Are you surprised by looming deadlines or caught out by distractions? If so, follow our top 10 tips on time management and getting things done.
Are there times when you are surprised by looming deadlines or caught out by distractions? If so, you’re not alone, and you’re not as effective as you could be.
So make time for planning and follow our top 10 tips for managing your time more effectively and get things done.
How did it get so late so soon? It’s night before it’s afternoon. December is here before it’s June. My goodness how the time has flewn. How did it get so late so soon? – Dr. Seuss
Getting Things Done
Over the last year, I was very busy. Life was hectic. So, I resolved to remedy this and make some changes in my life. This included managing my time more effectively and to start getting things done.
Use the following strategies and tactics and adapt them as you see fit. I’m building on previous ideas and experience and present an approach that helps me get things done every day.
Try them. Shape them. Or share some of your ideas in the comments.
Start with meaningful objectives
Do you spend time on things that aren’t that important or not directly related to a meaningful objective? Or you get things done and find they don’t advance your goals?
The first step to managing your time more effectively is identifying your meaningful objectives. Those things that guide you at work and in life. They link to your goals and drive everything you do.
Without meaning, objectives are lifeless and lacklustre.
Instead of go swimming once a week, I chose to swim 2.5 km in an hour for Swimathon 2021 in September as a meaningful objective.
This objective is both meaningful and SMART—specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and time-bound—and is linked to a personal goal about health and wellbeing.
Link your meaningful objectives to projects and next actions
Some objectives are too big or complex to work on. Therefore, it’s always a good idea to break them down into smaller, achievable projects. For example, the objective create a top 100 leadership blog could be split into a number of small projects and task. For example:
- write two quality articles every week,
- grow mailing list to 500 subscribers by end of 2021, and
- regularly engage 50,000 unique visitors each month by December 2021.
Creating a project helps you to track your tasks, AKA your next actions.
Next actions are tasks that have no dependencies. They are the things you need to do. They are the basis of getting things done!
Tackle one task at a time
Every morning, think about the most important tasks you need to get done that day. Then do them one-by-one.
If you’re writing a report or preparing a business case, you need to concentrate on the task. Every time you are distracted by an email or interrupted by a phone call, you lose focus.
