At one point in your life, you’ve probably heard the advice to “be the first one to arrive in the morning and the last one to leave at night”, as it would be a great way to show how dedicated to your job you are. Initially, this might sound like a great way to prove your worth and dedication.
However, many soon realize that this was not the way to climb the ladder of success, more like a one-way ticket to a burnout. In reality, it isn’t about spending the most hours at the office, it is how effective you can be during your 8-hour workday. And by implementing time management in your everyday work life, you can get as much done as people doing 16 hour workdays.
What is time management?
To become a master of time management it is important to implement the required skills and techniques needed, to your everyday work life. But first things first, what is time management? Let’s keep it short and sweet; time management is knowing how to plan and organize your time for all the activities and tasks you have during a day. Failing to do so is what causes stress and missed deadlines.
The basics of time management can be boiled down to:
1. Plan your day in advance
Planning is step number one when it comes to almost any activity. Sure, being spontaneous and going with the flow is great, but this mentally is better suited for your free time. When you are at the office and others and counting on you, an organized and well planned out day/week and even month, will only improve your workflow and help you accomplish goals.
2. Find your productive zone
Are you an early bird or a night owl? For some people, the day starts the moment the sun rises, and they are ready to dive into work. Others prefer a slow start and to get in the zone later during the day. We are all different and there is no right and wrong when it comes to finding productivity zones, as long as you get the job done.
3. Recognize when it’s time to say “no”
Taking on more and more responsibilities can seem fun and make you feel important at first but having too many tasks on your desk will eventually cause work anxiety and in the worst case lead to a burnout. It is therefore important that you know your limits and speak up when you feel like there are too many additional tasks being handed to you. If you are in a position where you can delegate tasks, this also a great way to let go of some stress.
4. Find ways to block distractions
It is pretty much impossible to make it through a whole day without any type of distractions. There are, however, ways to keep your full attention on work. For example, putting your phone away, turning off social media notifications and blocking popup ads. A strategy is to work strictly for two hours and then make sure to take a break for 15 minutes where you can look at your phone.
5. Set up goals
A good way to stay on top of time management is to set up personal goals. These can be daily, weekly and quarterly goals and with these, you can track which direction you are heading and check off reached targets, objectives and milestones on the way. Goals are also a great way to measure how far you have come and how much you have learned over time.
Goals are also a great way to measure how far you have come and how much you have learned over time.
6. Stop multitasking
Being able to delegate work and say no to additional tasks, goes hand in hand with not multitasking. This used to be a skill that was praised and highlighted in many job applications, but the truth is multitasking damages our brains. Research has shown that those who are trying to juggle too many tasks are also more easily distracted and therefore don’t get as much done.
7. Distribute your time
How much time do you spend on different tasks each day? Most people have no idea what their daily work looks like in terms of work hours. By knowing how much time you spend on different tasks, you can better organize your workflow and get more work done.
8. Communicate
Communication is the best way to align with colleagues and managers, to improve your workflow and can help you save a lot of time. By conveying your plans and intensions (and receiving the same from your peers) you can all improve workflow and avoid misunderstandings and conflicts.