
Oddly enough, you can focus more easily when your brain isn't fully awake. Tip #5: Complete your most important and demanding tasks first thing in the morning.įor most people, the first few hours of work are the most productive.
#Plan your again keep it simple trial
We know that everyone works differently, which is why a trial and error approach to these time management strategies can help you find the best method for you. There are hundreds of diverse approaches to personal productivity. Use your Fridays and Mondays for planning and networking. Schedule meetings for Thursday, when your team's energy starts to decline. Complete creative and demanding tasks on Tuesday and Wednesday. Remember, your energy and creativity levels fluctuate throughout the week. Set yourself up for success by scheduling low-priority tasks for Fridays and other low-energy times. That way you'll be able to see what you need to do every day at a glance. Increase your chances of success by breaking down your weekly goals into daily tasks. Take a few minutes on Sunday to create a plan for your whole week. It also eases the transition from the carefree weekend mindset to a productive Monday morning "work brain." Walking into your workweek with a plan will help you focus on your top priorities. Instead of "Submit Report to Project Manager" write "Report to Project Manager Submitted." This little trick will give you an extra boost of motivation when you go to cross the tasks off your list.

Word your list items as if you've already completed them. It's better to under promise and overdeliver, even when it comes to personal productivity. Seeing a half-done lists day after day can be disheartening. When you're creating your to-do list, make sure to keep it simple. Use either of those chunks of time to create a daily to-do list. This can be made in either the first block of your workday or the last few minutes. Tip #3: Create a daily plan or to-do list. Whatever your goals are, they should also be SMART: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Timely. Using these methodologies will help you determine what tasks you should prioritize and what tasks you should schedule and plan for, delegate, or delete. Delete: Tasks that are neither urgent nor important.Delegate: Tasks that are urgent but not important.Defer: Tasks that are important but not urgent.Do: Tasks that are important and urgent.Both methods help prioritize by having you put your tasks into one of 4 groups: If you think you're trying to accomplish too much, try creating an Eisenhower matrix or using the 4 Ds of time management: Do, Defer, Delegate and Delete. If you think your goals are achievable, skip to tip 3. Now that you've created a time audit, you'll be able to see if you simply need to better manage your time or if you've got too much on your plate. If you've got too much to do, no amount of time management will help you accomplish it all. Tip #2: Set achievable goals and prioritize your tasks.

Now with this knowledge, you're able to have an accurate picture of how you spend your time and plan accordingly. For example, you may spend too much time sitting in unproductive meetings or doing busy work. With this data, you can easily find areas to improve. To get an accurate picture of your time usage, track everything you do for a week.Īt the end of the week, look at the reports and evaluate the time you spent working on different tasks.
#Plan your again keep it simple free
Many companies offer free versions of their software, but Toggl Track is the simplest, free option, with apps available for all devices. The simplest way to do a time audit is to use a time tracking application. This is why it's beneficial to create a time audit. You need to have a realistic idea of what you're able to accomplish and what is truly taking up your time. What was a balanced workload when you first set out is guaranteed to balloon into a stressful to-do list as the day goes on. Now say you have this same problem for multiple tasks on your plate. With those additions, that 5 minute email could actually take you 20 minutes, 500% more time than you initially planned. It shouldn't take more than 5 minutes." However, it's likely you're overestimating your speed and underestimating other smaller, related tasks you need to do to accomplish your end goal proof-reading, monitoring language choice, and locating email addresses all can add to the task's time. You may think: "Writing an email is simple. Say for example you need to write a 300 word email.

This is because humans are bad at knowing how long tasks take. Often there is a discrepancy between what you think is taking up your time and what actually is. Tip #1: Create a time audit.įirst things first: start by finding out where you're actually spending your time. Beginning your time management journey with a plan will create a strong foundation for future habits, thereby increasing your chances of success.
