The life of any of us is connected with the deadlines, and it is not only about work. We have studied popular time management techniques and decided to share with you those that will help you work under strict time limits and keep up with everything.
Planning
One of the main tasks is to defeat prostration. There are many ways to fight it, one of them is planning. It will help to critically assess which projects will bring more efficiency, instead of taking on everything that comes into your hands. This way, you can better organize and manage your workday.
You have to honestly admit what you like about your work, and pay attention to these very things. They can help you tune in to your work and give you confidence and strength when working on more routine tasks. Charge your energy and help you do more.
Learn to tell “no”
When you have set priorities, it is time to start following them. Planning will help when there is a specific setting: you need to be able to say “no”. It is really necessary because the time is not infinite. Ask yourself questions. It is important not only to set priorities, but also to express them in something material, to paint on paper. Try to use samples (like free envelope mockups) and automate the workflow. It may be necessary to hire an assistant and delegate some responsibilities to him.
The word “no” defines the hierarchy of values that you adhere to. By refusing to participate in any project, you do so not because you don’t want to do it, but because you follow a certain plan. Then you don’t have to feel guilty and you can work calmly and efficiently. Respect the time you have planned and the tasks you have prioritized.
Start with a small
Waking up with the idea that today you finally need to solve some important issue, for example, to develop a strategy to promote the product for the next year, it is unlikely that you will want to immerse yourself in the work, barely crossing the threshold of the office.
It’s more likely that you’ll sit back and imagine the difficulties you’ll have to wait until the last moment to solve this issue, and in the end you won’t spend time on it and will take on more urgent issues. To prevent this, break the process of solving a voluminous problem into smaller and simpler ones and start with them.
Improve the “tomato method”.
Everybody has heard about Francesco Cirillo’s technique with the kitchen timer in the form of a tomato, but almost nobody believes in its effectiveness and has not tried to use it in practice. In fact, it is quite an effective way to defeat prostration, increase productivity and reduce time spent on work.
The method is simple: choose a task, set the timer for 25 minutes, work until the timer works. After that, take a five-minute break and get back to work. Repeat three times and then pause for 15 minutes.
It would seem that this is easier, but in practice there are difficulties. The main one is that in those 25 minutes you have allocated to work, you can not be distracted by anything. Here will help the application with a timer, air mode on your smartphone and silence. It would be better to spend half an hour at the end of the week to think over a plan of work for the next.
Arrange important meetings at the beginning of the working day
If you meet with partners, for example, at 15:00, you will somehow mentally scroll through a possible dialogue, repeat a match, or predict the possible outcome of the meeting. As a result, it is unlikely that in the morning you will be able to devote your time to the current work.
Set deadlines for any task, even the simplest one
Otherwise, you risk stretching small tasks and underestimating more serious ones. In this case, the project as a whole may stagnate. To avoid it, set a specific time for problem solving. It’s not a fact that you will really be able to complete all tasks on time, but you will be able to navigate through your to-do list and move on as you solve them.
Write down absolutely everything
If it seems that a brilliant idea that has just appeared in your head, will stay there for a long time – it seems to you.
And it is better not to postpone it to the end of the working day: by that time everything will be forgotten. It is important to write down the ideas at once, as we go along, so as not to be distracted by them anymore.
Do not forget about yourself
Remember that energy levels, interest in work and concentration change all the time during the day. Sometimes the problems may take you by surprise from the very morning, and the whole day will seem meaningless.
At such moments, you shouldn’t force yourself to perform feats and try to solve tasks that you can’t do. Take on routine issues that you couldn’t get to for a long time, for example, write reports. This will help to distract, and at the same time to analyze all the work that has already been done.