Time Management Tips

No matter what business you’re in time management is one of the main causes of chaos and stress in the lives of many.

Are you worn out? Or are you taking the necessary steps to get organized?
Having better time management can increase your productivity and help you to do better in your business and everyday life.

Prioritize

There are only so many hours in a day. Know what your priorities are. Not all tasks are created equal. Pick the top 3 things that you know you must get done and roll with those obligations first before worrying about the rest.

Make a to do list

Writing things down can help to minimize your stress. Make a list of the things that you'd like to accomplish. Even if you can't finish everything on your list, you will still stay more organized. Even the task of trying to memorize all of your activities in your head will cause you to feel more stressed out.

Know when to say 'no'

If you already have a full plate, sometimes it's a good idea to just turn down any added tasks.
You can't stay late at work and host a fund raiser and make cookies for your daughter's bake sale all at the same time, you will just burn out and run out of hours.
Keep an online calendar of all your upcoming events so that you don't over commit yourself. It's better to be able to give 100% of yourself to a few priority tasks, then to do a half way job at a whole bucket full.

Multi-task or the Anti-Multi-task

Multi-tasking can help you to reduce your work time and make more hours available for family and other activities. If you're able to type and make a phone call at the same time you can save yourself a lot of hassle.

If you have a speaker phone or head set, you can drive to your next appointment while having a phone meeting. Don't let your calls eat up your entire day.

While multi-tasking is a great help to many, some may become just too over-whelmed. An alternative to multi-tasking is often referred to as clustering. This tactic means that you only work on one type of task at a time and don't allow interruptions.

For example, you can devote two hours to writing up a presentation. During this time, it would be most effective to not give in to typical distractions like answering phones or checking your email. Return all messages after your two hours of work is complete.

Relax

Sometimes the best thing to do when you're maxed out is to just take a break. Your tasks will still be there later on. If you are sleep deprived and dragging, something may take you two hours, which may have only taken an hour if you did it while you were rested.
Some tips for staying relaxed an energized are:

  • Get a full night sleep
  • Exercise regularly
  • Make sure you take breaks during the day to eat, drink or stretch your legs
  • Set a 'stop time' each night, where work gets put away and you have some time to unwind before bed
  • Schedule mini vacations or an exciting personal event in your calendar so you have something to look forward to