Are You Managing Time Effectively?

Spending time effectively is about living life meaningfully, doing things that you are interested in, and enjoying what you are doing. Here are the tips to organize your life and time productively:

• Goals: Have you set your long-term goals? Goals provide a direction in life so that you are not drifting aimlessly and wasting time. It gives you hope and something to look forward to in life. Go for a balanced life and set goals to cover the following areas – health, career, money, home, relationship, and personal development.  A balanced life is a fulfilling and satisfying life.

• Organize and plan ahead: When you have your long-range goals in place it is easy to plan your yearly goals and your monthly, weekly, and daily tasks. Always plan ahead and get ready your to-do list in the evening for the following day. Prioritize the list by following the 80/.20 rule. It is not necessary to get all the things done on the list. Focus on just 20% of the activities which yield 80% of the results. The rest of the tasks can be delegated or do on another day. You get a sense of achievement and satisfaction by crossing out the completed tasks in a  to-do list.

• One thing at a time: There is no need to rush about getting things done when you know what are the few important things to take care of for the day. You also avoid multitasking which is not beneficial for productivity. Besides, doing too many things at one go tires the mind and you are more likely to make mistakes.

• Do the right thing and do it right: According to Peter Drucker, doing the right thing is effectiveness and doing things right is efficiency. Productivity is about effectiveness and efficiency.

• Delegate: Get your assistant in the office to take over your routine tasks.  It means you have more time to do important jobs such as creative thinking about getting things done more productively.   

• Manage paper:  As soon as you receive a piece of document decide and act immediately to throw it away, respond to it right away, file for reference, or file for action on a future date. The main point is to handle a piece of paper only once. Use a big file to keep related documents together and use a tickler file for recurring things to do, usually yearly, half-yearly, quarterly, or monthly.  

• Take control of your health: When you take care of yourself well you will manage your time even better. Exercise daily to promote energy, eat a balanced diet to fuel your body, and sleep well at night to rejuvenate. Lead an active lifestyle to be alert mentally and physically.

• Procrastination: Adopt an attitude of doing things now. Think of all the advantages of getting things done right away. There is no worry of unfinished work. You also avoid delay, last-minute rush, and deadline pressure. Things are done in a smooth and orderly manner.

• Take breaks: Trying to do more without taking breaks is counterproductive. Your energy sags after a while. Taking a break, such as a coffee break, refreshes your mind and renews your energy. After a break, you will work better.

• Start your day early: Successful people are early starters. They look forward to each new day enthusiastically. They are delighted to do things which they are passionate about eagerly. The other plus points are that you are way ahead of others to get things done and there is no need to rush about and work under stress.

• Have fun: It is good to achieve daily goals: It is even better to reward yourself for work done well. Take time out to celebrate, enjoy and have fun.   

Do you think the tips are helpful to manage your time effectively? Give your comments.