From the start, we need to say that time management does not exist okay? Why? Well, how can you handle time if time is one of the few things you cannot change? Can you change it or add more hours to a day or even can you move unused time for later? I don't think you can.
Better words for this would be self-management. You need to learn how to work with yourself and what processes work best for you.
These questions can help you to be more productive:
- What are elements that disturb you?
- Where are you more productive?
- Are you productive more alone or in a group?
- At what times are you the most productive?
- What are the things that trigger work mode?
- Are there any things that waste your time?
You will find answers to some of the questions here in this article.
Are there any things that waste your time?
Let's be honest with yourself, a big part of your day you do things that aren't needed. The nice thing would be if you could know on what things you spend most of your time. Then you can better manage your time and activities that you need to limit. Many of us think that we don't spend much of our time on social media, which is not true, to be honest.
Many apps can help you track your time. For example clockify or iPhones have this feature built-in. I recommend you to track your normal day and to write down your activities during a day. After that, you will find that you aren't as productive as you think.
Where are you more productive?
Easy question, but the answer doesn't have to be as easy as it seems. You need to test every environment that is available to you. Find where you are focused and aren't often disturbed. A nice addition is when you have an organized and clean desk.
At what times are you the most productive?
Learn from your sleeping habits. When do you get up? When are you going to sleep? At what time do you have the most energy? If you answered all those questions then it should be easy for you to do complex tasks when you are in the best shape.
What are elements that disturb you?
Find these elements that disturb you and because of them, you cannot focus.
Most of these elements are:
- social media
- noise
- emails
- colleagues
- meetings
- family members
- other apps
The best is to determine a time when you are available or limit access (eg. turn off notifications)
Pomodoro technique
I've got a nice trick for you. It's called a Pomodoro technique. In this technique, you delegate the exact time for a task and after that time you have a small break. This technique has the best results in tasks that we don't want to do (eg. cleaning, ironing, or doing homework). The most frequent template is 25 minutes of work after that 5-minute break and after 4 cycles there is a longer break. In this TED talk, it is nicely explained.
Eisenhower decision matrix
This tool is very good for the prioritization of tasks you got on your desk.
Conclusion
If you got here you should have under your belt some hacks on how to increase your productivity. Now your goals should be:
- have better work-life balance
- be more organized
- prefer single-tasking over multi-tasking
- do tasks well, not quantitatively
- be productive without stress
cover image made by: Woman Vectors by Vecteezy