Personal time is a luxury, and managing it effectively can enhance the quality of our lives.
Here are some general tips for managing personal time effectively:
- Determine your priorities and schedule them into your day.
- Think about how to free up time for personal activities.
- Work on your personal schedule before going to sleep.
- Avoid running errands multiple times in the same week.
- Consider hiring someone to run errands or do heavy chores.
- Ask for help from family members.
- Spread out needed chores over a few days.
- Make sure you always have necessities at hand.
- Evaluate your relationships and limit the time you allocate to toxic people.
- Set personal goals and block out time to achieve them.
But incredible time management that actually helps you reclaim your time, doesn’t just begin and end at home, in your personal life.
Here are some valuable ways you can better manage time professionally:
- Prioritize tasks: Make a list of tasks that need to be completed and prioritize them based on their urgency and importance.
- Set realistic deadlines: Set deadlines for each task and try to complete them within the given time frame.
- Use a calendar: Use a calendar or scheduling tool to plan and schedule tasks, meetings, and appointments.
- Avoid multitasking: Focus on one task at a time and avoid multitasking, as it can reduce productivity and increase stress.
- Avoid distractions: Minimize distractions such as social media, email notifications, and phone calls while working on important tasks.
What about the SMART time management concept?
SMART is an acronym that stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. Using SMART principles in time management helps individuals to set realistic goals and take actions that lead to their achievement.
Here’s an example of how to apply SMART time management:
Specific: Let’s say that you want to improve your productivity at work. A vague goal would be to “get more done.” Instead, make it specific by setting a clear objective, such as “reduce the time it takes to complete a project by 20%.”
Measurable: Once you’ve established a specific goal, you need to make sure it’s measurable. In our example, you could measure productivity by tracking the time you spend on each task and calculating the average time it takes to complete a project.
Achievable: Your goal needs to be achievable. Consider the time and resources you have available, your skills and experience, and any potential obstacles you may face. For instance, reducing the time it takes to complete a project by 20% might be achievable if you can streamline your workflow, but it may not be if you have too many tasks and too little time.
Relevant: Your goal should be relevant to your overall objectives. In our example, improving productivity is relevant to your job performance and career advancement.
Time-bound: Finally, set a deadline for achieving your goal. In our example, you could aim to reduce the time it takes to complete a project by 20% within the next three months.
By following the SMART principles, you have set a specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound goal that will help you manage your time more effectively.
