There are 168 hours in a week. Have you ever worked out exactly what you do with these 168 hours?
How many of these hours do you personally allocate to work, family commitments, social activities, housekeeping, sleep and fitness? What about mental and spiritual wellness? Do you factor in time daily for relaxation?
When you stop to acknowledge how many hours a week you devote to each area of your life, you may be very surprised at the results.
I have worked as a wellness specialist assisting people to change their lives for over seven years. I am always staggered at how so many men and women go through the motions of everyday life in automatic pilot, constantly complaining that they are so busy. Being frantically busy seems to be worn like a “badge of honour” now a days.
There is no denying we all have a lot on our plates. If you take the time to really look at how you are managing your time, I am certain you can find ways to clean up and clear out unnecessary time wasting activities freeing you up for a little one on one time with yourself!
Developing fantastic time management skills should be a priority. When you manage your time effectively, you free up space for relaxation, re connection with friends and loved ones and general down time that your mind, body and spirit desperately require for balance.
If you are constantly complaining that you are “TOO BUSY” today is a perfect day to take control of YOUR time.
Cleaning up and clearing out distractions from your daily routine. This is a great place to start when improving time management skills. We often have great plans to achieve tasks in a certain time frame and all too often this is interrupted. Phone calls, text messages, emails, these are all huge distractions that can absolutely stop you from achieving a deadline. People now have access to us 24/7 which means constant interruptions. Are you allowing these interruptions to extend the time it takes you to complete your workload? Turn your phone off and commit to checking messages and taking calls and emails after you have completed the job at hand. Just because the phone is ringing or emails are coming, it doesn’t mean you have to answer them immediately.
Clean up and clear out your environment. Whether it’s your home or your office, take action and sort out unnecessary clutter and mess. Creating a more organised environment will instantly allow you to restore balance and harmony allowing you to think and see things clearly.
Prioritize your workload. Don’t invest your valuable time into areas that you know do not return results. Rinse and repeat can be great advice when it comes to success, but it can also be completely draining when you are not seeing a positive response.
Don’t be afraid to delegate. Whether its family members, friends or work colleagues, you do not have to carry the weight of the world solely on your shoulders. You may be surprised how capable your support network is if you choose to share the workload. Be open to others assisting.
NO! No is a fantastic word. Don’t be afraid to use it.
Time blocks are a fabulous way to manage your day. Allocate blocks of time to tasks and let nothing interrupt you during these blocks. Put up a do not disturb sign if need be and stick to your schedule regardless of the noise around you.
Do not procrastinate. Procrastination is a curse! It leads to lost productivity. Get the job done. If you do not step forward, quite simply you will just remain in the same place.
Focus on your thoughts. What are you thinking about? While you are cleaning up and clearing out, don’t forget about your mind. Throw away ANGER, NEGATIVITY, GUILT, STRESS, WORRY and any other negative emotion you may be carrying. Chances are that if you focus on all the really good things that are happening and all the positive things that you are achieving you will actually create a positive, productive day.
Step away from chaos. Don’t engage in the unnecessary drama of others. Do not get drawn into other people’s issues. Not only will this drain your time, but it will also drain your emotional energy.
Time is such a precious commodity. We can’t actually increase the hours in a day but we can certainly make the most of all the time we have. Devoting the energy into organising your time effectively enables greater productivity and the potential for ANYTHING.
Take action, eliminate negativity in all its forms. Free up some space so you can fill your world with more love, laughter, goals and dreams.