The world around us has changed due to the pandemic, where we are constantly multitasking and many of us have had to adjust quickly to working from home. This is why time management skills have come into play and are just as important in the office as they are at home, to aid in reducing anxiety and creating efficiencies.It is important to be able to organize your time with all the daily tasks you have to complete.This will help avoid stress and anxiety that can be caused by feeling overwhelmed.
Everyday you should have a “housekeeping” list of things to do along with the order in which they need to get done.Find out what works the best for you, I like to create simple excel sheets that list my tasks for the day with due dates and the approximate time it will take me to complete them. As each one is completed, I get a sense of satisfaction by highlighting it in green. An example of a daily task is, going through my emails first thing in the morning for about 30 minutes to see what actions I need to take such as,replying to them, moving them to a specific folder or deleting them.
Another great tool for structuring your day is to use an online calendar like Google Calendar which can be synced to your phone for reminders. By using a calendar you will be able to hold yourself accountable and manage your time properly. When one action item is not completed on time it has a trickle-down effect on you and probably others!
Efficiency is the outcome of a well-organized plan to attack your action items. Are you delegating tasks to others or are you trying to tackle it all by yourself? Do you prepare ahead of time for calls and meetings or are you scrambling last minute to gather information?
Setting goals and clear communication helps you not only create efficiency for yourself but those your work for and with. Accelerating your time management skills will lead to less stress and create better productivity. There are great resources online for you to understand how to gain better time management skills, put it on your calendar to research them!
Lisa Grande
