Mastering Your Time: 4 ways to manage your most precious resource.

Your time is your most valuable asset. It is non-renewable, you can’t make more of it. In any job, you will have demands on your time, many of which compete and contradict one another. In this blog, we will provide four techniques to help you master time management, make the most of your time at work, and protect your time outside of work.

Get the Balance Right

You have 168 hours in a week. Assuming you want to sleep eight hours a night, that’s 56 hours gone already. That leaves you with 102 hours to play with. If you work a 9-5 job, that’s a 40 hour week. Leaving you with just 62 hours that are your own.

In these 62 hours, you have to cook all your meals, look after yourself or your family, do your grocery shopping, socialize, watch Netflix, and anything else you do in a typical week. This time is spent easily, so protect it, look after it, and treat it as the limited resource it is. Don’t let work encroach on it.

If you find that you haven’t got the balance right, consider the following:

• Setting clear boundaries at work: This can include setting specific work hours, creating a dedicated workspace at home, and communicating expectations with family members and colleagues.
• Focus on high-impact tasks that contribute the most to your goals. Use tools like the Eisenhower Matrix or the ABCDE method to determine which tasks are most important and should be tackled first.
• Schedule downtime: Plan regular breaks and time for relaxation, hobbies, and social activities.
• Limit multitasking: Focusing on one task at a time can help improve productivity and prevent feelings of overwhelm.
• Cultivate a support network: Surround yourself with friends, family, and colleagues who understand the importance of work-life balance and can offer support, encouragement, and advice when needed.

Structure your ideal week

This technique involves starting a fresh calendar, either electronically or on paper, and plotting out in broad detail what your ideal week will look like. Use broad blocks of time to plot out where you want to work, where you want to socialize, and where your personal time is in the week. If you have a regular date night, be sure to include this. If you go to the gym, plot in when that will fit.

Once you’ve plotted out what your ideal week would look like, you’ll be able to see where your free time is. This will give you a sense of what else you can achieve and take away any pressure to do more than what is achievable.

One of my favorite quotes is “no plan… extends with certainty beyond the first encounter with the enemy,” and the same is true for this technique. In reality, you might get meetings dumped into your diary, family matters might arise, and any number of unforeseen circumstances might derail you. But planning is important to understand where you want your week to be going, in a perfect world.

Scheduling Meetings Based on Energy Levels

Do you remember The Dress? Yes, that dress that no one could agree on whether it was white and gold or blue and black. Apparently, those of us who see it as blue and black tend to be night owls, while those who see it as white and gold are more likely to be morning people. This is because those who see it as blue and black were more likely to assume it was illuminated by artificial light, making it appear blue and black.

Now, looking at “The Dress” probably isn’t a foolproof shortcut to understanding if you’re a night owl or a morning person, but you probably already have a sense of which you are. Do you tend to jump out of bed full or energy, or do you get most creative in the evening? Give some thought to when you work best, and try to build your workday around this.

Do you have a slump after lunch and need the ideas of others to give you a boost? This is probably the ideal time to schedule meetings. Do you need a few hours in the morning to get started? Maybe avoid lots of calls then.

Being Intentional with Your Time

Being intentional with your time involves actively making choices that align with your values, goals, and priorities. Instead of letting your day be dictated by external pressures or distractions, take control by setting clear objectives and allocating time for tasks that genuinely matter. Start by identifying your long-term goals and breaking them down into smaller, actionable steps.

Regularly evaluate your priorities, ensuring that you’re not only working efficiently but also effectively, and eliminate or delegate tasks that don’t contribute to your goals. By being mindful of where your time is spent, you can avoid procrastination, enhance productivity, and ultimately, experience greater satisfaction in both your personal and professional life.

What works for you?

What works for one person might not be ideal for another. Ultimately, with proper consideration, you’ll come to understand what works for you and in your workplace. When employing these techniques, be mindful of others’ time too. Their priorities might not always be compatible, so make compromises and negotiate.

Try different techniques out and do comment to let us know what worked for you and whether you’ve got any other methods you use to manage your time.