Time is the one thing that most of us feel that we never have enough of. Why is it that some people manage to get so much more out of the time available than others? The answer to this is time management. If you’re not currently doing this effectively then you’re likely to feel that you never have enough time and your To Do list just seems to roll over from one day to the next. So, how can you improve?
How do you spend your time?
Carry out a quick audit of how you already spend your time so that you can get an idea of whether or not this is productive. Do you waste hours on social media? Are you spending your lunch hour online shopping when you could be exercising? It can be eye opening to look back over your day and see where your time has actually gone.
Invest in technology
There is a lot of great technology out there to help you effectively manage your time, from monitoring your daily processes to organising and planning. Pick the one with the interface that feels the most user friendly so that you won’t have to waste time getting to grips with it.
Limit the time you spend on tasks
An actual time limit can be motivational and ensure that you don’t waste time – allocate time limits for key tasks and then make sure you stay within them.
Organise your tasks in order of difficulty
Schedule the tasks that you’re least looking forward to first so that you know they’re going to get done. Otherwise it’s very simple to push everything you don’t really want to tackle to the end of the day and then leave it until the morning.
Look ahead
It’s very easy to waste time if you’re not really focused on what’s coming next so plan ahead if you really want to become more effective. Planning ahead by a week – or even a day – can mean that you’re better prepared and ready to tackle what comes next.
Learn how to delegate
This is an essential skill because it ensures that you’re spending your time on the most valuable tasks and not wasting it doing anything that should be handled by someone more junior.
Don’t multi-task
Although there are lots of different theories out there on whether humans really are capable of multi-tasking there is evidence to suggest that we actually do better when we just focus on one job at a time. When you start something make sure you see it through and don’t stop half way to completion to start working on something else.
Get to know you
We are all different and we are more productive at some moments in the day than others. When do you usually feel the most energised? Make sure you’re optimising this moment to get the most done.
Being able to effectively manage your time is the key to a successful – and satisfying – professional life.
Find out more by booking onto our
Time Management training course...