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If you are like me, days just seem to FLY by!
Whoosh... where did they go?
I like to keep a little to-do list on my desk each day. At the top I write things that I must get to and as the list progresses, it becomes more and more of a wishful-thinking-type of index. I cross off each task as I complete it and though I strive to reach the bottom and knock them all out, it rarely happens.
You know how it goes...whoosh - flies by, right?
Though I am constantly trying to improve on my time management skills, over the years I have been able to get little routines in place that do benefit me tremendously. I thought I would share a few tips that I try to follow.
I know that everyone works differently and that my methods might not assist you in the slightest, but just in case a few strategies do, I'll give it a whirl:
- Plan, Plan, Plan: I mentally plan for the day ahead all week long and nearly always outline tasks in writing as well. As I mentioned above, I jot down to-do lists and keep them on my desk (where I spend a great amount of time). If I have a particularly busy week ahead, I plan days ahead of time.
- Prioritize: Since there are only so many hours in a day, I start off with the most pressing of tasks and focus on them first. They aren't always the most enjoyable chores, but I don't usually allow myself to move down to the more trivial notations on the page until the essentials are attended to.
- Take the time to do things right the first time: While it can be tempting to just dash through tasks, if I don't do them well the first time, it will usually just come back to bite me in the end. When that happens, backing up, making corrections and many times having to start again will really just add precious time and frustration to an already busy day.
- Curtail Distractions: Though I don't like to follow this one, when working online (where both of my business are located), removing distractions can help tremendously. For me, that includes things like: facebook, myspace, twitter, reading other blogs I love, looking for new vegan recipes, checking out new tattoo art, Stumbling (oh, StumbleUpon, you can be so evil at times, diverting my attention so masterfully), and things of this sort. Though I normally have music on while I work, even that gets turned down occasionally if I really need to concentrate while writing. It's easy for time to tick by if I get sidetracked, so I usually let these aforementioned types of distractions be my reward for getting through the more daunting deeds.
- Break Up Bigger and More Time-Consuming Tasks Up: For projects that I know I can't finish all at once, I try to devote little segments of time and build up the progress in baby steps. It makes something that might otherwise feel overwhelming, not feel quite so bad when you give it bits of attention here and there.
- Just Start: Don't you hate it when you have something you just dread doing and you put it off again and again, until it becomes this monster that you don't even want to face? I know this feeling and though I don't always follow this advice, I know that the best solution is to just bite the bullet and START. Usually, once I do, it's not so bad after all once I get the ball rolling.
- Sleep, Diet, Exercise: For me, these are key components of a productive day. Eating healthy food, getting through my exercise routine, and getting to bed in time for an ample amount of sleep can make all the difference in how much I accomplish and how well I do things. Again, I know this differs for everyone, but for me, these are such essential elements.
- Take a Time-Out When You Need
