Time management is a tricky thing — everyone wants to master it, but it’s always easier said than done. That’s why we’ve compiled a list of the best time management tips for work, to help you achieve both your short-term and long-term goals!
#1 GOAL-SETTING
It’s always tempting to jump into the details when planning your time. However, this will make you short-sighted and could even cause you to stray from long-term goals! Instead, briefly outline your aim in time management. Would you like a better work-life balance? Are you struggling to complete the minimum workload requirement? These are very different goals that require vastly different approaches to time management!
#2 TIME MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS
Once you’ve established your macro goals, you can finally dive into the actual planning of your time. For that, you’ll need a proper time management system.
What’s a good time management system? Well, some argue that it’s one that fulfills the 80-20 rule. The rule states that 80% of your results should come from 20% of your effort. That’s the peak of productivity and it only comes with discipline in using your time! Our favorite system that does this is the quadrant time management framework. Simply allocate your tasks to four broad quadrants — urgent, important, both, and neither. Prioritize your work in accordance with the importance/urgency of each task! Of course, this is only one of the many time management frameworks out there, so go explore and find one that suits you best!
#3 STICK TO YOUR PLAN!
Planning is easy; the hard part is execution! The best way to stick to your plan is to set a time limit for each task. It doesn’t have to be a hard and fast limit, because that could definitely stress you out. Instead, give yourself an approximation so you’ll know when you’re lagging behind. A great tool for this is time-tracking solutions, like a Timeqube. It’s an unobtrusive mindfulness timer that indicates the passing of time through the change of color. This will help you stay on task in a distraction-free, stress-free manner!
#4 START SMALL AND DON’T GIVE UP!
Having better time management is a huge lifestyle change, so be kind to yourself on days where you don’t meet your goals. Habits take a while to form, so introduce these changes bit by bit into your life and you’ll slowly see results!
