Do you ever feel like your to-do list keeps piling up and your tasks are never-ending, yet you have been working all the time with no task completed?
Life as a career professional and entrepreneur can be overwhelming at times, you have to juggle between completing your task at work before it is due, responding to clients, making research or taking courses, and still find time to handle your personal life.
I used to struggle a lot with managing my time and being productive. Most times, I would stay up very late after my 9-5 to attend to my business (you can get a peek into what I’m about) and my productivity and health kept suffering! Irregular sleep patterns became a norm and I was always feeling overwhelmed.
I felt the need to find a balance within my busy schedule to be as productive as I could be in both my career and business. This led me tto trying different things to find what works for me.
I am sharing this because I understand that a lot of people struggle with balance and are tempted to give up on their dreams because of a more demanding responsibility. I believe that we can achieve as much as we want if we discover the right task management routine that works for us.
These 6 tips that have helped me, I hope they help you too!
Remove Distractions
This could be your phone or whatever that distracts you from work. Put them away till you’ve tackled most of your work.
Focusing helps make sure you’re ticking things of sis. If you have to work on your computer, install plugins like Pause or Stay Focused to avoid being distracted.
I personally love the Do Not Disturb function on phones, it’s a lifesaver as my phone is my biggest distraction.
Also, I recommend assigning a particular time to check emails or messages because emails can be distracting sometimes.
Plan Out Your Days at the Beginning of the Week
You can do this on Saturdays or Sundays using any to-do list app/notes style you prefer. List out all the tasks you have to complete that week and assign a day and time to each task. Doing this will help you start each day with a clear head and specific task in mind instead of being overwhelmed with lots of pending tasks.
Batch Work/Block Schedule
While you plan your days ahead, you also want to assign similar tasks to the same day. If you have to film three videos, choose to write scripts for all, research, and plan on the same day. That way, you’re tackling relatable tasks at the same time.
Also, be sure to take breaks in between so you don’t expend all your energy at once. Work for 25 minutes, rest for 5 minutes (you can learn more about the Pomodoro Technique), this really helped me.
Tackle Major / Dislikes First
Another tip that can help you to be productive is, doing your major task or task you dislike the most in the morning or when you are most productive. Most people have their full energy and motivation in the morning hours so it’s best to tackle major tasks then. After a break or towards the end of the day, when most of your energy is out, you can now do the task you enjoy or find easy.
For instance, you dislike editing videos but you like creating graphics, you can edit videos in the morning and create graphics later.
Doing this, you will notice that though you are tired, creating graphics will not seem like so much work and you will find it easy to complete the task.
Delegate Tasks
This is the best way to get most work done especially as an entrepreneur. To be honest, you actually cannot do all the work yourself and even if you try to, it’s just going to slow your progress. You can outsource or hire someone else to do some task that doesn’t really need your attention then you supervise. Doing this will give you time to focus on what your business really needs!
Unplug and Recharge
Take a time out and rest your brain, this is the best thing you can do to be productive. Take your mind off work. Listen to music (my current favorite playlist), watch a funny comedy, or take a walk. This way you are giving your brain time to recharge from the day’s work. Stop the habit of working late nights and get enough rest so that you can feel revived for the next day and have your body thank you!
I created a curated tool list with my personal favorites to help you kickstart this journey!
Applying these tips was a game-changer for me. They have really helped improve my life and achieve much more from my day. I really do hope incorporating this helps you.
If there’s anything that has helped you I might have left out, feel free to share with me below!
Love and Light,
Valerie 🤎
Leave a Reply