If you discover that it takes you significantly longer than your coworkers to accomplish projects or meet deadlines, you should review how you use your time and explore how you may become more efficient. You are limiting yourself if you do not consider how you might better manage your time and eliminate time wasting behaviours.
1. Figure Out Your Goals
We’re talking about “big-picture” goals for both your professional and personal lives. You could wish to improve your work-life balance, get more exercise, and be more engaged in your children’s after-school activities, for example. Once you’ve identified them, you may divide them into smaller tasks and concentrate on how to incorporate them into your daily routine.
2. Do All of Your Work on One Device
Using a laptop to work on a spreadsheet, your phone to check email, and a tablet to access a presentation is a formula for catastrophe. Every time you switch between gadgets, you are likely to become distracted and have to concentrate yourself. Whenever feasible, attempt to gather everything you’ll need on one device before you begin, so you can work from one device as you go.
3. Work On Your Most Important Tasks First
Making a large to-do list, doing all the five-minute activities, and then taking a lovely, long vacation is the procrastinator’s preferred method. Sure, you feel good since you crossed a bunch of items off your list, but you didn’t accomplish the important things. Begin by focusing on the chores that will yield the best outcomes for you. These tasks should be linked to your major goals and initiatives. If finishing your manuscript is one of your most essential goals, start there. Alternatively, if you’re working on a game-changing app, make it your main priority.
4. Keep Track
It might help to take a week or so and pace yourself doing activities you do all the time, such as laundry, breakfast, and making your bed. Most individuals overestimate the time it takes to perform something as basic as taking a shower and underestimate the time required for more difficult things such as writing a term paper. You may be able to better manage your time if you know exactly how you spend it.
5. Schedule Your Day
Start planning things out once you’ve determined how long things will take and what’s most vital. Be adaptable. Do you get more done late at night or early in the morning? Do you like to spend your nights relaxing? Is it more likely that you will undertake yardwork if you have a block of time to do it all at once or if you spread it out over the course of a week? Consider what works best for you, and don’t be hesitant to experiment.
6. Block Distracting Websites
It is not your fault if Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube divert your attention away from your work. Social media sites are meant to keep you coming back for more or scrolling for hours. In the battle for your attention, freedom is your hidden weapon. Simply make a list of distracting websites and enable distraction-free mode to stop squandering time. You may even make several lists for different procedures or projects. By banning websites that distract you from your job, you give yourself a far better chance of finishing the tasks at hand. You can concentrate on one task at a time, making it easier to keep track of how long you’ve really worked.
7. Set Deadlines
Setting oneself deadlines might be really beneficial if you want to stop squandering time. If you’ve ever stayed up late preparing for an exam or worked on a project, you understand the importance of deadlines. Begin by assigning deadlines to your most crucial projects. That way, you’ll know precisely how much time you have and how much time is available in your plan. Then, working backward from the deadline, figure out what you need to do each day to finish on time.
8. Do Activities That Truly Enrich Your Life
The hardest part about spending time is feeling like you’ve squandered a whole day doing “nothing.” It’s not only that you didn’t complete any work. You didn’t even do something significant or pleasurable. Doing meaningful hobbies and pastimes is an excellent way to avoid wasting time. Instead of idly scrolling through your phone, spend time with friends, read a good book, or exercise. Furthermore, when you engage in activities and interests that improve your life outside of work, you will be more productive in general. Doing something you enjoy makes you appreciate your time, causing you to be more deliberate and cautious with it.
9. Manage Your Energy
One of the primary reasons we lose time is that we do not manage our energy well. Every work needs a certain amount of energy, and we frequently fail to arrange our days in accordance with our fluctuating energy levels. Furthermore, we frequently rush through the day, not allowing our brains and bodies to relax. The issue is that you aren’t a machine. You must approach your day with a realistic awareness of how much energy you have and how much energy is needed for the activities ahead of you. Then you must plan your day so that what you are working on corresponds to your energy levels. For example, if you know you normally collapse in the mid-afternoon, avoid working on any demanding chores at that time.
10. Rise Early
You have more time in the day if you get up early. It allows you to work out, read, or work on vital assignments. Furthermore, getting up early helps to set the tone for the rest of the day. When you wake up and do something essential right away, it provides you momentum for the remainder of the day. Even if you don’t spend your additional morning time working toward your objectives, allowing yourself the time to get up and get ready for the day will ensure you’re less distracted when you’re working.