Time management and organizing our time is something many of us struggle with. Efficient time management enables us to take advantage of our day, carry out tasks more quickly, and prioritize those that will make the most impact.
Discovering methods that work for you, whatever they may be, is essential to building your most productive life. To help, BrainRocket has examined successful time management techniques and approaches.
We’ve illustrated what they are, how to put them into effect, so keep on reading to find out.
Step 1 – Write A To-Do List
By realizing what you should do on any day, you are less prone to waste time on irrelevant tasks. You can do this either in an app such as Todoist or on a piece of paper. Also, you can find these apps useful for your time-management as well - Rescue Time, Remember The Milk, Focus Keeper, or MyLifeOrganized. A to-do list that has been suitably calculated will encourage you to understand what is necessary and what is not. We suggest ticking off items as you finish them; this will help you keep focus and motivation.
Step 2 – Follow the 80/20 rule
The 80/20 rule, also called Pareto’s principle, can be implemented in many fields of your life. However, with working, one of the best uses is that it states that 20% of your effort comprises 80% of your output. And oppositely, the other 80% only gives 20%. So, if you can figure out what your 20% is and concentrate on those while taking out the 80%, you will achieve much more.
Step 3 – Remove Yourself From Distraction
If distraction is intervening with your everyday habits, then you need to clear yourself away from that distraction. For instance, turn off your smartphone while working and put it elsewhere out of your reach. Also, you can turn on the airplane mode to stop the notifications from incoming. Then, you can establish special times to write emails and turn off notifications for such and social media.
Step 4 – “Eat The Frog”
Mark Twain stated: “Eat a live frog first thing in the morning, and nothing worse will happen to you the rest of the day.” Meaning, if you do the toughest, most urgent task first, it will make the rest of the day more peaceful. That way, you will not waste the day procrastinating or spending time on simpler, not-so-essential tasks while getting what’s relevant done.
Step 5 – Break Big Tasks Up Into Smaller Chunks
If there is a specific task you are procrastinating on and it is interfering with your time management, then try to envision it as a sequence of smaller, more flexible units. That will perform miracles for your capacity to accomplish things on time. For instance, you can define whether you’re working on a project or a task and then break it into milestones. After that, write the steps needed to complete the small multi-steps, as well as break long stretches of work into smaller sessions.
Step 6 – Pomodoro method
The Pomodoro method is a time management technique that inspires you to work with the time you have and not against it. You split your workday into 25-minute portions divided into five-minute breaks. These breaks are called pomodoros, and after about four of them, you take a long pause of around 15-20 minutes. Making frequent breaks when working is one of the best methods to assure your productivity levels are high, representing managing your time as a simple task.
Step 7 – Read Productivity Books
One of the best ways to excel in time management is to acquire knowledge from time management books. Our recommendations are The 4-Hour Workweek by Timothy Ferriss, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in Personal Change by Stephen R. Covey, Eat That Frog!: 21 Great Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Done in Less Time by Brian Tracy, and Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity by David Allen.
Do not forget that even if you give 110% effort, there will be times when you cannot get everything done that you wanted at any time. Don’t let these inevitable circumstances waste your drive and motivation, which will, in turn, make it tougher to manage your time adequately.
Use these time management methods that BrainRocket has selected for you in your daily routine and experience undoubtedly increased productivity. That will help you feel more cheerful about yourself. And don’t forget, you have the potential to manage your time accordingly, and now you have a toolkit of suitable means to ensure that is done.