New Years Resolution - Time Management
You can always find time for things that are important and necessary to you in your life. To accomplish all that you want in the coming year, you will have to learn to balance the time that you are given against other priorities in your life. If you have reached this blog seeking advice on your New Years resolution of time management, here are steps to get you started and find the time you are looking for:
Step 1: EXCEL is the easiest format to use in my opinion to document your daily time allotment, but you can do this in a note book just as well. Write out your week starting with Monday and ending on Sunday. On the left, start with the time you normally wake-up and end with the time you normally go to bed. (If you do not have a regular bedtime schedule, a Life Schedule is a great place to start with that routine.)
Step 2: Begin by filling in your must do items. Work. Dinner. Homework. Make sure that you allocate the appropriate amount of time for each event. Cutting yourself short will set you up for failure. The feeling on not having enough time can be overwhelming. By visually seeing your time versus task, it will help you have greater control over your emotions.
Step 3: Are you missing anything you consider a priority? Some of you may want to schedule EVERY item you do. If this contributes to your overwhelming feelings, just list the biggies. Listing everything though does ensure that nothing is over looked.
Step 4: Now, schedule free time. That's right. Actually put this block on your schedule. The purpose of scheduling “free time” is so that you are ensured a gap. Space. Decompression time. This improves control over your time. The unexpected is the primary reason people give to not being able to manage their time effectively. The downtime space provides you that flexibility.
Step 5: Color code your schedule. Grey for the must do items. Blue for children activities. Pink for appointments. Yellow for personal health time. A visual representation of where your time is spent can also assist you when you are looking for way to sneak in more time. Balance. If you find too much pink and not enough yellow, it may not be time you need but a redirection of life balance.
Step 6: Share this with your support system. Print it and post it where you and others can review it. You may find that others are willing to help you (taking on a task) achieve your goal when they see the schedule in print.
Tip: Only create this schedule one week at a time. Scheduling too far in advance does not provide the flexibility you need. You need flexibility so that you can adjust, thus allowing you to stay focused. Without adaptation, the likelihood of failure of effective time management magnifies.
There is time in your day to get your priorities accomplished, you just need to see it.