Work Smarter, Not Harder
It’s the age-old adage of learning to find ways to work smarter, not necessarily harder. It was H. Jackson Brown Jr. who is famously quoted stating to never complain about not having enough time and reminding people that we all have the same amount of hours in the day as people like Albert Einstein and Thomas Jefferson. This statement is still true to this day.
In the digital era, we are flooded with solutions that are all meant to help make our lives simpler. From a variety of calendar hacks to apps to digitize our daily goals and priorities, these solutions all are designed to address a specific issue and make things easier on a daily basis. However, the mass amount of technology has led to a culture of hyper-productivity, especially in the workplace. E-mails are expected to be answered immediately; social media for our company monitored consistently, and tasks logged daily, or worse, hourly. Time management is the key to success!
13 Proven Ways to Better Manage Your Time
1. Set Realistic Goals (Daily, Weekly and Quarterly). Goals are absolutely essential to keeping yourself motivated and focused. How else can you expect to realistically accomplish what you set out to do? When striving to have better time management, setting realistic goals is a key factor in ending the work day with the feeling that you have accomplished your tasks. It is important to not only set daily goals, but to set goals for the week and for the work quarter.
2. Start by Auditing Your Current Time Usage. This one isn’t a super fun one, but it can really help kick off your path to better use of your time. Take a day or two and really audit what you do and how long it takes you to do it. Audit everything that you do; those coffee breaks and Instagram stalking breaks can really add up!
3. Don’t Be Afraid to Say No. Many of us feel that if we say no to something, it makes us a less efficient employee or co-worker. For example, if someone asks you if you have time to de-thaw the work freezer or pick out a new coffee table for the break room, say no. That’s what interns are for.
4. Set Time Limits for Your Tasks. Racing the clock doesn’t necessarily have to be a bad thing. By firmly saying that a task should only take 15 minutes, or a project must be completed by 4:00p.m., you are challenging yourself and, therefore, gain all the more sense of accomplishment when you meet the time limit.
5. Use a Physical Task List. There is a reason that physical tasks lists have been around forever: they work. Of course, there are hundreds of digital checklists and apps that offer varying benefits that a physical list simply can’t. However, having a physical list on your desk helps keep the day’s tasks in perspective. Also, how great does it feel to make that cross off?
6. Don’t Be Scared to Delegate. Some of the most successful people in the business world are excellent delegators. In today’s world of hyper-productivity, we often feel that if we ask someone to do something, or assign a task, it means we can’t handle it. However, that is incredibly far from the truth. Look for creative ways to delegate, whether to a junior or a co-worker. Instead of meekly asking, “hey…I could use your help on this,” think outside the box. Try approaching it with phrases like, “Jen, you have such a knack for social media, I’d love for you to try your hand at managing Client X’s social this month. Are you up for it?” Creativity is key when delegating!
7. Focus on Enjoying Your Work. There is always something to be positive about at work. Even while you’re doing your most menial, grueling task, actively look for something to appreciate, no matter how small. Can’t think of anything? Bring in a candle in your absolute favorite scent and light it. You would be surprised how much scent can affect your mood!
8. Make Your Work Space Comfortable. Sitting in a cold, gray cubicle leads to negativity, which can slow down productivity. One of the simplest things you can do to affect how you feel at work, which in turn will affect your productivity level, is making your work space a physically positive space. Bring in a small lamp with warm lighting to take away from the glaringly bright overhead lighting, bring a picture of your pet or a fun memory from a trip (this also makes for great conversation starters with co-workers), bring an air freshener, and any other accessories that make your space feel like your own.
9. Group Similar Tasks Into Batches To Stay Focused. If you work in an office setting, you typically have all sorts of tasks and projects that fall into all sorts of varying categories. By grouping tasks for the day or week into batches based on how similar they are, you will have an easier time staying focus and executing them quicker, rather than bouncing all over the place.
10. Prioritize, Prioritize, Prioritize! Again, in today’s world we often think every single task that comes in must be executed right away. This can lead to a massive waste of time. Just because an email happened to come in asking you to do some small, menial task, doesn’t mean you need to shove aside the huge presentation you’ve been working on that is due at the end of the day. Make prioritization a key factor. There is nothing wrong with responding to say you are finalizing the big presentation and will knock said menial task out first thing tomorrow.
11. Don’t Discount a Good Night’s Sleep. That one pretty much explains itself!
12. Watch Your Diet and Don’t Forget to Exercise. As office workers, we spend basically the whole day on our behinds. It can be extremely tempting to come home and wrap up the day with a good Netflix binge and a glass of wine. Make time to at least get in a good walk every day. Don’t discount taking a short lunch walk either. Plan your meals ahead or do a weekly meal prep so you have healthy food throughout the day to keep you away from the breakroom donuts or that second slice of Susan from HR’s birthday cake.
13. Don’t “Check Out” On The Weekend. While none of us want to spend our weekends working, completely checking out on Saturday and Sunday can lead to a barrage on Monday that will simply start your week off on the wrong foot. At least make an effort to keep up with e-mails on the weekend. You don’t necessarily have to complete every task or answer every e-mail, but at least add important items to a running task list so you are set for Monday.
We know you’re busy, but who isn’t? The steps above will help lead to better, more efficient use of your time, freeing you up to use your non-working hours to enjoy the things that you love!
The Era of Hyper-Productivity: Solved
Another great way to learn more about how you’re truly utilizing your time so that you can make concrete changes to better manage your time, is software platforms that track your time use. As mentioned above, in today’s era, especially with all the digital tools available, most of us feel like we have to be always “on.” We feel we have to answer every e-mail immediately. The good news is that task-tracking software can help track exactly how much time you spend on each task, how long you work on each digital platform or tool and, better yet, you can look back at every day and see exactly what you accomplished!
