Time management can be a successful tool in assisting you with your day to day routine by opening up time you didn’t realize you were wasting. Below are some great time management tips for getting started with adding time management to your day.
You may look at others around you and wonder how in the world they do it all. For you, your day is nothing but running from task to task, feeling as if you are constantly chasing your tail. It isn’t that you have more to do, it is just that you aren’t good about managing your time.
The concept of time management sounds simple, but applying it can be difficult. You have to be willing to invest a little time and be willing to make some mistakes along the way. But, once you find the right groove, you’ll be amazed at how much more you can get done every day.
Other helpful articles:
- How to Organize Your Family’s Schedules
- Must-Have Apps to Simplify Your Life
- The Trick to Sticking to Your To Do List
HOW TO MANAGE YOUR TIME
1. Know the difference between urgent and important
You must first differentiate between the things you need to do that are urgent and those that are important. Urgent tasks need your immediate attention whereas important tasks matter, but may not have immediate consequences.
For example, it is important that you pay your bills on time. If you don’t, it could become urgent before they turn off your electricity.
Understanding the difference is the key to prioritizing both your personal and professional workload.
2. Create a list
It takes time to sit down and make a to do list but it’s worth it. Before the week begins, write down the appointments and obligations you have for each day. Then on a separate sheet of paper, write down the things you need to get done that don’t have a specific deadline.
Find your empty spots throughout your schedule and place these deadline-free responsibilities in those spots as desired. Make sure you’re planning the highest priority ones first.
3. Start with the most important tasks
Each day, start out by doing those “must do” tasks first. That way, they are done and you can focus any time you have left on smaller, often much less demanding tasks.
When you see you’ve accomplished something, you’ll feel much more motivated to get even more done each day.
4. Learn how to say no
Saying no is something with which many people struggle. You want to be able to help with all of your child’s activities, but there are times you need to say no. If you can’t give everyone 100% of yourself, you both suffer.
Remember that you are not saying no to the person, but rather, to the task.
[click_to_tweet tweet=”When you say ‘NO’ to someone else, you are saying ‘YES’ to yourself!” quote=”When you say ‘NO’ to someone else, you are saying ‘YES’ to yourself!”]
5. Start your day early
As great as it is to just sleep in, if you can get up out of bed and start your day, you’ll get more done! As the saying goes, the early bird gets the worm!!
6. Pay attention to your social time
It is so simple to get sucked into the Facebook newsfeed or the pages of beautiful food images on Pinterest. Those are a huge waste of time. The app RescueTime will help you track your online time so you can see where you waste those precious minutes.
7. Take care of yourself
Make sure that you get enough sleep, drink enough water and eat healthily. Doing so keeps you focused and aware during the day and can reduce the tendencies of mid-afternoon slumps.
8. Spend time doing what you want
If you give and give and don’t allow time to do the things you enjoy, you’ll burn out and quit. Allow yourself time to read a book, go for a walk, play with your kids – whatever makes YOU happy. Once you do, you will return to your tasks more focused.
9. Include time in your day for interruptions
No matter what your day brings, there is going to be something that will interrupt your day. Include time for this when planning your schedule so you don’t feel so overwhelmed when it happens.
10. You can’t do it all
You aren’t superman or superwoman. You are human. There is no way that you can ever do it all. Do what you can and know that what you don’t finish today will be there waiting for you tomorrow.
11. Don’t be lazy
As much as we would love to lie in bed on the days we have off, use these days to take care of a few extra responsibilities. Always take care of the most important responsibilities first or the most pressing ones, that way you can relax on taking care of the others a bit. You will feel much better while relaxing knowing you have nothing that needs to be done.
12. Don’t procrastinate
Procrastination gets us all at one time or another. However, it’s the biggest pitfall of time management. Too many responsibilities can get stacked up to where we overwhelm ourselves or make it near impossible to get them all taken care of. If something is presented to you, get it done right then if possible. If not, it will only be one more thing you will have to remember to get done later. Don’t do that to yourself.
Overall, get to know yourself and your habits. Be honest about where you fall short and compensate for that. We all handle our time differently but with a few adjustments, we can all learn to organize our time effectively.
