Are you finding yourself repeatedly feeling stressed and unable to get enough things completed? Is it difficult for you to maintain a proper schedule? Are you looking for a way to master the skill of time management? If that sounds like you, the following article will give you some great tips on effective time management. Make good use of a timer. If you’re having trouble with focusing on things, you should get a timer and then set it for how long the tasks will take you. If you need to work for one hour, set your timer for the hour so you are not looking at the clock the entire time. Tips! When you find yourself constantly late and missing deadlines, consider getting a bigger clock and putting it in a place where it stares you down all the time. Studies show that when people can see a clock during the day, they mentally gravitate toward more time-saving efforts! Try this at home and the office to better manage your time. Work at least 24 hours in advance. If you can, plan your activities for the following day ahead of time. A great way to end each day is to start making the next day’s task list. In this way, you will be ready to work right off the bat the next day. If you’re always running late or behind, try being more aware of deadlines. When you realize too late that a deadline is approaching, other tasks get put on the sideline, putting you further behind. But, if you keep on top of deadlines, you will never be forced to choose one priority over another. Tips! Build time in your day for unforeseen interruptions. It’s time to own the fact that you can’t control what happens every minute. Review your task list at the end of each day and organize it effectively. By planning your day at the beginning of the day, you will know what you need to get accomplished during the day and can plan effectively. Make sure as you think through the day that you haven;t overextended yourself. Focus specifically on the task you are working on. If you are working on multiple projects all at once, it is hard to get anything accomplished. Trying to complete all your tasks at one time will simply exhaust you and leave you feeling like there’s not enough time to finish anything. Focus on one thing at a time to get the job done right. Tips! Think about the things that are costing you time. Carefully think about it. When you are going through a tough time managing your time, consider how you use your time. Time is usually of the essence. Do not look at emails outside of a few designated times each day. Checking each message as it pops in will be a harmful distraction from other tasks. Practicing using the world “no.” A lot of people stress out because they don’t know how to decline any request for help. When you have too much to do, check out your schedule. Can you delegate some tasks? Ask your family and friends for help. Tips! To perfect your personal system of time management, take a moment to catalog the most common time-wasting activities you engage in. Whether you prefer to check your e-mail, surf the web, or hang out in the break room, you should identify the behaviors you practice when you’re dodging work. Close the door to your office when you need to really buckle down and get work done. An open door encourages others to come to you to discuss their issues. Close the door, your privacy is restored. People are aware that you need to find your focus, so you can finish things on time. Let the phone ring, and don’t answer texts while you’re trying to finish a task. If you do, getting back on track with your original task can be tough. Reply to your friends after the task is finished. Tips! Try to avoid answering the phone or e-mails just because they ring or appear. If you can, try disabling or disconnecting instant messaging. Review your schedule. Are there things on it that you don’t need to be doing? Are there tasks that you can assign to other people so you have more time for important matters? Learning to delegate tasks is on the list of the most useful time management skills out there. Once you have delegated something to someone else, then you remove yourself from that task by letting the other person complete it. Time is something that there never seems to be enough of. There are limited days to do things, so you must use the time you have each day wisely. With what you’ve gone over in this article, it shouldn’t be hard for you to get your time management under control. Do you want to have more free time? more income? more freedom? Learn how to start an online business, Free video series, Click Here. |