Time Management Strategies

These time management strategies can boost your time management skills and allow you to get more things done.

Take control with these time management tools and overcome procrastination and reduce stress.

Do you feel pressured by a lack of time?

Do you have a to do list as long as your arm?

Are you working hard but not making any dent in your workload?

These are all symptoms of time management issues that increase stress.

As a performance psychologist who works with corporate executives, business professionals, students and work-at-home parents, I have found these strategies to be beneficial.

These time management strategies are the same time management techniques that I incorporate and find beneficial in my own life.

Time management strategies #1: Plan time for yourself

If you have a to do list as long as your arm it may seem almost impossible to plan time for yourself.

If you are like was, then time for yourself is the first thing to be crowded out when things get busy.

However, having time for yourself is critically important.

Research shows that regular breaks throughout the day, whether it is a brisk walk or a walk around the office, relaxes your body and refreshes your mind.

But how do you plan for this.

The key word is PLAN.

I find it useful to set a weekly plan that funnels down to my daily to do list.

Download a weekly plan or create a weekly plan in your personal organizer or time management planner.

By having a weekly plan, whether you are a business executive or a student at college, allows you to get an overall view of your week and develop a time management schedule.

By developing a time management schedule you can identify potential bottlenecks of activity and use delegation or other time management techniques to increase effectiveness.

Time management strategies #2: Practice the 4 D's

As you develop a plan for each day you need to decide how to allocate tasks across the day. Practicing the 4 D's can be a useful way to manage your time.

Do it. This task needs to be done. It's important and urgent and is in quadrant 1 of the time management matrix.

Delegate it. Delegation is one of the most talked about yet underused time management techniques. If done well, delegation allows you to potentially train others and free up your time for more important tasks. If done badly it can increase burnout, absenteeism and reduce work morale.

See these tips for how to delegate effectively.

Dump it. This task is not important. These types of tasks are likely to have been on your to do list a few days and are not likely to be done.

Defer it. Do this with a task that needs to be done but does not need to be done today. The danger of deferring important things is that they will become urgent - this can increase your stress.

Time management strategies #3: Know how you spend your time

Do you work hard only to get through half of your to do list, and wonder where the day went?

If this sounds like you then see how much time you spend on different activities with a time management log or download free time tracking software.

Knowing how you spend your time is often the first step to better time management.

Why?

Because tracking your time identifies any time-wasters and highlights any tasks that you are procrastinating on.

Having a knowledge of how you spend your time gives you the power to make significant changes in your life.

These time management activities can also be beneficial.

Time Management Activity What quadrant are you in most of the time? Do you spend most of your time in Quadrants 3 and 4? These are the causes of poor time management while Quadrant 1 can be a symptom of time management problems. Reduce stress and increase effectiveness by using time management techniques to move you to Quadrant 2 of the time management matrix.

Time management strategies #4: Develop clarity of your priorities

Developing good time management strategies is not just about getting you off the treadmill of firefighting.

It is also about developing time management techniques that give you the power to take control and live effectively.

Having a long-term vision of where you want to go provides you with direction and focus. Personal goal setting turns today's vision into tomorrow's reality.

Do you spend enough time on those things that are important to you?

Many people over-schedule their time and end up doing activities that don't reflect their values or priorities.

Are you jumping from crisis to crisis on a treadmill of putting out fires?

This can be very stressful and leave you frazzled at the end of the day!

How can you center yourself with various stress management techniques and do what is important to you?

Time management strategies #5: Learn to say No

For me this is a hard one.....I want to do everything! How about you?

Do you always put up your hand for more work? Do you have difficulty saying "No"?

While people may love your motivation and enthusiasm, the cost is that you can end up doing other people's priorities and leaving yourself frazzled and run down.

Learning to say NO allows you to spend your time on activities that reflect your values and priorities, not someone else's priorities.

Practice being assertive. It is difficult to be firm in saying "No" and I have learnt not to be too over-apologetic.

I have a habit of saying "Yes" without contemplating the consequences, so I have also found it useful to delay my response by simply stating "I don't know. I will have to get back to you."

However, when doing this, try not to raise the expectations of the other as this only disappoints them when you eventually say "No."

Here are a number of time management tips that can help you to remain focused.

Time management strategies #6: Stay organized

Does your desk resemble a mountain of papers?

Do you spend time trying to find things?

If so, then becoming more organized at home and at work may be beneficial for you.

These organizing tips help you to maintain a home that does not drain your time or energy.

Similarly, an organized schedule that reflects your values and priorities can be aided by keeping a time management planner.

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