When was the last time you checked your calendar? Have you ever missed a meeting, especially an important one? Managing our time is critical to the success of our business, life, and relationships. The thing about time is this: It is limited, irreplaceable, and it is ever fleeting.
If you are a small business owner, or any size business owner for that matter, mastering the art of managing your time will change your life. These skills could certainly benefit many other people also. How do you feel when you are late for an event, even if it is "low priority"? How do you feel if a client, or potential employee is late meeting with you? If you will put these 10 tips to work in your daily routine, you will see a tremendous increase in productivity, personal satisfaction, and work efficiency.
Check out the list below for more:
1.) Schedule Your Day: Have time allotted to plan your day and purge recent days as well as review future appointments.
2.) Write It Down: No, you will not remember everything. Writing it down (or putting it in your iPhone calendar) will prevent forgetfulness.
3.) Follow Up: After an important meeting, make a note to follow up with an email or phone call, whichever is appropriate.
4.) Clear the Calendar: If you expect everyone to know your schedule, you are wrong. They don't know, and most people simply do not care. Have room for "Hey, can I ask you a question?"
5.) Keep Your Priorities In Line: If you run out of fuel, you will be left stranded. Furthermore, your clients will be left stranded. Give yourself time in your schedule to refuel, rest, and enjoy life.
6.) End Your Day on a Good Note: Review your day. If there were some things you missed out on, determine the reasoning behind it. If there were some things that went really well, make a note of it. Take a few minutes and end your day correctly.
7.) Forget Yesterday: I say this for one reason; Yesterday is gone. Sure, the consequences of a bad decision may remain, but the day is gone. You cannot undo it. You cannot buy it back. If you haven't been intentional about time management, right now is a good time to start.
8.) Set Reminders: The beauty of technology is the availability of smartphone and tablet apps, not to mention the rise in smartwatch reliability. Set a reminder for the 2:30 PM Meeting in your smartphone. Give yourself a break in between meetings and calls. If you have a negative meeting or client call, give yourself time to recover and clear your mind before meeting the next client.
9.) Create Margin: When you look at your schedule, is it booked every 30 minutes? Every hour? If you are not giving yourself margin in your day, you are working with a ticking time bomb. Build margin into your daily schedule and you will be better prepared for a successful week.
10.) Have a Routine: Start your day right! With every detail comes a new habit. Begin your day with a healthy routine and end it on a high note. Everything else in between you can control, but remember, build in room for error, thus, remember #9.
What time management techniques do you recommend? I would love to hear from you in the comments.
Photo Credit: Pixabay/Geralt