You’re frantically busy, trying to fit in as much as you can during a short twenty-four hour day. If you lack the energy to factor in time expansion skills, then you’ll be relieved to hear there are alternatives to reclaim control. By adopting several practical steps which can help give your life improved structure, you can start to free up more time to use in ways that enrich you.
Pajamas Are The New Business Suit
Explore the options for working from home and, where relevant, consider if there is scope for negotiation with employers. Online working can often be an effective way to make some money while saving time on things like commuting and what you’re going to wear that day. With home working on the increase, keep your options open as there are stacks of different types of work available, for example, online trading and investments work with various companies including CMC Markets amongst others.
Lists Really Are Your Best Friend
Despite all the life hacks out there, there’s nothing to beat the effectiveness of good old-fashioned lists. One of their strengths is they get the muddle that’s going in circles inside your mind onto paper, spreadsheet or phone organiser. Paper lists can boost a sense of wellbeing when you get to cross off one task at a time. Don’t underestimate the power of making a list because the effect of using lists is tangible, so you get to see how much you are accomplishing. Lists can help you to feel more organised and, crucially, more in control of your time.
Larks And Owls Rule The Roost
Getting more organised with your time is one thing, but the secret behind this concept is recognising when you are most productive. Although the world is predicated on a 9 to 5 schedule, you can apply productivity to what suits you in particular. So if you need to get those tasks done that keep you stuck on planet procrastination, think about when you feel most productive. Whether evenings suit or if you are up and at them during the morning then focus on tasks at those times. Embrace flexibility, especially if working through tasks at 2 am works best for you, although if you don’t live alone maybe wait to vacuum for a few hours.
If You Need More Time Go To Sleep!
Naturally, you’ve got better things to do. Despite your daily obligations and the demands on you, getting a decent night’s sleep is highly beneficial in recharging the brain’s batteries, increasing clarity of thinking and efficiency in activities. Although a whole night’s sleep is not always possible, of course, whenever there is the opportunity to get some shut-eye, whether it’s during the night or a power nap of 30 minutes, it’s useful to acknowledge how sleep can play its part in productive time management.
Delegation Over Frustration
Whether it’s getting a night’s sleep, doing emails, phone calls or household chores, delegating tasks is a key factor in reclaiming more time for yourself. Some people find this difficult to do, but if you consider the positive payoffs of managing your time, it’s reasonable to ask others to share tasks with you. Whether its colleagues, employees or family and friends, explore the options of paying someone else to do something that saves you time or, if this isn’t practical, engage with the law of reciprocity so you can ask a family member or friend to do something and you exchange that in some way, for instance cooking a meal. Just ensure you are clear about the lines between reciprocal arrangement and bribery!
Guilt Has Left The Building
For change to be effective, be willing to evict guilt from the house, office or whatever you need to restructure. Apart from anything else, guilt is an essentially pointless emotion that all of us get to feel at some stage. Give yourself a break and begin thinking about those things you sign up for and say yes to. Examine your motivations, and whenever you are doing something based entirely on guilt, then take a deep breath, be brave and say no. Reward yourself with time and let guilt take care of itself.
