A lot of people I know and have worked with at some point were challenged in terms of managing their personal time wisely. Some even go to the extent of adding a few more hours on top of their 8 to 5 job in order to manage the tasks assigned to them. This activity for sure will take its toll without the person even knowing it. And not to mention, we lose a lot of personal time we can either a lot to unwinding and resting.
In order to control and have a better grip of managing ones personal time, a lot of advance planning is involved. Being reactive to situations and circumstances is an attitude that should not be cultivated. Surely, being able to react to real-time troubles is good, but with enough planning and foresight, these can all be avoided.
Here are some tips:
- Plan out your tasks 1 week to 2 weeks ahead; while leaving a leeway for sudden changes that may occur. This way, you are not reacting on what you do. Instead, you take full control of your fate because you have already anticipated it. In short; lesser surprise means lesser chances of committing unwanted errors.
- While at it, focus and anticipate possible impact! The last thing you want is your work to be rejected with various revisions or corrections. This is a complete waste of time and will further delay the tasks that await you. What is the point? Do it right the first go!
- Work on a strict timeline. This is a very crucial piece after planning. Once you have planned it out, the execution part is king. Do not get lost along the humdrum of your work; instead, check every now and then if you're within schedule. If, however, unforeseen matters created delays, go ahead and take the extra hours at work to cope up. But do not make this a habit!
- Eliminate unimportant habits - When a tasks or project is assigned to you, get all the information you feel was missed out. Clarify your tasks and the scope. Avoid the habit of getting back and forth to clarify the details. This is completely a waste of time (both parties) and not to mention, irritating!
- Manage discussion properly (face-to-face meeting and via calls). Admit it. Some people gets fascinated hearing themselves talk. Don't cater to this. Manage it by pointing out that you fully understood the concern and this will be attended to. Be frank but always be polite.
At the end of the day, it will all depend on how systematic and effective you want to be as person. Try to pause for a while and dig in on what you need to improve. Fact is, managing your time only forms part of a bigger and more important question which you need to ask yourself - "how can you make yourself a better worker?"
The key is, learn to work wisely.
