Everyone seems to be working long hours these days, whether it’s putting in bonus time at the office or striving for a balanced yet successful career and personal life. Working long hours and working productively are two separate things. Here are some tips for maximizing your time effectively so you can get the most out of your time.
- Make Several Plans
It may seem like a “waste of time” to sit around planning all the time, but doing so can help you prioritize your projects and schedule work and life tasks more effectively. Consider putting together not only a daily to-do list but also weekly, monthly or annual plans with particular goals to reach.
- Evaluate Your Personal Peak Times
If you’re a morning person, you may want to schedule your most important tasks or the ones that take the highest amount of brain power to be done first thing in the morning. Turn off all your devices, put your phone out of reach, close all your e-mail and social media windows. Protect whatever your prime time is for your hardest tasks.
- Remember the 80/20 Rule
There’s an old saying that 80 percent of your results are accomplished in 20 percent of your time. Figure out what that looks like for each project, get to the 80 percent good-enough stage, and move on. You’ll accomplish much more when you abandon that last little bit of perfectionistic, yet time-consuming, work.
- Conduct an Occasional Time Audit
Use an app on your phone or just a simple notebook and record what you spend your time doing. When you can see your entire day at one glance, you’ll probably easily see where time was wasted or where you could have been more efficient. Brainstorm things you can do to improve your productivity or better protect uninterrupted time to help in the future.
- Take Time for Yourself
Although you may find yourself “on a roll” occasionally where you want to work straight through for a few hours in a row, it’s a good practice to schedule breaks regularly. If you have the flexibility to take a walk or schedule a workout mid-day, that can help you reset and re-energize. Also, look for what inspires you, whether it be reading a book, having a purposeful conversation, or catching up on online blogs or shows. Make time for them. And don’t forget to schedule healthy meals and snacks to keep your energy up.
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