Where has this year gone??
Once again Christmas is fast approaching and you may find yourself asking – where on earth has this year gone? It is easy to let the days, weeks and months tumble by but have you made time to stop and think about the activities you have been filling your time up with…
In my coaching practice one thing I find is that time management is always popping up as I cater for the busy, overwhelmed, harried masses, and really these descriptions have fitted most of us at sometime or another.
Perhaps you are a single parent, an overworked executive, or anyone with an expanding schedule and a reducing quantity of freedom. The trick is to find out what needs to be done, while still finding the time to do what you want to do.
Many of us are frustrated because we feel we don’t have enough hours in the day to accomplish the things we really need to do, the less important stuff is often burning up our time. You may be falling behind in your work or putting in lots of extra hours because you can’t complete your objectives during a normal work day;
the phone rings too much;
you are drowning in email;
or you get too burned out to finish the job
You may be relieved to read that there are solutions to all this frustration, firstly I suggest you begin at the core of the issue and start to understand how your time is currently spent – please contact me if you would like a free DeClutter Angel Time Activity Log to help you get to grips with this.
As there really is only 24 hours in a day, you perhaps could benefit from finding more ways to find more time in your day than you have now, for the important things. Start by looking for things to cut-out, ways to reschedule, and opportunities to combine activities. It is amazing when you start to feel you have control over your days. Here are some free DeClutter Angel tips to get you on your way:
The Dreaded Commute
Try avoiding the worst part of rush hour or start the day by leaving for work half an hour earlier and going home half an hour earlier. The daily commute can be reduced massively by avoiding peak rush hour times.
Need Some Quiet Time at Work
Many companies offer flexible hours, such as eight ‘9 hour days’ and one ‘8 hour day’ every two-weeks, with one additional day off. That gives you an extra hour each day when the phones are not ringing to concentrate on those pressing tasks that need to get done.
Short of Free Time?
Many companies too offer a “4 by 10 hour week”, which would allow you to put in a 40 hour week in 4 days. A 3 day weekend every week would definitely come in handy to most of us.
Too Much Time on the Phone
Do you know someone who loves to talk? We all do really, but it’s a good idea to keep notes handy with discussion points to keep your time on-track and reap the rewards yourself on your new time efficiency.
Not quite a Couch Potato but can’t resist great Box Sets or following a Soap?
There are so many great TV shows out there, I suggest you keep it to those that are worth their “minutes” and if you can. It is beneficial (if possible) to use Sky+, Virgin Media, Amazon Movies or Netflix to control what day and time your favourite program is watched, especially if you can skip the ads too!
Too Much Time Doing Jobs / Chores
Is your time well spent on hours of lawn care, laundry, housecleaning, or car maintenance? If you enjoy it then that’s great – if not, what could be done well or better by professionals? Sometimes hiring someone to do some of the chores is well worth the cost if this will free you up to do those things that are more important.
That’s all from me for now, thanks for reading and I hope you can build some extra value out of your time with these DeClutter Angel, small steps BIG IMPACT on Time Management…
For more information, please contact Karen Taylor: 07948 529587
