Whether you believe that time is money or time is gold (or both), there’s no denying that time is essential. However, having the proper time to do everything you have set out to accomplish can seem impossible, and many of us have difficulty balancing our time. Managing your time takes effort and skill, and you need to know that you are spending it wisely. But if you are trapped trying to accomplish a myriad of tasks throughout the day without meeting all of your goals, you may not be managing your time properly. Do you find yourself pressed for time? Here are some top tips for managing your time more productively.
The importance of proper time management
Time management is the organising and planning of your time so you can optimise your efficiency. In other words, it’s how you make the most of your time. Time is a resource that you can’t extend, renew, or grow, and if you can manage your time properly, it’s an investment destined to bring you a significant return.
Strategies for the best use of your time
Learn to prioritise
One of the foremost things you can do is learn how to prioritise. It’s a suitable method that helps you manage your time much better, and when you are looking at your list of to-dos, assess the most critical tasks. For example, the first thing you should do for the day should be the most essential – something you need to finish or accomplish the most. Following this pattern, the second thing you tackle should be the second most important, and so on. Once you start approaching your day like this, you will find that you’re not too stressed come afternoon or evening.
Break it up
Another thing you can do is break up your tasks – something that looks like a big task may not seem like much if you break it up into chunks. This is where milestone tasks come in. Once you have broken up your tasks into small milestones, it feels like you’re making more progress, and it’s a great way to motivate yourself (and others on your staff or team, too). In addition, when you break it up into something smaller and more achievable, it’s easier to measure how you are doing, and you won’t feel too overwhelmed.
Do away with distractions
Distractions are often seen as a mere nuisance, but they are more than that. They aren’t just minor annoyances – they can derail you from your goals. It is almost impossible to be productive with your time if your day is filled with distractions, such as phone calls, emails, meetings, and the like.
You can try eliminating these distractions from your day by delegating specific tasks to a virtual assistant. They can, for instance, take care of your schedule so you can concentrate on working, and they can answer phone calls and even handle your social media. When it comes to your schedule, you can have your virtual assistant manage it so that they arrange your meetings when you are not as busy. They can also deal with your phone calls and make sure that a call will only be forwarded to you if it’s urgent.
Determine the time when you are at your most productive
We all have our preferred times of day for being productive. Some individuals, for example, are morning people, doing their best work in the morning once they wake up. Others are night people, preferring to work in the evening or even late at night, so they are not faced with any distractions. One of the keys to managing your time more efficiently is figuring out when you are most productive. If you are the kind of person who struggles a little bit after lunch (and most of us do), perhaps you can tell your VA to avoid scheduling meetings at this time.
Make it a routine
It would be amazing if you could start doing the above, but the key is consistency. In other words, once you have set up a system that works for you, make it a routine. Once it becomes a routine, it becomes ingrained in your daily life. One thing you can do is set reminders on your calendar so you can stick to it and not be deviated. Good luck, and remember to set regular time aside for your peace of mind as well!