Beginnings–Writing Schedule Tweaks

January 10, 2012 by Chris · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Lessons Learned

A promise I made to myself this year was to tweak my schedule to maximize my productivity. Perhaps, this is something you want to do as well. After all, we all have the same 24 hours to try and make the most of our lives. It’s certainly worth the effort to get all you can out of it.

Identify what matters.

The first step is identifying what matters. What do you want to accomplish this day? What do you want your routine to be? For me, I want to make sure and exercise every day. This leads to the next step.

Schedule it.

If it matters, it is worth putting on your schedule. I use a very simple smartphone app called Any.Do to make my daily to-do list. It’s usually just three or four things that are quick tasks that I want to make sure and do.

Your next goal is to schedule your tasks at the times you know you have free. My exercise works best if I do it in the morning. By the afternoon, I am so caught up in writing that it almost feels as if it would hurt to pull away. The ability to say, “At least that’s done,” is very powerful.

Circumstances change, of course. That’s why you must build flexibility into your mindset. Wasting energy to get angry because things aren’t the way you want them is unproductive. Harness it for something better–like finishing the next task on your list.

Tags: tasks, to-do list

Get It In Gear—National Time Management Month

February 7, 2010 by Chris · Comments Off
Filed under: Lessons Learned

Just perhaps when we need it most, when commitments to New Year’s resolutions are beginning to wane, welcome to February, National Time Management Month.

The best way I’ve found to manage my time is to lay out what I need to do. I can’t plan my day unless I can see my deadlines and timed tasks. For organizing, I use ToodleDo.

ToodleDo helps me lay out my short-term and long-term goals in a series of next-action steps. Major goals are more obtainable when broken down into baby steps. This has been the single best step I’ve ever taken to help me reach my goals.

There’s another side of time management that maybe we all need a reminder—setting boundaries.

Your time is invaluable. Don’t let anyone waste your time. Take your off time and use it. Do not take work calls when you’re off. Your boss does not have claim on time that is yours. Likewise, the friend that taps you for endless favors has to see the line in the sand. Reclaim your time. That is the best gift you can give yourself.

Technorati Tags: time management

Tags: time management, to-do list