The Power of Good Time Management

The fact is some people achieve much more, are less stressed and are generally happier with their time schedule. Maybe someone has more or less money, opportunity and abilities, but we all have the same time. A lot of people are looking for a magic potion to prolong their time, although somewhere deep down they are aware that they have all the tools they need to organize their time in a way that suits them in order to achieve maximum results.

Are you familiar with this scenario: during the day, you overbook your obligations, not having a realistic picture of how much time an obligation will actually take, and then when the day comes to an end, you realize that you will not achieve anything. You feel frustrated because of everything that you still haven’t managed to tick off your to-do list, not paying attention to what you are at all. Therefore, you lie down and wake up with a chronic feeling of guilt, worries of conscience and dissatisfaction, because you are constantly focused on what you did not do instead of what you did, and that is not a good way to start, and especially end your day.

Have you heard about the Pareto principle?

The Pareto principle says that twenty percent of all the things we do in life or at work or in emotional relationships yields eighty percent of the results. However, how many of us actually know what exactly twenty percent of that is? In business, the most important thing is to get information on which eighty percent of customers buy which twenty percent of products, in order to modify our business strategy accordingly.

When it comes to private life, it’s a little harder to do the perfect calculation. Over eighty percent of the time, most of us waste time on imaginary obligations, so we actively and semi-consciously procrastinate, lose willpower, energy and productivity by doing something that seems urgent, and until we get to what matters, we no longer have the energy to move. How do you feel when you think that eighty percent of the time you actually waste as life passes by you? I feel awful and that’s why I want to do something about it, and here’s what I tried to manage my time better, so see for yourself what it does for you.

Make time just for yourself

Do you have at least one hour a day that you dedicate only to yourself? I know you certainly dedicate time to work, partner, family, training, friends, but only to yourself? You should not feel selfish that you spend time on yourself, because the time you spend on yourself is invested, not spent. Whatever the activity of your choice, choose those little moments for yourself, even if you stared at the wall and did absolutely nothing. You may think you don’t have time for that watch, but if you skip it, you’ll just run through the day like a headless fly.

In fact, you have no right to skip it, because if you are not good to yourself, you will not be good to others either. Having the illusion that you have saved time has little to do with the truth. It is nice to serve others, support them and always be available, but we sometimes do not realize how much this constant availability in modern times exhausts us and how much it is not really as necessary as we believe it is. What is necessary is to click the stop button and take a break, look inside yourself, not around you.

Plan time for quality sleep

I can’t know how much time you need to sleep, but I know that without eight hours I’m not for anything. Also, I don’t like going to bed after ten in the evening, because then I feel more tired than usual, and I get up at six in the morning whenever I go to bed. Try to go to bed at the same time every day, but also have small rituals that remind your body that it is time to sleep. This can be applying your favourite body cream, turning off the lights, a short meditation or drawing on the curtains.

Do meal prep

Nutrition is a very important segment of the organization of the day, at least for those who care about their health. If you do not plan your diet, it can often happen that you do not eat or eat something unhealthy, which later results in bloating, nervousness and mood swings.

Since I currently work from home, I am really in a privileged position to eat when and what I want. While I was in the office far from home, I would always take lunch with me, because I didn’t want to eat junk food. If you plan your meals in advance, you will be healthier, more capable of fulfilling your fitness goals and you will save a lot of money on snacks and nonsense.

Count the time for physical activity

On average, we sit at work for eight hours a day, sleep that much more, and the rest of the time we sit again either on coffee or in front of the TV or again in front of the computer. I think it is irresponsible not to set aside at least one hour a day to work on your body that suffers because of this way of life. It doesn’t have to be an expensive gym, walking in nature, cycling, swimming, yoga at home is enough…

I really believe that people who set aside that one hour just for training, only for themselves, without a mobile phone and constant distractions have a far more productive day. It is no coincidence that the most successful people in the world get up at five in the morning in order to get to exercise before work, plan the day, drink the morning coffee with pleasure and in peace, and are ready to dive into a day full of obligations.

Know how much time you need for what

I often remind myself that it is important to be honest with myself and responsible for how I manage my time, not to lie to myself that I will do something in ten minutes, and in fact it takes an hour or two. This is especially true for shopping in the supermarket, cleaning the apartment, browsing the shops and similar obligations that I often resort to when I get procrastination.

Learn to say NO and protect your time

This was the hardest step I took to manage my time better.

You have to take care of your time, because it is a resource that will not be renewed or bought. If you do not learn to say a clear and loud NO and set clear emotional boundaries, you will not be able to say YES to important things! You won’t have the time or capacity to deal with crucial things, because you’ll be on a leash and other people will create your day with what they think is urgent, which often has nothing to do with what actually matters to you.

At the very beginning of your career, it seems to you that you have to say yes to everything, because you may not get a second chance, but it is a trap, because even at the very beginning you have a choice and then you strengthen yourself and filter what is and what is not yours. a cup of tea.

In order to be available for everything that is important to you, be it health and training, family and friends or business, you have to become an expert in pronouncing the word no. You need to shift the focus from what you might miss out on to what you will lose if you invest that time in something that is not a priority and doesn’t lead you where you went.

Think about how much it will cost you time, nerves, health, money in the long run and realize that that wasted time will never come back. Realize once and for all that it’s okay to say you don’t have time, that it’s okay to change your mind, schedule and priorities. And that you don’t have to lie about it, but say nicely how it is.

When I say no to things that are not my current priority, I am saying yes to things that are in line with what I want to achieve and create in my life. It’s really easy, always give thanks for the invitation, say clearly that you can’t, give a reason why and say goodbye at the end.

Stop wasting time doing things that are not urgent

It is very important to see what exactly you want and whether you are really working on achieving it or wasting time on side things.

• Do the things you invest your time in bring concrete results?
• Are there obligations that you need to completely eliminate from your day?
• What is it that you usually do when you have to do something important and you choose urgently?

That would be roughly what I wanted to tell you about how I manage my time.

How do you manage your time? Do you have some other technique?

If you find this text useful, share it with your friends on social networks, or send it to someone who you think lacks a little order and organization in life. Thanks for reading.

Originally published at https://justsomerandomstuff.com on August 22, 2021.