This quote from a TV character emphasizes the purpose of this post…
with
strategic planning you can find time for what you want to do.
List of top tips & strategies for improving time management.
TIP 1: Just say NO!
Don’t
add on more responsibilities that you don’t want to do.
“Time is a created thing. To
say 'I don't have time,' is like saying, 'I don't want to.”
―
―
Greg
McKeown from his book, Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less explains how to focus on what is important… not just today, but with long-term goals in
mind.
We all
have tasks we have to complete…pay bills or
taxes. These are actions that will
happen no matter and can be outsourced via autopay.
Get creative on how to make
your “must do” list as easy as possible. .
Tip 1
Strategy: How to say No!
List
every major task you can think of that you are responsible for or required to
do this week/month/year. Circle the ones
only you can do, delegate the ones someone else can do. For anything that falls in between ask
yourself the following questions.
Only keep the tasks that you can definitively answer YES to these questions.
Only keep the tasks that you can definitively answer YES to these questions.
Do I
love and enjoy doing this?
Does
this task or activity directly help me towards one of my top three life goals?
Does
this authentically represent my personal brand? See my post on branding for a
quick exercise to learn how to discover your authentic personal brand.
Is
this a commitment I need to do now, but can work towards removing from my TO DO
list in the next 3 months? Set a date on
your calendar for 3 months from now and actively work to offload anything you
do not want to do anymore.
“You can have it all. Just not
all at once.” -
Strategies for saying “NO”
include:
being honest,
being direct,
not hesitating,
practicing saying no, and
not making unnecessary
excuses.
It is YOUR time. Be prepared to have to repeat the “NO” over
and over, especially from someone that is used to you saying yes.
My recommendation is to start
out extremely polite and kind. Each time
you have to repeat the no make your response shorter and more to the point,
until finally they will either get the message or enough time will pass that
the request is no longer relevant or important.
Tip 2: Write it Down
“You may delay, but time will
not.” -
Planning your schedule is
absolutely necessary if you have any chance of gaining time. Using the list of task and activities from
Tip 1, Fill out your schedule for the next week in a planner.
A personal planner is only
effective if it makes sense to you. Every person is
unique and so should their method of planning.
Find a notebook or planner that inspires you. Design or find an online or app based planner
that fits with your lifestyle, choice of technology or work mode. Many options are out there. Finding one you believe in and will stick to
will help you succeed.
Tip 2 Strategy: How to Write it Down
Everyone has a different way
of organizing their life and therefore whatever method you use to write down
your schedule should be unique to your needs and goals. The easiest, low cost, low tech version is to
buy a spiral notebook. The spiral allows
you to open it flat and fold back the cover in case you wish to use a book
stand to make it easy to read.
The night before or first
thing in the morning, write the date at the top of the page and list out all
you would like to accomplish that day.
Include times and locations and who you will be doing the activity
with. Put a huge star or circle the one
item that if you accomplish it will let you go to sleep that night satisfied
you did enough.
As you complete each
task, cross it out. At the end of the
day, go to the next page write tomorrow’s date at the top and move all
incomplete items from the current day’s page over. Add additional items that need to be
completed tomorrow. Again, star or
circle the one task that will let you fall asleep content tomorrow night.
To help you find your own
planning technique, I included a few links below. Work on always improving and revising your
method to save you time and keep you organized.
Helpful Links on Planners from
organized experts:
7 Ways to Use a Day Planner to Be a Better Entrepreneur (and Better Version of You): Sometimes, you just need to write it down by Ashley Shelly Trotier
Tip 3: Automate your life
“Those who make the worst use
of their time are the first to complain of its brevity.” -
In his book, The Power ofHabit, Charles Duhigg advocates for simplifying your decision making to gain
more time for your brain to work on more complex problems. By simplifying your
decision making you will gain time that would otherwise have been wasted on
indecision. The most important part of
automating your life is to do it one small step at a time. If you try to change too many habits at once
you will most likely get frustrated and stop.
Tip 3 Strategy: How to Automate your life
Examples of what habits you
can simplify include:
Bills:
Autopay is your friend, so is paperless billing. Every time you pick up a piece of mail you
need to think about shredding, recycling, responding and filing. Why not just have that paperless and autopay
bill get filed in your digital storage for you to regularly look over once a
week or once a month?
Clothing:
Do you have set uniforms for all the regular
occurring activities on your calendar?
Look at your schedule for the next 2 weeks. List what you would wear at each one. Consider organizing your closet and drawers
by activity and create your own list of categories.
Category examples: Presentations and Corporate Meetings, Work at
the Office, Work from home, Networking events, Exercise Clothes, Weekend time
with friends, Special Occasion, Attending sporting events or theater, Travel
Clothes, Vacation Clothes
Consider what the uniform for
each category needs to accomplish. Do
you need to look professional? Do you
need to be comfortable? Do you need to
be active? Will you have to change
quickly due to timing? Will the outfit
travel well? What shoes and accessories
will match each outfit?
If you start each day already
knowing which category you need, you won’t have to worry about what to wear as
the options will be simplified.
Food:
Consider what you fuel your body with. Spending a few minutes each week meal
planning saves money and time. If you
need inspiration, consult with a registered dietician/nutritionist or a food
planning book. My favorite to recommend
is The Total Body Diet by Vicki Shanta Retelny.
The book covers a complete makeover based on science for your diet and
eating habits. Find a food plan that
works for your lifestyle and health needs.
Weekly meal planning strategy
2.
Look at your schedule and decide which meals you will cook
and eat at home, which you will pack to eat elsewhere and which you will eat
out at a restaurant or event.
3.
For the meals you will prepare, make a shopping list of
ingredients based on recipes of what you already have at home. Use what is in your kitchen to inspire the
menu. Keep a running list of staples you
always buy on your Alexa shopping list or notes section of your
smartphone. The ultimate time saver is to use
a delivery service or a click and shop.
4.
Decide what ingredients you can prepare ahead of time (chop
vegetables and proteins, make bread, soak legumes or precook rice or pasta,
etc.) Try to do as much of the prep work
in a single time period at the beginning of the week so you have more time
during the week.
5.
If you trying to start a business or save for a fabulous
vacation, this is a budget area that is easy to cut back on, but only if you
plan ahead. Take coffee with you instead
of buying it on the road.
6.
Have the same thing for breakfast everyday… or most
days. Or limit your breakfast and lunch choices
to 2-3. Less choices means less time
deciding and fewer ingredients to purchase.
Workout:
Plan and schedule your workouts just as you
would a business meeting. Maintaining a
healthy body and brain helps you perform at your highest potential. Google benefits of exercise and an unending
list of sources pop up. Signing up for a
specific class each week or working with a personal trainer to develop a
workout routine or 3 will help keep you focused.
Keeping the exercise type
listed in your planner each day helps you look forward to it, pack proper
clothing/equipment and maintain an interesting mix without having to think too
hard.
Make sure to include 1 workout
that is easy to do on the road or during vacation and requires little to no
special equipment.
“Those who think they have not
time for bodily exercise will sooner or later have to find time for illness.”
– Edward Stanley
Sleep:
Sleep is also important. To continuously perform at a high level at
work and in life, getting enough sleep is vital. If you schedule in a routine for bedtime, you
will more likely be able to keep those precious hours of rest safe.
Habit #6 in this extremely
useful infographic explains the optimal amount of sleep to improve your
productivity.
Tip 4: Practice Self Care
Productivity is directly
related to how healthy you are physically, but also mentally and emotionally. Take care of your body, mind and soul, so you
can take care of business.
Tip 3: Automate your life
Autopay is your friend, so is paperless billing. Every time you pick up a piece of mail you need to think about shredding, recycling, responding and filing. Why not just have that paperless and autopay bill get filed in your digital storage for you to regularly look over once a week or once a month?
Do you have set uniforms for all the regular occurring activities on your calendar? Look at your schedule for the next 2 weeks. List what you would wear at each one. Consider organizing your closet and drawers by activity and create your own list of categories.
Consider what you fuel your body with. Spending a few minutes each week meal planning saves money and time. If you need inspiration, consult with a registered dietician/nutritionist or a food planning book. My favorite to recommend is The Total Body Diet by Vicki Shanta Retelny. The book covers a complete makeover based on science for your diet and eating habits. Find a food plan that works for your lifestyle and health needs.
2. Look at your schedule and decide which meals you will cook and eat at home, which you will pack to eat elsewhere and which you will eat out at a restaurant or event.
3. For the meals you will prepare, make a shopping list of ingredients based on recipes of what you already have at home. Use what is in your kitchen to inspire the menu. Keep a running list of staples you always buy on your Alexa shopping list or notes section of your smartphone. The ultimate time saver is to use a delivery service or a click and shop.
5. If you trying to start a business or save for a fabulous vacation, this is a budget area that is easy to cut back on, but only if you plan ahead. Take coffee with you instead of buying it on the road.
6. Have the same thing for breakfast everyday… or most days. Or limit your breakfast and lunch choices to 2-3. Less choices means less time deciding and fewer ingredients to purchase.
Plan and schedule your workouts just as you would a business meeting. Maintaining a healthy body and brain helps you perform at your highest potential. Google benefits of exercise and an unending list of sources pop up. Signing up for a specific class each week or working with a personal trainer to develop a workout routine or 3 will help keep you focused.
– Edward Stanley
Sleep is also important. To continuously perform at a high level at work and in life, getting enough sleep is vital. If you schedule in a routine for bedtime, you will more likely be able to keep those precious hours of rest safe.
Tip 4: Practice Self Care
Productivity is directly related to how healthy you are physically, but also mentally and emotionally. Take care of your body, mind and soul, so you can take care of business.
“Self-care is any activity that we do deliberately in order to take care of our mental, emotional, and physical health.” - Raphailia Michael, MA
Tip 4 Strategy: How to
practice Self Care
Remember that the purpose of
this blog post is to help you find more time in your day. Practicing and scheduling self care is one
way to make sure when your plans are derailed and emergencies occur, you will
have the fortitude to handle the unknown without wasting time.
Self Care
habits includes:
- Focus on your personal and business mission
statement.
- Plan and take vacations.
- Schedule medical checkups.
- Practice meditation, mindfulness and yoga.
- Stretch physically and mentally each day.
- Do at least one thing a day that makes you laugh and smile.
- Be grateful.
- Connect with others.
Tip 4 Strategy: How to practice Self Care
Self Care habits includes:
- Focus on your personal and business mission statement.
- Plan and take vacations.
- Schedule medical checkups.
- Practice meditation, mindfulness and yoga.
- Stretch physically and mentally each day.
- Do at least one thing a day that makes you laugh and smile.
- Be grateful.
- Connect with others.
