7 Time Management Hacks – Have you ever caught yourself getting to the end of the day and thinking, “Wait, didn’t I just have breakfast? How can it possibly be dark outside?”
Same here, friends. With seven kids, thriving businesses, a podcast to host, a book to promote, and my own health to care for, there simply aren’t enough hours in the day. Since I can’t magically create more time (don’t I wish), I try to focus both on limiting the things on my calendar while also maximizing the efficiency with which I can accomplish the tasks that do require my attention. I find this to be particularly necessary for September when the dog days of summer are replaced by rushed school drop-offs, irregular practice schedules, and appointments galore.
It’s in these moments that I think about that old adage: “Work smarter, not harder.” How can we implement hacks to be as productive as possible with the time we have available?
1. Avoid multitasking. When I know I need to combat distraction, I’ll often set a timer on my phone. When that alarm rings, it’s my signal to pause and ask myself whether the thing I’m actually doing is the task I had originally set out to do. For example, let’s say I need to create a list of questions for my next podcast guest. When that timer goes off, I better be sitting at my desk working on my list!
2. Get to the emotional root. One minute, I’ll be working, and the next, I’m in my bathroom cleaning. It’s not even necessarily a conscious choice, but I justify it as “taking a mental break” or “still being productive, just in a different way.” During a podcast I did with celebrated author and productivity expert Nir Eyal, we talked about the internal triggers that cause us to get up out of that desk chair and step away from the task at hand. In other words, what am I really feeling when working? Am I lonely? Tired? Uncertain? These are all emotions that can be addressed if I know what they are. The really crazy thing is that it is these internal triggers (not the pings, dings, and rings that we think are the culprits) that cause 90% of our distraction.
3. Stick to the four D’s. You may already be familiar with this popular productivity hack. Write out your to-do list and split the items into four categories:
- Do It. These are the items that you can check off your list quickly. Maybe you need to cash a check electronically, call the doctor to request a prescription refill, or submit an expense reimbursement at work. Rather than letting these tasks hang over your head, just set a timer and crank through them.
- Defer It. Though it can feel like it, not everything is urgent. Triage the items on your list and move the ones that don’t need to be done at this moment.
- Delegate It. Not everything on your list should be done by you. Rather than looking at this as adding to someone else’s plate, consider the opportunity for growth you may be presenting – particularly when you empower someone on your team to take on a stretch task.
- Discard It. We so often do things out of obligation rather than necessity. Release that pressure and cross out the things that aren’t the highest and best use of your time.
4. Increase the barrier to entry for your time. I have an “On Air” light outside my office at home. First, it was a signal that meant I was in the process of recording a podcast and should not be bothered unless it were a life-or-death scenario. Now, it’s more flexible: it indicates to my kids that I’m working on something important and need time to focus. When I first began this practice, I had a discussion with my kids and related it to their soccer games. If they were racing down the field, I wouldn’t stand up amongst the other proud parents and yell, “Hey! How’s your math homework going?” Doing so would throw off the entire team.
Instead, I would save that conversation for after the game when we returned home. Of course, there are certain times when I know I can’t realistically hole up in my office and switch on that light. For example, 6-8 pm is prime “mom time” at my house. It’s when I need to be fully present and available to my kids. The point here is that you might be surprised by what can happen if you put effort in, get curious, and allow yourself the space to figure out how to adapt ideas to fit your life.
5. Put it on the calendar. Rather than maintaining a CVS receipt-length to-do list that never seems to shrink, write out the things you must do and assign each of them to a specific space in your calendar. It’s fine to make adjustments day-to-day, but once a calendar is set for the morning, that’s it. Nothing (except for an actual emergency) is allowed to infiltrate that time. I plan my calendar on Sunday for the week ahead. I first block my personal calendar with my hobbies and workouts: the things I need to fill my own cup. This allows me to be sure I have the energy to take care of others.
6. Find an accountability buddy. When I was training to do the Seven Second Summits, I had to go on long hikes. There were times, particularly if I was out by myself, where it would have been easy to throw in the towel and say, “Eh, that was probably enough for today.” Before heading out, I made a point to tell my kids that I would take a photo for them at the top and tell them about it when I returned home. Just having that verbal pact was enough to ensure that I didn’t quit early. I would have had to have sustained a serious injury along the way to come home and tell them, “Oh, just kidding – I didn’t actually make it to the top.”
7. Get some Z’s. According to the Sleep Foundation, sleep loss overworks the neurons in our brains and leads to a host of short and long-term issues. Do you remember those all-nighters many of us used to pull in the college library, rushing to cram for a test or finish a paper? How many times did that actually help your outcomes? Taking it even further, a study published in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine estimated that fatigue-related loss of productivity at work costs U.S. companies over $130 billion each year. Rather than berating yourself for not being able to focus, show yourself kindness and prioritize some shut-eye.
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