How to Organize Your Time Wisely

Three Methods: 

1 Identifying How You Spend Your Time

2 Avoiding Distractions

3 Using Your Time Efficiently

We've all heard the complaints that there just aren't enough hours in the day to accomplish everything that needs to get done. A few basic organizational and time management skills can help you maximize the time you do have. Learn how to organize your time wisely to get more done in the time you have.

Method 1

Identifying How You Spend Your Time

1. Keep track of daily activities. Monitor what you do on a daily basis and make a note of how much time you spend doing it. You might be surprised by how much time you actually waste throughout the day when compared to the actual amount of work you get done.^[1]

• Remember to also keep track of mundane tasks, like making breakfast, cleaning the house, showering, etc.
  
  2. Log all of your activities in a notebook. Once you have figured out what you do each day and how much time you spend doing it, write it into a notebook. Putting all of this information into one place and seeing it on one page will allow you to identify patterns and, potentially, areas where you may be wasting your time.^[2]
  

  • Be comprehensive and clear when making entries into this notebook. Don't conflate separate events into one entry, don't overlook minor tasks, and be sure to write out exact times when assessing how your day breaks down.
  • It can be helpful to categorize certain types of activities. For example, write household chores in blue, work activities in red and leisure activities in black. This will help you visualize how your time is being spent.
    
    
     

    3. Assess how your time is spent. An hour a day spent zoning out? 2 hours to decide where to eat? 8 hours surfing the internet? Look for patterns in how you spend your time and determine what is necessary and what it is not.^[3]

    • Do you waste time because you lack self-control? Do you procrastinate too often? Do you take on too much responsibility? These are all questions you need to ask yourself while assessing how you spend your time.^[4]
    • You may find that you break up activities throughout your day in ways that don't make sense. For example, it is probably not wise to work for a half hour, then spend 10 minutes dealing with trivial matters, just to come back to work for another half hour. You will be more focused and productive if you just work for an hour and deal with trivial matters at a later time.
    • It is best to attack your tasks by "chunking". Chunking is a method in which you dedicate a predetermined amount of time to a single task without distractions.
      
      
      
      4. Consider adjustments. Now that you know exactly where and to what your time goes, start making active adjustments to your schedule. Make sure you identify areas that can’t or shouldn’t be reduced simply for time concerns. Just because something takes a long time doesn’t mean it is time wasted.^[5]
      
      
      
      5. If you spend 3 hours a day sending work-related emails, it is unlikely you will be able to reduce the amount of time spent on this activity. However, if you are sending four or five personal emails between the work emails, you can definitely reduce the amount of time you dedicate to emails.
      
      
      
      6. Change your habits and norms. Whatever your time management problem may be, there is a solution. Once you have decided where you waste time or how you should be spending your time, you will need to make a concerted effort to change your time management habits.^[6]
      

      • If you are spending too much time cleaning your house or cooking your meals, considering hiring domestic help like a maid or a cook. For some people, their time is more valuable than their money.
      • Maybe you spend a good chunk of your day surfing the internet aimlessly. You can restrict your access to the certain internet sites or social networking accounts when you are supposed to be working on something else.
        

      Method 2 

      Avoiding Distractions

      1

      Identify distractions in your life. The biggest threats to spending your time wisely are consistent distractions. You will want to figure out what types activities or which individuals tend to end up wasting your time. Whether it is a friend who just doesn’t stop talking or a guilty pleasure that draws you away from work, you can find ways to avoid these time wasters.^[7]
      

      • If you spend a large chunk of your time on something that produces no desirable outcomes for you, it is likely just a distraction in your life that should be avoided.
      • Working in an office setting, you are likely to see many of your co-workers as distractions. Be sure to avoid small talk or worthless chit chat when you are on the clock. However, keep in mind that your attitude in the office is as important to your career advancement as time management skills, so don't be rude.
        

      
      

      2

      
      

      Avoid long phone conversations. If you find you are spending a good amount of your time locked into long phone conversations, then you need to adjust your phone habits. Often times, you can achieve more in face to face meetings than you can on the phone- so cut out the long phone conversations.^[8]
      

      • Many phone discussions, especially at the beginning or the end of the conversation, include superfluous and unnecessary conversations. People tend to lose focus and wander while on the phone, so be cognizant of that. Holding meetings in person provides more of an imperative to deal exclusively with work-related issues. This is because neither party is surrounded by distractions when a face-to-face meeting takes place.
        
        3
        Don’t surf the web excessively. Many people use the internet as critical tool to accomplish the tasks they need to get done. However, just as many people are guilty of drifting over to useless news articles, sports highlights, and pictures of celebrities, kittens or puppies. Stay focused when you are on the internet. There are programs available that will block certain applications, websites and domains that can help reduce internet-related distractions.^[9]
        

        • Avoid Facebook, Twitter, and other social networking sites when you are supposed to be focused on something else.
        • Googling various topics is also a dangerous time-waster. You may think you are just going to look up one quick thing and before you know it, you have been searching the vast depths of the internet for over 3 hours.
          
          4
          Employ a “Do Not Disturb” sign. You are probably familiar with the sign you hang on your hotel room door. This sign can be equally effective in an office or workplace as well. You can get a sign like this by taking it from the next hotel you stay at, or you can print your own and attach it to the door of your work space when needed. This will eliminate the small talk that distracts you from your work.^[10]
          

          • If you work from home, it is critical to have a dedicated work space of your own. Don't work in the common areas of your house, as the T.V., phone, or video game machine can easily distract you away from your work.^[11]  
            
            

      
      

      5

      
      

      Make time for unavoidable distractions. There are some distractions some people just can’t avoid. Sometimes it is your boss who wants to take time out of your day for a social chat or maybe an elderly family member that consistently needs help with simple tasks. Whatever these unavoidable distractions may be, if you plan for them in advance, they will not take critical time away from other projects and activities that need to get done.^[12]

      
      Method 3  

      Using Your Time Efficiently

      
      

      1

      
      

      Write everything down. Don’t rely on your memory to get you through the tasks you need to get done. Write everything you need to do down in one spot and be prepared to reference this list often in order to achieve all of your goals.^[13]
      

      • Even if a task seems minor or mundane, write it down. Your daily planner should be filled with small comments like "Call Steve," "Look up profit margins" or "Email boss."
      • Make sure you carry a notepad with you at all times and write down tasks as they come up. You think you will remember to write them down later, but you may not.

      
      

      

      
      

      2

      
      

      Utilize a calendar. The simple addition of a daily calendar or planner to your set of organizational tools will help you organize time efficiently. Write down every new deadline, assignment or meeting that gets added to your schedule. Take time each morning to review your calendar for the day so you know what's ahead of you.^[14]

      

       

      
      

      3

      
      

      Avoid double-committing. Organize your schedule by avoiding overbooking yourself or committing yourself to too many projects or events at once. Check your calendar before agreeing to anything to verify that the time needed is free. This will keep your time organized and keep you in touch with your regular schedule. 

      

      4

      
      

      Omit distractions. Organize your time productively by removing elements that could be distractions or cause you to get off track and behind schedule. Keep the television and video game system out of the area where you study or do the bills so you will focus on the tasks that need to be done first and save the fun stuff for later.^[15]

      
      

      

      5

      
      

      Prioritize your tasks. Manage your time wisely by planning to accomplish the most important or time-sensitive tasks first. Note these in your schedule with a special color highlighter or a small sticker. Schedule these top-priority tasks first to give yourself enough time to complete them, then work on less time-sensitive things around the prioritized ones.^[16]
      

      • Be ready to change your priorities from time to time. Things do come up last minute and will require your immediate attention. You will have to stop what you are doing and refocus your energy and time on this last minute objective from time to time. Just be sure it does not occur too often.
      • If you find yourself consistently rearranging your priorities throughout the day, something is wrong. While minor adjustments to one's schedule can be expected, having to make consistent adjustments probably means you are not prioritizing properly in the first place.
        
        
        
        6
        Be realistic. Allow yourself a realistic amount of time to complete each task. If you think something will take between a half hour and an hour to complete, give yourself the full hour. Being realistic about how long something will take will prevent you from getting overwhelmed or behind schedule.^[17]
        

        • It is always safer to err on the side of caution and give yourself more time than you will need. If you finish your task early, you will be free to move on to the next task- which ultimately should not impact your productivity.
          
          7
          Schedule the basics. Remember to include times for the everyday basics, like eating and showering, in your schedule. These might seem like second nature, but it's important to allow time for them among your other scheduled tasks to ensure that you don't skip them and that they don't put you behind schedule.
          

          

          8

          
          

          Use a reminder system. Use simple reminders in addition to your daily planner to help remember important tasks or deadlines. Use sticky notes or voice or text alerts on your cell phone at certain times to remind yourself to do something or that you have something scheduled. This backup system will help keep you from forgetting things.^[18]
          

          • Avoid relying on other people to remind you about something. They are just as likely to forget it as you are.
          • If something is extremely important, arrange multiple reminders for yourself. You can overlook a single sticky note or phone alert.
            
            9
            Ask for help. Ask someone else for help and delegate smaller tasks if needed. It will benefit your schedule overall if you swallow your pride and ask someone to pitch in with a few small chores around the house or with taking care of dinner on a busy weeknight. ^[19]
            

            • Make sure you delegate responsibilities to qualified people. Someone getting the work done is not enough. You want them to get the work done well.
            • Don't make a habit of pawning off your work others. It does not reflect good time management skills. It just makes you look lazy and unmotivated.
              
              10
              Gauge your productivity. From time to time, it is necessary to take a step back and analyze what you accomplished, how well you performed, and how much time it took. Taking stock of these aspects of your work and life can help you make changes to your schedule and daily pattern of operation, producing surprisingly effective results. 
              
              
              
              11
              Reward yourself. Working too hard or too often can lead to a burnout, making it difficult to focus on even the simplest tasks. So, take some time to celebrate what you have accomplished from time to time and reward yourself with something you truly enjoy.[20]
              Make sure your down time is dedicated to enjoying yourself. Turn off your work phone and avoid answering emails. If you are mixing work with your leisure time, you really aren't rewarding yourself or avoiding burn out.
              If you work Monday to Friday, take the weekend off. If you have been working for three months straight on one project, take a brief vacation when you are finished with it.