Time Management Tips

Learn how to make the most of every second at your disposal.

Our time is not something over which we have absolute control; it is not recyclable and is limited. Therefore, we must learn how to use it, to make the most of every second at our disposal. In order to not only be more productive and effective at work but also be able to enjoy our lives.

 The common man is not concerned about the passage of time, the man of talent is driven by it. - Shoppenhauer

The secret of achieving more in less time relies primarily on being capable of prioritizing and setting goals. There is always enough time for the important things, if it is important, you should be able to make time to do it. Likewise, setting goals allows you to focus your efforts on achieving your objectives.

 Here are some tips that will help you make the best of your time:

1. Time is money

   Your time is a limited resource to be used, and you must invest it to obtain satisfaction. Therefore, every second you lose, it's time you stopped investing in yourself. So no matter what you do, find something you enjoy in it.

2. Set goals and break them down into small tasks

   When you fail to define your goals, your work and effort lose their impact. Setting SMART goals focus your efforts by helping you rule out actions that will not contribute to achieving your objectives. Therefore, it allows you to be more effective. Furthermore, global goals can be overwhelming, so break them down into the day to day tasks. By setting time-based commitments for this "small" task, you will be able to assess the development of your goals in intermediate periods, allowing you to have a better base for decision-making and avoid the tendency to postpone. 

3. Prioritize your day in advance

   You can prioritize based on time constraints and the potential profitability or benefit of the task. Take into account the 80:20 rule, and focus your efforts on high-payoff tasks. Create a big To-Do list, which includes all your duties regardless of the deadline, and a daily To-Do list for what needs to be done tomorrow. When you are organizing your time, you should concentrate on all those tasks that require major concentration and effort in the morning, and in the afternoons, the meetings, and others. Use the last 15 minutes of every day, to create your To-Do list for the following day and organize your schedule. Every morning recheck that list before starting to work.

4. Set deadlines and reminders

   By establishing deadlines, you will force yourself to prioritize and focus on what needs to be done, instead of wasting your precious time all day. Note that memory can be our enemy, especially when we postpone tasks. Set up regular reminders and be safe in the knowledge that I’ll be alerted long in advance of any possible emergency.

5. Do one thing at a time and avoid perfectionism

   Better a little which is well done, than a great deal imperfectly. Multitasking has been proven to be ineffective. The quality of work suffers at the expense of quantity. However, don't waste time obsessively perfecting a task when you could better spend the time on something else.