We all have those days at work where there don't seem to be enough hours in the day to get everything done. However, if this seems to be the norm for you, it may be how you are managing your time while at work. Here are some tips to help you lean how to manage your time better.
TIME AUDIT
Keep track of where your time is going during the day. Is there a specific task that seems to suck up most of your time? Is there a co-worker who often stops by your desk just to chat? Do you often find yourself mindlessly clicking through social media when you should be working? Identifying the problems will help you have better estimates when you’re scheduling your day.
MAKE LISTS
If you have a lot going on or frequently have items that seem to fall through the cracks, start making lists. Sit down every Monday morning and go through everything you know that will be going on that week. Then, number them by importance. As your work starts to pile up during the week, continue to add to your list.
BE ORGANIZED
During your time audit, did you notice that you spend a lot of time searching for that specific file amongst the chaos on your desk or your cluttered desktop? Set aside some time throughout the next week to organize your work life. Taking the time to organize now will help you save time in the long-run.
SET GOALS
One major reason you may be wasting time is because you aren’t focused. Set a series of short-term, medium-term, and long-term goals to work towards. Short-term goals should be a few days to a week, medium-term would be a few weeks to a few months, and long-term would be a few months to a year. By always having something that you are working towards, you can stay motivated.
HAVE A ROUTINE
If you know exactly what you’re supposed to be doing and when you’re supposed to be doing it, you’re much more likely to be productive. For example; as soon as you get into work, check and respond to your emails and look at your schedule for the day. Then, you can move on to the first item on your To-Do list. Having a consistent routine will prevent those periods of time that you waste trying to figure out what to do next.
