If you are reading this, chances are you have become a habitual procrastinator and it’s affecting your productivity. Time management is an essential skill that even the best of us tend to lack. Hopefully, with these tips, you can turn things around.
Tips to Become Great at Time Management
(i) Kick of the Day with a Clear Focus
When you wake up, the first thing should be to determine what you need to achieve by the end of the day. Ensure you have a clear focus on this objective before you even fire up your computer to check on your emails. Setting a clear objective will take at most 5 minutes, and it will save you hours of wasted time and effort.
(ii) Create a Dynamic Task List
It’s also advisable to have a list of the tasks and activities you need to do and update it as the day goes by. Ensure you revisit this list on a regular basis and add new tasks the moment they come up. Ensure this list provides you with an overview of important or urgent tasks and includes strategic and relationship-building tasks in addition to operational ones. Tracktime24.com makes it easy to keep on top of your task list.
(iii) Avoid Distractions
The more uninterrupted time you have, the more effective you will become at the vital tasks. So, identify things that tend to take you away from your work and come up with a solution. Avoiding distractions is one of the most important time management skills. An example is to avoid answering calls or emails when you are in the middle of something important. It can be hard to get back into the flow once you have broken it. So, for better time management and productivity, make a habit of working on a task single-mindedly until it is done.
(iv) Focus on High-Value Tasks
Before you get into a new task, identify what is likely to add more value to your project, team, and clients. Avoid the temptation of clearing those small and unimportant things first and begin with the most important ones.
Use the following questions to help assess the tasks that call for immediate attention:
-What does my team or client require from me right now?
-What’s the biggest contribution I can make right now?
-What will result in the most trouble if it does not get done?
-What strategic tasks should I handle today in order to work smarter tomorrow?
(v) Avoid Multitasking
People tend to believe that multitasking will help them get more done. However, this could not be further from the truth. In order to be more effective, the brain needs to do one thing at a time. If you are a victim of multitasking, try the following:
-Plan the day in blocks
-Set specific time aside for returning emails, calls, meetings, etc.
-If you find yourself multitasking, stop what you’re doing and take a breather.
(vi) Avoid Procrastinating
One of the biggest enemies of proper time management is procrastination. If you are having a hard time focusing or find yourself procrastinating, it can be beneficial to create a deadline or external commitment for yourself. An example is to schedule a meeting two days before and preparing for what you will be doing. Also, it is a good idea to do the most undesirable tasks early in the day so that you can be in a better mood to tackle the interesting ones.
With these 6 tips, you should be in a better position to become an excellent time manager. By making these a habit, you will become more productive in no time.
