If you find yourself overwhelmed with your responsibilities in life, you might not be taking on too much work. You could just not be managing your time correctly.
Time management entails making the most of the hours in your life every day. To do so, you need to make the most of your time to be as productive as possible.
As entrepreneur Corey Shader says, time management revolves around finishing more tasks of higher quality in less time. It’s the process of organizing tasks to enhance your efficiency and productivity.
If you’re struggling with time management, here are five ways you can improve your situation.
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Write Your Tasks Down
It’s hard to keep multiple tasks straight when you don’t write them down. Some people are better than others at doing this, but few are masters at managing their day-to-day duties if it’s organized all in their head.
A simple way to improve time management is to write down every task you need to accomplish.
Doing this will allow you always to see what you need to do and carve out the appropriate time for each job.
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Prioritize Your Tasks
After you’ve written all the duties down, the next step is to prioritize them. List the most important task first, and then follow down the line with each subsequent task.
Prioritizing not only allows you to stay on track but also helps you avoid pressure and stress. When you cross off essential tasks in order, you’ll be staying on track to accomplish all you need to do in a day.
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Be Flexible
At the same time, you should be flexible with your schedule. Know that tasks will possibly be added to your plate throughout the day, which will add to your list of tasks.
As you proceed through your day and update your To-Do List, it’s essential to be flexible. Anticipate that this will happen, so you aren’t upset or frazzled when it happens.
When new tasks are added to your list, consider the prioritization, adjusting tasks here and there to reflect what you now have to do. This will help ensure you remain on schedule, even when your day gets stuff added to it.
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Set Goals and Expectations
Most people have more tasks to accomplish but not enough time to complete them in one day — and that’s OK. This step is all about setting expectations for yourself.
At the beginning of each day, you should set realistic expectations about which tasks on your list you can complete that day. Then, set yourself goals for what you’d like to accomplish if all goes well.
By approaching your day this way, you’ll feel excited if you accomplish your goals but not disappointed if you don’t. Preparing the day before will help you attack tomorrow’s challenges with a clearer mind.
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Manage Your Stress
Corey Shader emphasizes that stress is a part of everyone’s day. How you manage that stress goes a long way in how successful you are at managing your time.
Take a break when you need to. Step away from your desk, go outside, or walk around the office.
These little pauses might not sound like much, but they’ll help clear your mind and prepare you to attack your tasks with a better approach.
Figure out which stress recognition and stress management techniques work best for you, and then implement them into your daily routine.
About Corey Shader
Corey Shader is a self-made entrepreneur, consultant, investor, real estate developer, and founder of several companies, notably Insurance Pipeline. Operating primarily out of Ft. Lauderdale, Corey’s endeavors span the nation, consulting for start-ups and sitting on the board of digital media and senior healthcare agencies. As a consultant, Corey helps young businesses develop sales funnels and maximize profitability. Shader takes pride in challenging others to push themselves to be their very best — he believes in constant self-improvement, inspiring others through sharing his own life experiences.
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