You probably heard the expression, time is money. It may be an exhausted saying but no truer words have ever been uttered. Many people may be brilliant at conjuring business strategies but unfortunately their time management skills are not great which often leads to them hitting a stumbling block fairly fast. Time must be maximised – here are some highly efficient time management tips that will help you to be more productive.
Diarise
Diarising does not only refer to recording your meetings and appointments. Use your diary to make note of conversations and thoughts on a daily basis. Doing so will help you to gain a proper handle of how much can be accomplished. It also will indicate how much time you are spending productively and how much of time you are wasting.
Make Time Count
Do not waste precious time. For example, if you have to stand in a queue or sit in a waiting room, if it’s a moderate to a lengthy wait, use that time to reply to important emails from your mobile or tablet or even respond to voicemails and smses.
Set Realistic Deadlines
Do not bite off more than you can chew because very soon you will see your walls closing in on you. Rather set realistic deadlines and respect them – do your best to meet them. Understand your capabilities and the scope of the task.
Consistently Prioritise
Your to-do list will be worth nothing if your tasks have not been written in priority order. Be able to differentiate between urgent and not-so-important. It’s pointless wasting time on something if that can be done at a later date, you rather complete tasks that are urgent.
Set Mini Rewards
It is not a bad idea to reward yourself after every time you finish a task. Setting these little rewards or personal incentives gives you a bit of motivation to power through your task. Reward yourself with a coffee break, a snack, a stroll, etc.
Mute Social Media
Disconnect social media apps on your mobile or tablet. You would be surprised about how much of time is wasted on popular SM platforms like Facebook and Twitter. Unless you are utilising it for business purposes, do not allow social media to entrench your work space.
