A survey conducted by Gallup reveals that 48% of Americans say they don’t have enough time to do as they wish. With only 24 hours in a day: 8 hours sleeping, 8 hours working, and 3 hours commuting, eating, and getting ready combined, it’s no surprise that we feel as if time is speeding at 100mph in a school zone. We say we want to get in better shape, spend more time with family, and do the things we love, but how can we do so with very little time?
Truth is: Even with the few hours of free time available, most of us waste it scrolling on social media, watching Netflix, or playing video games instead of putting those hours of gold to good use. In this article, you’ll learn how to stretch time as much as possible despite a busy schedule.
1. Plan the night before
Planning and organizing for the next day a few minutes before bed is one of the most effective strategies to improve time management. It provides a basic outline of the tasks you plan on completing to increase readiness and preparedness for the next unprecedented day. Instead of heading into the next day blind to what’s to come, you’ll know what’s expected of you as soon as you get out of bed.
Getting into the habit of planning your day the night before, even for a few minutes, will reap great rewards. Instead of lying in bed taking your final scroll through social media, why not boost productivity for the next day by outlining the order of tasks you wish to complete? You can do this by allocating that time to write down all tasks for the next day and the expected time to complete them on paper or on your phone.
2. Create a to-do list
Like the strategy listed before, planning and scheduling establish a foundation for your days to build upon. Creating a to-do list of the tasks you wish to complete by the end of the day keeps you organized and prevents time from being wasted on wondering what to do next.
Professional NFL players memorize hundreds of plays, signals, and formations. The purpose? To increase team readiness and preparation when facing their opponent. If a team walked into a game without knowing their plays and cues, they would waste valuable time orchestrating their next play giving the opponent the upper hand because their preparation will outdo the other team’s heedlessness.
Creating a to-do list is as simple as opening your phone or taking a piece of paper and writing all of your “to-do’s” for the day. After completing a task, move on to the next, and in the end, you’re day will consist entirely of accomplishments.
3. Revaluate your use of time
We all have 24 hours a day: no more, no less. After 8 hours of sleep and work/school, 8 hours to yourself remains. Combine the hours it takes to get ready, commute, and eat and 2 hours will be lost. What you do with those 6 hours makes a difference; therefore, knowing the areas that consume your valuable time is crucial in maximizing the time you have as much as possible.
If you waste those 6 hours scrolling on social media and playing video games, what will you accomplish at the end of the day?
4. Focus on one thing at a time
Although it may seem appropriate to complete three things at a time, doing so creates a sense of panic and hurry that prevents our tasks from being completed to the best of our ability—this drains even more time as we will be spending our time correcting our mistakes rather than moving on to the next task.
In this scenario, quality is emphasized over quantity because; it’s more optimal to run out of time, leaving one ‘to-do’ unfinished rather than three or more.
“Our brains do not handle multitasking situations well. As soon as two tasks require our attention, productivity suffers”
René Marois, Professor at vanderbilt University
5. Wake up early
As simple as it sounds, waking up earlier than usual can be challenging and daunting to many people. When that alarm goes off at 5 a.m., our natural response is to make excuses to convince ourselves to sleep in longer and forget our purpose as to why we decided to wake up early in the first place.
A person identifying as a “night owl” will struggle to transform into an “early bird” because they`ve primed themselves to accept their natural sleep rhythm of staying up late and waking up late for as long as they can remember.
However, the rewards are immaculate once sleeping and waking up early become a natural habit. Not only do we give ourselves more time, but we also become more productive and focused. The early mornings are the quietest moments of our days; everyone is asleep, the streets are silent, and our phones are notification-free, allowing us to gain better focus and enter a deep state of work.
Ways you can start waking up early:
-Make your room as dark as possible.
-Set your thermostat at 60°-65°F.
-Wear blue-light-blocking glasses a few hours before bed.
-Read a book or meditate before bed.
Activity
In this activity, you’ll review how you spent your time yesterday. Note that the numbers in this activity don’t have to be accurate but close enough to give you an accurate representation.
