Here is some effective time management tips that’ll help you get the most out of your time and still have life after work. If you're feeling overworked, overwhelmed or just plain over it, the following time-management tips can help you maximize your productivity so you can accomplish more - and get home earlier.
Keep track of your time
Now, it may seem that you spend all your time in one area of your life. But try to keep track of your week and keep a record of the amount of time you spend doing specific tasks such as answering emails, making phone calls, setting up meetings, or maybe even playing online games. Look for the tasks that take up most of your time and determine if you can cut down the time you give for these tasks.
Prioritize your goals
Now that you discovered your top time consumers, it’s time to prioritize or get rid of them entirely. You may want to categorize your goals and your tasks. Goals connote long-term plans while your tasks are immediately doable. Once you’ve identified your major goals, prioritize the tasks that you need to do in order to achieve these goals. Choose and write down the tasks that hold the most importance for you or your business and give it the realistic amount of time it deserves.
Make and follow a schedule
Once you’ve seen how much time you’ve spent on the different aspects of your business, it’s time to make yourself a schedule. Allot a specific amount of time to each of the tasks you’ve identified as important and follow through. For example, 30 minutes for answering emails and another 30 minutes to returning phone calls. Stick to your schedule and you’ll find yourself not wasting time and staying productive.
Delegate tasks or ask for help
Remember that you do not have to do everything on your own. Keeping track of your time and prioritizing allow you to identify which tasks you can delegate to other capable people, such as your virtual assistant, leaving you with the time to actually do the things relating to that ‘bigger picture’ you’ve always envisioned.
Wake up early
Another time management tip often underused by many is the value of waking up early. You may set your alarm clock 20 or 30 minutes earlier than you usually do and use this time to do an important task. This could be something related to your passion outside of business. You will find that 20 to 30 minutes is more than enough.
Separate Work from Home
Between responding to personal emails, instant messaging and fielding cellphone calls from my kids, it can get very hard to stay focused on the tasks at hand. Separating your work duties from home-related ones will allow you to keep your mind on work when you're there and, in turn, procrastinate less, feel less overwhelmed and accomplish more.
The truth is you do not have to keep on wishing you had more time because you do, although you may not even know it yet. So start managing you time more effectively today!
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