If you find yourself getting to the end of the day and wondering where the time went and why your inbox/message bank are still so full – then you need to keep reading. As the silly season is fast approaching, so is the workload and last-minute scrabble to reach targets and deadlines increasing. We have compiled a few tips to help you manage your time better and make sure you’re no longer surprised when 5.00pm rolls around!
- Create a To-Do List Every. Single. Morning.
Even if you are just re-writing what you were supposed to do yesterday – make sure at the start of each day, before you do anything else, to sit down and write a list of all the things you need to do that day. Prioritise this list (numerically or alphabetically) to make sure you get the important stuff out of the way first – eat the frog! However, make sure you also leave enough time for unexpected tasks that come up throughout the day so you don’t feel overloaded and stressed.
- Break up your day
Sometimes breaking down your day to sizeable chunks can help you manage your time better. Try assigning 25 minutes at a time to each task – put your head down and don’t let anything else distract you for that 25 minutes – don’t check emails or let colleagues distract you during this time! Make sure to also take breaks and divide up your day so you don’t exhaust or over-exert yourself to the point where you are no longer productive! Schedule in mini breaks and strategic times to check emails.
- No more distractions
Even things that don’t feel like distractions – like having your personal phone on your desk or having too many windows open on your computer – are still going to entice you to be distracted from your work. However while it’s great to put your head down and work hard – it’s also important to allow yourself little breaks to chat to colleagues and make sure you give your mind a ‘break’ every now and then. Just make sure you have completed all your priority tasks and earnt that coffee/chat break!
