As they say, New Year, new you, new goals, and maybe a new year’s resolution to achieve. The new year is the best time to incorporate more productive habits, accomplish specific goals and generally improve your life at the start of the year. May this be for school, work, or any other personal things, being productive is something that everyone wants to be.
Time management is something that many people struggle with and there are a lot of tips and tricks on the internet on how to manage your time daily. For starters, to-do lists, checklists, and reminders can keep us moving forward. Time is gold and being productive is beneficial to do more things done with less time and have more time to finish other tasks in a day or even do things that you enjoy in your spare time!
3 Tips to Help You Get More Things Done
Apply time management methods
Time is one of the most valuable resources since it’s non-renewable and once it passes, it’s gone forever. Doing more with less of your time can help you earn more, finish several tasks, and improve over time. Regardless of your job or industry, there always isn’t enough hours in a day to get everything done. So how can we make the most of it? Here are two methods that you can apply to help you manage your time. Take out your notes, sit back and learn!
Time Boxing Method
The Time Boxing method is a simple time management technique that helps you a lot a certain time frame for a task in order to plan out the activity without it taking most of your time. This is a very helpful technique to practice self-discipline and being organized in a way that you can see which tasks are harder or easier for you to set as a priority. This can also help you have more control over your schedule without overdoing just one task.
Pomodoro Method
The Pomodoro Technique is another time management technique that helps people take control over their own time and allows them to take regular breaks for every task completed. How to do it?
When tackling a difficult set of tasks, work in bursts of 25 minutes, then take a break for five minutes and after four cycles, take a longer break. Using this method, you increase your focus on your work sessions, helping to prevent burnout, stress, and mental fatigue throughout the day.
Fun fact: Pomodoro is the Italian term for “Tomato”
Restrain yourself from social media
Social media is a great tool to use for business, school work, or even just for recreational purposes only but when do we know if something has become too much? Simple: when it has taken over your entire life. Just like what we always say, too much of a good thing is a bad thing.
It has been proven that social media usage is the number one cause of procrastination in every workplace because it doesn’t just distract an employee from work but it also eliminates productivity. There’s nothing wrong with scrolling through Facebook or YouTube during your breaks, but make sure to commit yourself to your work during your work hours and be disciplined to control social media usage.
Take it from Day to Day
Every day is a new day to start over to set new goals and accomplish tasks so you should use your time wisely. Starting your day with a short daily agenda can be very helpful to maximize your time and set apart your personal and work tasks in two different lists. Having a plan B for unplanned work can also be very helpful in case of a sudden change in your schedule.
Always remember to use your daily agenda the whole day to check off tasks that are already finished and proceed to other tasks and take note to never ever reuse your daily agenda and start from scratch every day. Finish your tasks one step at a time, have a five-minute rest if needed, and always remember to enjoy whatever you are doing to boost your mood and enjoy the day. Don’t worry, you can do it, we believe in you!
Stay Productive!
At the end of the day, productivity is our ability to maximize what we can without being overwhelmed to the point of burnout. Abusing our minds and bodies by trying to get so much done is not healthy productivity but rather a toxic practice of overworking yourself to the point of exhaustion. Applying these tips and tricks you’ve learned can be a great start yet being productive still involves discipline, a positive attitude, and a strategic mindset. Being productive can be the key to a successful and happy life so go ahead and work smarter not harder!
“If you spend too much time thinking about a thing, you’ll never get it done.” – Bruce Lee