’re going to do X and Y and I’m going to do Z and we’ll talk
again next Tuesday, correct? Great, thanks for your time, goodbye”, or, “Could you
work on that problem, come up with three options for solving it and get back to me
tomorrow morning at 10am and we can discuss it then? Ok, thanks for that, bye”, or,
“I’d love to chat further but I can’t, I’ve got to go now. Bye”.
*****
Chapter 4: Time Thief: Email
Email has transformed and improved the way we communicate. However, it can also
contribute to our downfall or be a source of much frustration. You can reduce email
time thieves by adopting the following tips:
* Shut off the incoming message audio alert – it’s a distraction you don’t need.
* Clear emails at two or three set times (diaried times) throughout the day.

* Prioritise the emails in terms of importance.
* Don’t always respond immediately – respond at selected times during the day, and
chunk the emails needing a response; then do them all in one hit.
* Treat email correspondence like paper correspondence – know that reading, writing
and clearing emails takes a lot of time – it’s rarely a 15 minute activity.
* Discourage personal emails (jokes, chain mail) from colleagues.
* Ask correspondents to fill in the subject line.
* Don’t write and send emails when you’re angry; write a draft, save it, and review it
the next day.
* Don’t send emails about sensitive or easily misinterpreted matters: face-to-face
communications or a telephone call is more appropriate.
* Ensure the email technology is current so that the system supports your activities, not
hinders them.
* Limit the back-and-forth, back-and-forth email messages – use stopping phrases in
your emails or speak to the person directly.
* Establish email folders and put emails into them.
* Model the email protocol that you want from others.
* Don’t read jokes/junk mail. Delete them immediately.
* Adopt a ‘need to know’ approach to sending emails; don’t CC everyone into every
email. It’s profoundly irritating, is most often completely unnecessary, and clutters
up people’s inboxes.
* If a topic needs more than two to three emails, use the telephone instead. It’s faster
and more effective.
* Periodically deregister from group emails.
* Don’t respond to emails that you don’t have to, for example, sending back a quick
‘thanks’.
* Ask people to send personal emails to your personal email address.
* Learn speed reading/scanning techniques, to quickly get the gist of email content.
* Ask people to write in plain English if their writing style is too academic, difficult to
interpret/decipher, or filled with jargon and confusing acronyms.

* Use a spam filter.
* Use the email system’s ‘rules’ function to perform routine responses, sort through
irrelevant emails, and to bundle CCs and BCCs.
*****
Chapter 5: Time Thief: Interruptions
If we are interrupted doing a task, it will take our brain about 10-15 minutes to
reorientate itself back to the task once the interruption is over – depending on the
length of the interruption and the complexity of the task. Who can afford this amount
of wasted time in a day already filled with other demands? You can reduce interruption
time thieves by adopting the following tips:
* Don’t welcome casual visitors to your work space.
* Know your priorities, time frames and deadlines for the day, and stick to them.
* Use a daily ‘to do’ list; and a weekly, monthly or yearly planner, to keep your focus.
* Periodically, keep a daily activity log and distraction record, to see where your time
is really being spent.
* Develop and use assertive 'stopping' phrases on people who interrupt you in your
work, e.g. “I’m unable to help you with that just now; I suggest you come back to
me at 3pm with some of your recommendations and we’ll have a quick chat then”.
* Establish why people want to see you, before you set up a meeting time with them.
* Whenever possible, suggest meetings in a person’s own office. That way you can
control the beginning and end of the meeting and leave when you need to.
* Minimise eye contact with interrupters. It signals you are busy and it’s not ok to be
interrupted.
* If people want to see you and it doesn’t suit, acknowledge their need, so they feel
heard. Then make a time with them for another day at a time that does suit; or
arrange to talk to them at break time.
* Learn to say ‘No’. Or, “No, I can’t help you just now”. Or, “No, I can’t help you
today”. Or, “No, I’m not the right person to ask”. For such a small word, it’s known
to be incredibly difficult to get it out of our mouths.
* Try to fix definite times when you do not want to be disturbed (short of an

emergency or catastrophic situation), and make the system work – i.e., put a sign on
your door, divert your phone, go off-site and do some work at a café (preferably,
one where you’re not likely to run into anyone you know!).
* Set time limits on your discussions.
* Avoid engaging in endless small talk. There’s a fine line between not enough, just
enough and far too much.
* If you can’t get people to leave your office or working space, leave the area yourself.
* If you do get interrupted, restrict the amount of time you take to deal with it, for
example, a minute or two – at the most.
* Shut your door. Be unavailable for decent sized chunks of time when doing
important work that requires concentration and thought. The ‘open door’ policy,
taken to extremes, sets people up for failure. Some work requires peace, quiet and
no interruptions.
* Watch the time you take for lunch and morning/afternoon breaks – take only what
you’re allowed.
*****
Chapter 6: General Tips
Here are some other tips that will make your working day more productive:
* Clear/tidy your desk at the end of each working day.
* At the end of each day, plan for the next day – it’ll only take 5 minutes.
* Ensure you have given yourself sufficient time to do the tasks you need to do. As a
rule of thumb, overestimate – especially if you know from past experience that you
tend to underestimate time and task requirements and squeeze things in, putting
yourself under intense pressure.
* In your planning, always expect and allow a period of time for the unexpected. In
other words, make your deadline some days or weeks before an official deadline.
* Prioritise your work – it’s the key to time management. Think ‘A, B, Cs’ or ‘1, 2,
3s’. Identify the important and the urgent.
* Do the most difficult tasks first (ideally, first thing in the morning); do minor jobs
when you’re not so fresh (typically, mid to late afternoon).

* Don’t procrastinate – break tasks into small, manageable pieces; find a beginning
point and simply start.
* Don’t wait for motivation – it may never come. Just begin. Now. Do it. Stop
mucking about.
* Arrange set times throughout your day for key tasks; i.e., clearing your mail, meeting
with staff, having breaks.
* Ensure you take regular breaks for food, water, stretching, etc. – so you feed your
brain and your body.
* Develop your own effective administrative systems; i.e., filing, placement of files
and shelving, colour-coded files and bring-up systems.
* Remember the Pareto 80/20 principle. Before taking action, spend time thinking and
planning. Check that you’re not spending 80% of your time on work that contributes
to only 20% of the results/outcome, or is only 20% of your total work
responsibilities.
* Plan ahead for known events; i.e., staff changes, annual leave, introduction of new
technology, training and development initiatives, regular maintenance of machinery,
shortage of consumable supplies (toner, printer paper), introduction of new software.
* Get advice when you need it – don’t try to be an expert in areas that are outside your
expertise. Don’t guess or assume – check first. It will save you time in the long run.
* Ensure staff get the necessary training to do their jobs well. Don’t abandon them or
let them struggle. It will take new employees longer to get up to speed if they’re left
without support and guidance.
* Learn to delegate effectively and appropriately to capable and willing people.
* After you’ve diaried the time for your own up-skilling, spend time becoming familiar
with new procedures, technologies, etc., as soon as you are faced with them. Time
spent early on will save you heaps of time, later on. Trust me. It will.
* Learn to be assertive – it’ll help, especially when dealing with time thieves.
* Ensure your work area is 'work ready'; i.e., your equipment is close at hand, your
files are well labelled and appropriate for the task, you have appropriate lighting,
and a comfortable desk and chair.

* Wear headphones to block out any distracting background noise.
* Use one diary to plan and manage your time. Avoid using multiple diaries as
important things can easily get lost between them.
* Set work goals and stick to them – concentrate on results, not just on being busy.
* Use ‘to do’ lists.
* Handle pieces of paper, i.e., mail, only once. This is the ideal, however it’s a bit
difficult to do at times and it can be impractical depending on the information you
have to work with, or who you have to consult or work with on an issue.
* ‘Chunk and label’ time in your diary. This means marking out an amount of time to
do a specific piece of work and writing it in your diary. This way you make an
appointment with yourself to do something specific, and you start and finish it in
predetermined time frames.
* Eliminate all unnecessary meetings or time wasting activities. Be ruthless.
* Identify your time and self-management problems and own them. You are
responsible for what you do or don’t do, for what you do or don’t tolerate. Only you.
* Don’t rush – do one task at a time.
* Spend time working ‘on’ and ‘in’ the business. There is a difference between the
two. ‘On’ the business means taking a big picture view of the business (or section or
team) or specific requirements; and ‘in’ the business means doing particular work
that you need to do.
* File, don’t pile. Filing can be done in a spare 10 minutes or when you need a break
from one mentally demanding piece of work or before starting another demanding
piece of work.
* Remember how good it feels to complete a task. Oftentimes the burden of carrying
around a number of ‘incompletes’ is energy draining. The more loose ends you can
eliminate, the better.
* Chunk and label some time to do all the tasks you’re been avoiding or
procrastinating over – the ‘too hard basket’ stuff. Then tackle each one until there is
nothing left in the basket. This will bring peace of mind and a reduction in stress or
worry. Then get rid of the basket – it isn’t doing you any favours at all.

* Spend 20 minutes on a task and if you don’t feel able to proceed any further that day,
allow yourself to back out of it. Sometimes we get into a piece of work to find we
don’t have all the information or the promised material hasn’t arrived, so
temporarily ‘backing out’ occurs for good reason.
* Know your own work patterns and what energises you; and know what you tend to
avoid and why you do it.
* Ask people to stop waffling and endlessly repeating the same stuff – ask them to be
laser-like; i.e., get to the heart of something quickly. If you’ve heard the same story
50 times, say you don’t need to hear it again, unless there has been a new piece of
information come to hand.
* Educate staff to advise colleagues and receptionist if they are unavailable.
Time is irreplaceable – once it’s gone it has gone forever – so what you do with it
is up to you. What choices do you want to make?
The End
*****
About the author:
Sue Dwan is a change agent, management coach and writer (educational, management
and travel). She works with energized, resilient, skilled and passionate people who
want to achieve great things and create healthy, productive, vibrant and happy
workplaces. When she isn’t doing this, she’s travelling or planning her next adventure.
Connect with me online:
Twitter: />My blog: />My website:
Smashwords: />Discover other titles by Sue Dwan at Smashwords.com:
The Kiwi Sisters’ Camino de Santiago:
/>A SAMPLE FROM The Kiwi Sisters’ Camino de Santiago
INTRODUCTION: Taking the Plunge
A simple enough question
One evening in 2008 my sister Catherine asked me, “Would you be interested in
walking the Camino?” For a number of years she’d been talking about doing the
Camino de Santiago pilgrimage trail across northern Spain, and had planned to walk it

in 2009 with a friend. However, her friend found she wasn’t able to go, so Catherine
was prepared to either do it alone or find someone else to go with her. She wanted to
take Camino Francés (the ‘French Way’ – one of the most popular routes) and spoke
glowingly of the 800 kilometre walk to the city of Santiago de Compostela (or
‘Santiago’), recounting the articles she’d read that suggested it was a manageable trip
for everyone. Is it?
Well yes, if history is anything to go by. Santiago, along with Rome and Jerusalem,
were all popular destination points for pilgrimages in the Middle Ages.
Traditionally, pilgrimages involved a long journey to a sacred site that had a moral or
spiritual importance. Pilgrims had specific goals in mind, such as to: cure an illness,
fulfil a vow, undertake an act of devotion or self-mortification, receive a plenary
indulgence (a remission of punishment due for sins already forgiven), show regret for
any wrong doing, or as a form of penance for their crimes. Their focus was on a
spiritual leader, saint or any holy objects/relics associated with the revered person –
such as body parts, clothing or other items. And sometimes, rich people paid poor
people to walk the pilgrimage for them.
Pilgrims walked or travelled by horse and were totally reliant on themselves and the
kindness of strangers for shelter, food and protection.
Information about the Camino from books, blogs and articles reveals, like most things
now Christian, that it had its origins in Paganism, Druidic ritual and the worship of
Venus. At one point the important destination was Finisterre (Finis Terre – ‘World’s
End’). After the Catholic Church overlaid their beliefs on top of the previous origins,
the focus shifted to St. James, one of Christ’s apostles, and Santiago de Compostela.
In fact, ‘Camino de Santiago’ means the ‘Way of St. James’, and legend has it that St.
James preached in Galicia, was beheaded in the Holy Land and his disciples took his
body back to Galicia for burial. The city of Santiago grew around the shrine containing
his tomb. One source of information suggests the name ‘Santiago’ comes from the
Latin ‘Sanctu Iacobu’, or in English, ‘St. James’; and ‘Compostela’ (also spelled
‘Compostella’) comes from the Latin ‘Campus Stellae’, or ‘Field of the Star’; or
Composita Tella (Buried Ground), or Compositellam (The Well Composed One).

Source: />Even though the Camino de Santiago is known as a Christian – and specifically
Catholic – pilgrimage trail, people who walk it today may or may not be Christian;
they may be from other faiths or have no religious beliefs at all. The trail is also for
those who may simply want a long walk, cycle or horse ride in the countryside; or for
those who may want a break away from the hustle and bustle of everyday life and their
working or personal world. It is also for those who may want to experience another
country and culture up close; for those who may want to focus on their inner self, their
spiritual and personal development; and for those who want time to reflect and ‘be’,
for a while. It is for those who may want an adventure and the chance to do something
different. Every pilgrim has their own reason for being there and not all reasons may
be declared.
Us, outdoor women – really?
When I’d listen to Catherine speak about the Camino, my previous outdoorsy-type
activities in the South Island of New Zealand always sprang to mind. The Milford, St.
James, Hollyford, Routeburn and Heaphy tracks have terrific scenery; it was getting
there to see it that was difficult. Hardly surprising really, given I did those walks
without much preparation or training and was fuelled by great optimism and a can-do
approach. I struggled with the hard physical slog (no handy walking poles then); the
huge, uncomfortable packs; the borrowed boots and the heavy clothing (stiff
waterproof over-trousers, the scratchy ‘Swanndri’ wool jacket, the leak-guaranteed, so-
called waterproof jackets). Added bonuses were the joys of cramped shared bunk
accommodation, the charming toilets out the back, and washing in the creek.
After every trip I always asked myself what possessed me to say “yes” in the first
place, and the reasons were always the same: the physical and mental challenge, the
scenery and the company. And Catherine, come to think of it, wasn’t much better in
her preparation for hiking trips. She’d also had the ghastly experience of getting
hypothermia at the top of the Milford Track.
We’re really not outdoor women and our livelihoods aren’t orientated to it either.
Catherine’s a registered nurse, a manager in the health sector and does Healing Touch
(a relaxing energy therapy using gentle touch) in her spare time. I have my own

business as a personal management trainer/coach and educational writer and do a little
Reiki on occasions. By the nature of our work we’re office-bound mostly, but we have
always kept a level of health and fitness by exercising regularly and eating well. We’d
both walked a number of half marathons over the years and competed in several
Masters’ Games in 5 kilometre and 10 kilometre walks, and I’d walked the Brisbane
Marathon in 2006.
Would that be enough?
Attractions of the Camino
It’s hard to describe how the Camino pilgrims’ walk captured our imagination and
triggered huge stirrings of excitement and nerves, in equal parts. We were looking at
an 800 kilometre physical challenge over the Pyrenees mountain range and across the
north of Spain, starting in St. Jean-Pied-de-Port (in the south of France) or Roncevaux
(also called Roncesvalles) in the north of Spain, and finishing on Spain’s west coast, in
Santiago de Compostela. Along the way, pilgrims (peregrinos) can stay in albergues de
peregrinos (sometimes called ‘refugios’ or ‘hostales’), private hostels or hotels.
The albergue typically offers bunk beds with additional overflow space being
mattresses on the floor. The shared facilities are probably what you’d expect in such
places – from decidedly less-than-good, to very good. Most peregrinos take their world
on their back in a backpack, and if they follow the recommended guidelines, carry only
10% of their body weight. It would be a huge challenge for us to walk this far across a
foreign country, not knowing the language, culture or customs of Spain, and not
knowing what may happen along the way or how we would manage it on a daily basis.
Faced with all of that, who could possibly say no?
Watch what you wish for
At the beginning of an idea, I’m not that interested in the finer details – I much prefer
the big picture and to think about the practicalities at a later date when I need to. So it
was with the Camino. After discussing the walk yet again after a glass or two of wine
one night, when Catherine asked, “Would you be interested in walking the Camino?”
what else but, “Yes, I’d love to!” pours out of my mouth.
Accurate diagnosis?

It’s strange how many friends and colleagues responded the same way when I said that
I was going to walk the Camino. “You’re mad!” they’d say, before going into gales of
laughter. Catherine had the same response – friends indicated that 800 kilometres was
beyond the pale, she must be having them on, and “You’re not in your 20s, you know”.
Mind you, we’d been told this before. In the 1980s a friend and I decided to bike from
Blenheim to Christchurch (in New Zealand, 310 kilometres) in 3 days over one hot
Christmas holiday, without any preparation or training. It was doable, although my
knees haven’t been quite the same since. And over the years, other ventures included
cycle touring with Catherine and friends from Dunedin to Christchurch, Arthur’s Pass
to Greymouth, Arthur’s Pass to Christchurch, Picton to Blenheim, and Picton to Queen
Charlotte Sound. “You’re mad!” has followed but not deterred us. Friends may well be
right in their analysis, but really, all we have is a desire to have a small adventure
every now and again. Is that really so extraordinary? How many people, if they were
honest with themselves, wouldn’t like to run away from it all, do something
completely different and see how they cope and grow from the experience?
Only Ms Average
During that March, the focus was to get physically fit for the walk. We both had a
fitness test and despite our usual number of exercise sessions each week, we were both
‘Ms Average’. The experienced folks at the sports centre gave me the bones of a
training plan to flesh out, document and follow. It sounded eminently doable but
really, wouldn’t it be great if you could do the Camino without any training
whatsoever and have no ill effects from doing so? The training would be a huge time
commitment – a 6-8 month training plan that would take up yet more of the weekend
and more time during the week as well. I felt tired just thinking about it.
MacLaine’s Camino
I’d read that Shirley MacLaine had walked the Camino a few years previously and
wrote 'The Camino: A Journey of the Spirit' (2001) as a result. I tracked it down and
just read it. Her story describes a challenging physical journey, various spiritual
encounters and reflections, some alarming encounters with wild dogs and much
subterfuge to avoid fans and publicity. The wild dogs had me worried.

Trekking poles
It was a mission to find trekking poles that didn’t cost the earth, but we finally found
them. It took a few goes to get the right bits of the pole to undo at the right level and
stay in position, but generally, they were great. I felt slightly strange using them, but
they really did make a difference. Regardless of whether one’s walking on the flat,
uphill or down dale, they help one’s propulsion as the arms and the poles provide
directed power and stability. The Nordic walking technique I had yet to get right.
While I was concentrating on the placement of the pole in line with my feet and
walking and swinging my arms forward and back, I seemed to lose the ability to walk
altogether and keep falling over my feet. It would be a long 800 kilometres if I was
tripping over all the while.
Advice from peregrinos
We were hearing of more and more people who had done the Camino, through talking
with friends or complete strangers. A few years prior we hadn’t heard of it at all, let
alone people who had done it – but now pilgrims were popping up everywhere. A team
mate I met on a Habitat for Humanity trip in Vietnam in early 2009 worked with a
woman who walked the Camino in 2008 with her husband. She offered to meet with us
to talk about her experience. Someone Catherine worked with had walked it a few
years previously and sent us some of her information. Another friend had a book with
maps and a day-to-day guide to the walk that she lent us to pore over and copy some of
the information.
What the Psychic told the Pilgrim
Great joy! We discovered 'What the Psychic told the Pilgrim' by Jane Christmas
(2007). Jane’s a brave (or foolhardy) Canadian who decided to walk the Camino with a
group of complete strangers (about 14 other women, as it turned out) and documented
the experience. It’s an interesting, amusing read. On arrival at St. Jean, some women
took one look at the Pyrenees and decided it was too big to walk; some women
moaned and whined the entire trip about the walk itself, the weather, their aches and
pains, their travelling companions, the Spanish, the food, the accommodation and the
utter foreignness of it all.

Some of the women chose to do most of the ‘walk’ by taxi or bus, because they
couldn’t possibly walk any distance whatsoever, despite knowing what was involved
before leaving Canada. And Jane herself fought her own concerns and fears, achieved
her goal and made it to Santiago without any of the group. What a clever woman,
leaving them all behind. I was getting a sense that the Camino isn’t a walk in the park
by any means. It’s clearly not a trip for the Faint Hearted, the Perpetual Whiners and
Whingers’ Society and the Misery Guts Brigade, that’s for sure.
Australians experience the Camino
This was another lucky strike, book-wise. A friend gave us 'The Year We Seized the
Day' by two Australian authors, Elizabeth Best and Colin Bowles (2007). The book is
well set out: one author writes about their day, followed by the other author, with their
take and reflections on the same events. It’s a great yarn, although I turned each page
with a degree of trepidation as each day seemed to be filled with great angst and
hardship. They set off to do the Camino within 2 weeks of making a decision to go,
and arrived in Spain without benefit of training or adequate preparation.
Their first few weeks were a horror story of sore, infected feet; aching, complaining
muscles; weighty packs loaded with unnecessary stuff; some dreadful weather and
challenges with the terrain; and for the weeks that followed, difficulties with each
other and their own personal demons. It wasn’t until near the end of the story that there
was any glimmer of joy – most of it sounded like a trip from hell.
I’d been reading this book in bed each night, and if I hadn’t already been horizontal,
I’d have needed a lie down and a cup of tea after every chapter. It’s compellingly grim
and funny in parts and all credit to them, they made it to the end and managed to keep
their friendship intact – no mean feat, given what they went through. Would the walk
really be that difficult? I suspected it would be hugely physically and mentally
challenging as well as joyous and fun…I did hope the balance leaned more towards the
joyous and fun end.
Adjusted climbs
Via Amazon.com, we tracked down John Brierley’s ‘A Pilgrim’s Guide to the Camino
de Santiago’ (2009), and used this as our guidebook. The cover says it’s a practical and

mystical manual for the modern day pilgrim, and interestingly, it has two sets of
figures for walking distances. Even though a distance for one day may be, say, 24.8
kilometres from A to B, the distance is adjusted to accommodate the climb, so that
24.8 becomes 29 kilometres. I wondered if the first figure is the measure of how the
crow flies distance-wise, versus the reality of taking smaller and more steps when you
are going up or downhill or taking a circuitous route.
Curiosity finally got the better of me and research into the mysteries of the adjusted
climb figures revealed a foreign world of mapping models, mathematics and
algorithms. As I understood it (bearing in mind I don’t have a mathematical bone in
my body) there are three ways to measure the hilliness of a route: the total vertical
climb plus the grade (given as a percentage) and distance; and a hill index (the overall
hilliness and steepness of a route). I decided I’d stick with the layperson’s
interpretation and the description in the guidebook – it would be a demanding walk
over hilly, steep terrain over a very, very long distance.
Great advice
Over wine, delicious cheese, grapes, nibbles and a roaring fire, pilgrim Gay shared her
2008 Camino experience. She showed us her super light-weight Aarn pack designed
by a clever New Zealander, big in all things alpine and trekking and weighing only
1.2-1.5 kilos – the pack that is, not the designer. The pack has extra bags to wear on
your front to counter-balance the weight of the back pack – how very smart – although
it does make you look like you have monstrous breasts. She showed us her trekking
poles and gave a live demonstration of their use across the carpet, and showed us her
socks, boots, hat, rain jacket and merino possum fur lightweight jacket.
She also shared heaps of cunning tips: weigh everything you are going to take; carry
only 10% of your total body weight; take Sunlight soap (a plain, multi-purpose
unscented soap) – it will wash body and anything else equally well; also take a small
sharp knife, a small container to put crushable food in, a guidebook (throw away the
pages or post them home after you no longer need them); don’t take shampoo or
moisturisers or any items that aren’t essential (your hair will do alright without
shampoo and daily washing in water will suffice); do a dummy-run pack about a

month or so out from departure to check the weight of the full pack.
She spoke about her training programme and encouraged us to walk with full packs for
several weeks before we went, so we’d be comfortable and familiar walking with
weight. We came away with our minds racing and feeling both excited and nervous, in
unequal parts this time.
Walking schedule
We mapped out a tentative 31 walking day schedule for the 800 kilometres and
allowed a week for travelling to and from Europe – we’d be away for 5 weeks in total.
There were no rest days in the schedule, even through in all the books we’d read so far,
they were highly recommended. Our tight time frames precluded them. We’d just have
to wing it, run with our usual optimistic mind set (there’ll be no hiccups) and see what
happened.
Knickers
One of my much travelled, venturesome friends suggested I buy a pair of superfine
merino boxer boy-leg knickers/underwear. She said they’re extremely comfortable to
wear, will keep one cool in hot conditions and warm in cold conditions, are fast drying
and best of all (she warned me it might sound disgusting), you could wear them for
days without washing them if you need to, as they won’t smell. By all accounts the
fabric is very forgiving and sensible for outdoorsy type travel.
Camino shopping
I spent a morning in town looking at some of the things that were recommended to us.
Some items certainly weren’t cheap. Good walking shoes were over $200 (and that’s
not even at the mid-price range); the super lightweight Aarn backpack
(www.aarnpacks.com) with the breast plate look was just under $300; waterproof over
trousers were about $80-$100; the highly recommended super wool socks were about
$30 a pair; the superfine merino boxer knickers were about $35 a pair…it went on and
on. My shopping list was quite large, and apart from all of this, I also needed a rain
jacket and merino leggings in case things got chilly.
Foot booty
Pilgrim Gay spoke highly of the manager of a particular sports shoe store she’d gone

to in search of appropriate footwear for her Camino trip. We went along to see what
she’d recommend and were assured we didn’t need boots, just a good pair of walking
shoes. Being particular, we also wanted walking shoes that would match, colour-wise,
the clothing we planned to take. I wanted brown shoes, Catherine was after blue. Of
course, true pilgrims are meant to be concerned with higher order stuff like spiritual
development and great enlightenment, but here we were, concerned about being
colour-coordinated. In our defence, we could only say we had etched in our mind some
of our earlier hiking trips and cycle touring trips – had the fashion police been around,
they’d have run us out of town. Eventually though, the shoe shopping was successful
and we left the store with brown and blue shoes respectively – and the footwear didn’t
look too orthopaedic or more suited to Big Foot’s wardrobe. All we needed to do now
was to get everything else to go with the shoes…
In a flash of pre-Camino insight, we realised that pride might be a personal challenge
to get over. We planned to take one set of clothing for day walking and one set of
clothing for evening wear. Although we’d be colour-coordinated, wearing the same
clothing for 30-odd days would be a challenge, and add getting hot and bothered and
dirty along the way…we suspected that overall it wouldn’t be a great look.
Packs
Having looked at the range available in the stores and their price tags, I decided to
borrow my sister-in-law’s pack. She bought it in Vietnam, it was a knock off of a well-
known brand and looked like the real deal. It would have to do and I’d put money into
some other essentials instead as I wasn’t sure if I’d ever need a backpack again.
Catherine had bought one a few years previously in preparation for the trip and had it
fitted to suit her back – so she’d take that. I also looked at smaller sleeping bags – we
both had Fairydown ones that we’d had for years, but they weren’t small and not
exactly lightweight either – that was the problem. They were certainly cosy though, as
about 1,000 ducks gave their all for the filling.
Packing list
One of Catherine’s colleagues gave her a suggested packing list for the Camino. We
went through it, added to it with some of pilgrim Gay’s information, and the list was

huge:
Night: sleeping bag, silk liner, a pillow case or inflatable pillow, tee-shirt/nightie, a
plastic sheet for under sleeping bag, a headlamp/torch, jandals (flip-flops – for the
shower), travel towel and afternoon/evening clothes: trousers, one merino polo top,
bra, knickers, socks, warm jacket, light shoes.
Day: walking trousers, one sun-protective shirt, sun hat, bra, knickers, socks, walking
shoes, warm jacket (same one used for evening wear), walking poles.
Wet weather: rain jacket or plastic poncho, over trousers, pack cover, hat, gloves,
thermal top and leggings.
Other: camera with spare batteries, memory sticks and power cords, spare glasses and
prescription, sunglasses, spare shoelaces, toe protectors, sunblock lotion, plastic plate,
mug, utensils, bandages, paracetamol (pain relief), own toiletries and medications,
Vaseline (for the feet), Sunlight soap, lipstick and lip gloss, hand sanitizer, one spare
pair of walking socks, cell phone and charger, passport (with copies of cover page),
tickets (copied twice), itinerary, money belt, bank card, cash, an anti-theft bag
protector and lock to secure pack, toilet paper, food container and sharp knife, springy
expandable clothesline, some clothes pegs, non-plastic (quiet) bags for packing
clothing in, email addresses and list of names and addresses, maps, guidebook, pen,
small notebook, muesli bars and electrolyte replacement powder.
We planned to wear one set of clothing during the day and wash it each day at the
albergue (not the socks though, they might last a day or two), and wear one set of
clothing through the late afternoon and at night, after we’d showered and changed,
then keep our underwear on and wear a large tee shirt as nightwear. This would be
ideal for being in cosy, cramped bunk rooms with complete strangers, although, as the
saying goes, they’d simply be friends we hadn’t met before.
Spanner in the works
Four months before going away I found a lump in my thyroid gland and needed to
have it x-rayed, drained and tested. If I needed any surgery and follow up treatment I’d
have to get it done immediately, and there was the potential that any post-operation
requirements might stop me from leaving on our proposed departure date. Catherine

was on a particular timeline and her trip couldn’t be delayed. She gave her workplace
notice of her trip about 18 months ahead and formally put in a request for 6 weeks’
leave over a month ago and hadn’t had a reply yet. In the absence of hearing to the
contrary, she was proceeding as if it would be alright. There was no reason why it
shouldn’t be. However, we delayed making our flight bookings while I went through
the thyroid checking process.
Green to go
Thankfully, several weeks after discovering the lump it was drained, tested and alright.
It shouldn’t cause any problems so it was now all go with our plans. Because of the
delay, we missed opportunities to get good airline routes, seats and prices in the dates
we had to work within. We’d have to fly over and back on the fastest possible route,
with minimal stopovers in airports along the way. We’d be working right up to the day
we’d leave and hit the ground running when we arrived in Barcelona. Our proposed 31
walking day schedule didn’t include any rest days or contingency days in case of
illness; there was no margin if anything untoward occurred, and we would have to get
to Santiago on the designated date, regardless of what happened in between.
Despite the alarm caused by the lump and time spent imaging some what-ifs, in itself it
had been a real gift. It was a timely reminder that as human beings we can so easily be
put off doing something because we think we will have a tomorrow, or a series of
tomorrows, that will look like our yesterdays and our today. We have no such
guarantee, and to think otherwise is an illusion. Our reality can change in an instant.
Longest leave
It seemed incredible to think that this trip would be the longest time we’d both had off
from fulltime work since 1977. I had met up with Catherine in England that year, and
we travelled together with friends for 3 months around Europe. I was pleased I’d made
the decision to close my doors and leave my clients, my work and my comfortable
daily routines for 5 whole weeks. How delicious it would be to once again simply walk
away from everything familiar and be a traveller in a foreign land.
I couldn’t help but reflect on how easily I’d become a human ‘doing’ over the years –
doing and doing without adequately sized restorative breaks. This holiday might be the

trigger to become a truly revitalised human being again by being in the moment, being
free of constraints, being free of work pressures, being completely unavailable to
others.
Packing issues
Pilgrim Gay suggested that as we slowly gathered stuff together we put everything out
on a spare bed, then pack the packs a few weeks before departure day and do both hill
and flat walking with them on. It would be one way to get a feel for the weight and
give us time to reduce our load, if the packs were too heavy. The spare bed was
certainly filling up, but I couldn’t bring myself to actually put stuff in the pack. By
themselves the items weren’t large, but looking at them spread out on the bed, I wasn’t
convinced they’d all fit in. The heaviest items would be the cell phone charger, the
adaptor, the camera charger and all the associated cords.
Anti-theft security system
In one Camino blog I’d read, the writer stressed the importance of taking an anti-theft