Knowing how to manage your time is an important skill to cultivate; can help you get the most out of every day, leading you to success in areas like work or school. To manage it, you need to use it productively by working in the right environment and prioritizing various tasks. Also minimize distractions by turning off your cell phone and turning off social media when needed; finally, stick to a daily schedule that allows you to make the most of each day.
Steps
Method 1 of 3: Using Time Productively
Step 1. Create the correct work environment
It can help you improve productivity in general; There are no hard and fast rules in this area, so find the one that's right for you. Surround yourself with embellishments that inspire you and help you feel enthusiastic and passionate; these feelings allow you to "stay on track" and be productive.
- Your source of inspiration could be a particular artist; get some prints of his paintings and hang them on the walls.
- If you can choose a certain space to work in, opt for a distraction-free one; working in front of the TV may not be a good idea, but you can maybe put the desk in a corner of the bedroom and work there.
Step 2. List the tasks in order of importance
Before tackling the workload ahead of you for the day, prioritize what to do. Lists are great tools, but you need to organize them a bit and not just jot down tasks to complete; groups the tasks in order of importance.
- Before drawing up the list, write down the categories distinguishing them by importance. For example, tasks defined as "urgent" must be done today; those labeled "important, but not urgent" are still to be completed, but they can wait. Things classified as "lower priority" can be postponed if necessary.
- List the tasks by dividing them by categories. For example, if you have to end a relationship for work, it could be an urgent matter; if you need to start a new project, but don't need to finish it for two weeks, you might call it "important, but not urgent". If you enjoy going for a run after work, but it's not a vital issue, it might be classified as "low priority".
Step 3. Do the important tasks first
Finishing the crucial things early in the morning leaves a sense of reaching a goal; the day already begins with a feeling of satisfaction and much of the stress subsides. Start each day by wrapping up the most important things on the list.
For example, if you have five emails that you need to reply to and need to check a report, proceed as soon as possible as soon as you get to the office
Step 4. Always have some tasks to do with you
Take advantage of downtime to perform certain tasks. If you have a few free minutes on the bus, use it to read something for school or work; if you are in the supermarket checkout line, review some work emails on your mobile. Always having work with you allows you to make your time more productive.
If you are a student, consider getting some audiobooks or record the lessons; while you wait in line or walk to school, you can listen to the course material
Step 5. Don't do multiple things at the same time
Many people believe that this style is an excellent solution to do more things daily and manage time better; however, focusing on multiple tasks at a time can actually be less productive. It is likely that you will take longer to complete them because you are not paying all the attention you need. Instead, focus on one job at a time; in this way, you can finish each task faster and consequently optimize the time.
For example, reply to all emails, then log out of your email account and move on to another task. Don't worry about emails anymore for now; if during the rest of the day you have to reply to other messages, you can do so after completing the other tasks
Method 2 of 3: Minimize Distractions
Step 1. Turn off your mobile
Whenever possible, you should turn it off; your phone wastes a lot of time throughout the day that you could use more productively. When it is easy to log into Facebook or have a look at personal emails, you are much more likely to do so; do yourself a favor and turn off your cell phone while you are doing other tasks. If you find that you tend to instinctively pry your phone to waste time, you find yourself with a blank screen.
If your cell phone is important to your work, put it in the opposite corner of the room; if it's not that easy to reach, you're less tempted to look at it. You can also turn off all notifications that aren't directly related to work
Step 2. Close unnecessary browser tabs
Many people nowadays rely on computers or the internet to accomplish their tasks; working with Facebook, Twitter or other sites open in the background can negatively affect your time management skills; if you keep too many tabs of old projects or irrelevant online searches active, you get distracted. Get in the habit of closing windows as soon as you have finished doing the necessary research and focus all your concentration only on the sites that are important to the job.
Make it a point to keep only one or two windows open at a time
Step 3. Block social media
Sometimes, the temptation to access pages like Facebook or Twitter is too great to resist; if you depend too much on these websites, be aware that there are many applications and websites that you can use to temporarily block these sources of distraction.
- Self Control is a Mac application that allows you to block access for a certain period of time to various defined sites; you can download it for free.
- If you have to be disconnected all the time, you can use the Freedom application which blocks internet access for up to eight hours at a time.
- For the Firefox browser you can use Leechblock, which restricts access to certain sites for a certain period of time.
Step 4. Avoid interruptions as much as possible
They are the ones that disrupt the flow of work; if you find yourself in the middle of a task and interrupt it for some reason, it becomes difficult to resume it efficiently. When you are busy with a task, try to get it done before getting up and doing something else; other things can wait while you are trying to get some work done.
- For example, if you know you need to reply to an email while you are dealing with another matter, don't interrupt it to focus on mail, but write a note to remind yourself and finish what you are doing.
- However, keep in mind that sometimes it is unavoidable to have to interrupt a task; for example, if you receive an urgent phone call, you must necessarily answer. However, do your best to avoid external sources of distraction, but don't grieve too much if they happen every now and then at work.
Method 3 of 3: Stick to a Daily Schedule
Step 1. Use a digital calendar
Technology is a great tool for managing time and keeping track of various tasks, appointments, and so on. Activate a calendar on your mobile and computer by noting daily commitments, such as appointments and work or school hours. Create reminders; for example, have your cell phone notify you one week before a report is due for delivery; organized in time for certain things, like studying and working on a project.
In addition to a digital calendar, a physical one can also be useful as a "reserve", which you can keep on your desk or take it with you in a diary; Sometimes, jotting down to-dos on paper can help you remember them better
Step 2. Identify the times when you are most productive
Different people are more efficient at different times of the day; it may be useful to know when you are most active and when you are able to better use your time, in order to organize your work according to this characteristic. For example, if you find that you are more energetic in the morning, you should be doing most of your work during this time slot; during the evening you can rest and do more relaxing things that you enjoy.
It may take some time to figure out what your energy peaks are; keep track of them for about a week, along with the times when you have the greatest capacity for general concentration, so you know when you are most productive
Step 3. Spend the first half hour of the morning planning your day
It can help to plan the day's commitments right away. As soon as you get up, think about the things you need to do and sketch a rough schedule of when to do them; keep in mind the various work commitments, as well as the social ones and the various commissions.
- For example, suppose your working hours are 8:00 am to 4:00 pm and you need to call your grandmother for her birthday, as well as pick up your clothes from the dry cleaner after office. Make sure you determine the order in which you will need to perform these tasks early in the morning.
- If your grandmother lives in a geographic region with a different time zone, plan to call her right after work if it's not too late for her, then go dry cleaning.
Step 4. Establish times for breaks and breaks
No one is able to work non-stop without a break or some distraction, and there is no harm in anticipating interruptions every now and then throughout the day. It can therefore be useful to schedule these kinds of distractions from commitments, in order to make other unexpected breaks that could compromise planning less likely.
- Schedule a few long breaks, as well as short moments of distraction from work throughout the day.
- For example, plan to take an hour daily for lunch around 1pm and another half hour to watch TV to relax when you get home from work.
- You can also schedule short breaks during daily homework; for example, you know you need to write a document, so you can give yourself five minutes to look at Facebook for every 500 words you write.
Step 5. Get some work done over the weekend
The weekend is important to rest and relax and you shouldn't overdo it; however, it can be useful to complete some small tasks on these days. Think of those minor tasks that pile up on your desk at the weekend and make it difficult to pick up on Monday; for example, you can send some emails on Saturday mornings, so you have less work on Mondays.
Remember that breaks are important; do some chores on the weekend, but also give yourself a chance to rest and have fun
Step 6. Follow a sleep schedule
If you want to manage your time well, it is essential to follow a solid sleep-wake rhythm so that you can get up early in the morning and be ready to face the day. To maintain a consistent schedule, you should always go to bed and get up at the same times, even on weekends; in this way, the body gets used to a regular cycle by sending signals of fatigue when it is time to go to bed and energy in the morning.
