Time is always seemingly against us. We constantly fight the clock, whether it's to meet a project deadline, finish a workout, or waiting for a horrible date to be over. As we get older, we (hopefully) get a little more wiser, and understand that our time is so valuable. Some people even put a price on their time, such an entrepreneurs. Being one myself, I have developed an understanding on how important my time is, and am wasting less of it on useless shenanigans.
These are my tricks that I've learned during my years of being an entrepreneur, that can absolutely benefit you, no matter what your life consists of; we all can agree that we never have enough time in the days to get the things done that we want to do.
1. Get organized
Spend some time on getting organized. Sit down and compile a list of all the things you want to get done. It doesn't matter what the timeline is for these items, we'll worry about that later. I would recommend thinking of things that need to be done within the next week/month. Then you may want to get a planner; a weekly or monthly planner would be ideal. The last 2 years I’ve created a customized planner from AGENDIO (can search on Google; their social media kind of sucks, haha.) It’s allowed me to get really specific on my lists and setting up the exact vision I need for continual weekly and monthly success. Absolutely worth the price tag!
2. Plan
Now that you have your extensive to-do list and your planner, start inputting the things that you want to get done, when you want them done by. If some have timelines, I would recommend making them 'due' maybe a few days before they are actually due, so if something unexpected comes up, you have a little extra give. Don't overflow your days with unrealistic tasks; my rule of thumb is to give myself 3 things to do each day. 3 things is absolutely realistic (depending on the tasks!) and if you manage to get them done earlier than expected, you can always be proactive and work on the next day's to-do list. Planning a week at a time would be more than acceptable, probably sitting down on a Sunday afternoon and seeing what's up for the week ahead. Planning an entire month in advance, now that's awesome! I did that for this month, and so far it's been extremely rewarding! I know what I can expect from myself over the next few days and weeks, and can adjust things as needed, as well.
3. Time your time
That's right. As someone who's constantly working on a computer for business, I find myself sometimes drifting off over to social media timelines, blogs, YouTube videos, or anywhere else where my work isn't. The clock is still ticking, and I'm just wasting time. Recently I learned the concept of timing myself (I'm nearly positive this isn't a brand new concept that I just made up!) I've been allowing myself 4 hours of computer-based work per day, and to make sure I'm on track, I set a timer in front of me and I watch it tick away. Stressful? It shouldn't be. Motivating? Absolutely.
4. Break it up
Don't try to be a superhero and get everything done in one go. Break it up. You can break your time into hours, or split it in half. For me and my client work, I usually like to break it up for a bit in the morning and then a bit in the mid-afternoon if needed; coming back with a fresh mindset.
5. Visualize success
When you can literally scratch something off your to-do list, you know that's such a good feeling! Just taking a thick black Sharpie and stroking out that 'thing' on your list. Ahh. Don't you want that feeling? Ya you do. Go get it, tiger! Visualize how good you'll feel when you can finish off your week knowing how much you accomplished by breaking things down, 3 at a time, day by day.
These simple yet effective tips can be applied to anyone, but you may need to make a few small adjustments, depending on your lifestyle. There's no reason why you cannot sit down with a planner and write out your to-do list and goals for the next couple weeks.
If you have any other tips or tricks, I would love to hear them! You can comment on this post or send me an email at courtney.u@live.ca
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