Stop Wasting Time? Use These 7 Techniques
Sometimes we wonder why we need so much time to do something, when it really only takes a few hours of our time. In a weird way, it’s just whether the time has been shortened or the task has become even bigger. Ultimately, time becomes a variable that we can no longer control, or at least partially control. But you can do it differently and stop wasting time.
If we don’t plan well enough, we will waste a lot of time. And this is valuable time that we will need later to keep up with our tasks or just have more free time. Today we are exposed to an enormous amount of stimuli. It is therefore difficult to draw up an action plan and to implement it down to the last detail. But it is not impossible. We propose you some strategies here. So you can learn how to avoid wasting time.
Punctuality – learn this antidote that will help you avoid wasting time
Everything starts right at this point, with punctuality. If you’re running late or starting late, you’ve already messed up what to do. You start everything in chaos. For you will initiate a series of actions that will lead to a chaotic or ill-considered sort of order.
Punctuality is not only about starting an activity but also about finishing it. You must be as attentive to the beginning of the work as to how you finish it. This is also the case for breaks. Starting to respect the time frame will help you a lot to meet deadlines. You will also be able to enjoy the benefits of a good organization.
Stop wasting time: prioritizing is key
If you want to avoid wasting time, you need to prioritize the tasks. That is a core factor. There are a few different ways to do this. Usually it means prioritizing the most urgent and doing the least urgent later. If you didn’t manage to do everything at the end of the day, then you did at least the most important thing.
Another good way to prioritize is to organize the tasks from the most complex to the simplest. At the start of the day you have a clearer head and large energy reserves. This makes you more effective. It is therefore an ideal state to carry out the most difficult assignments. The simple tasks don’t demand much from you. So you don’t have to be one hundred percent at your best to do that.
Take it step by step and make things easier
This advice is especially useful for people who have a hard time getting organized. This just means breaking each task down into steps and following them up one by one. So you don’t do everything at once. This will also give you a positive sense of accomplishment. It helps you to better distribute your time and energy.
The best way to avoid wasting time is to do only one task at a time. You’ve probably experienced this feeling before. You want to do so much but in the end you do nothing at all. Everything leaves you half started. Our inability to focus on any of the tasks we are working on will increase stress. For we have split our attention and increased the number of failures.
Get to know your rhythm and your pace.
It is always important that you know yourself well to avoid wasting time. Work is no exception. That is why it is very important that you observe yourself for a while. Try to find out how much time you need to complete a particular task. Focus your attention on those assignments that are an essential part of your job.
Don’t just measure the amount of time you use. It is also good to observe your attitude towards these tasks. Check which aspects are easiest or most difficult to get started. This observation will provide you with useful information. It will help you better understand your rhythm and pace. That way you can set more realistic goals so you can improve.
Use technology to your advantage
This is one of the worst problems these days – we’re always obsessive about our phone, or whatever else we have to do at work. It is enough that you just set aside a few moments a day for yourself to check your messages. Not more than that.
Is your behavior coercive? By this we mean: can’t you take your attention away from electronic devices, no matter how hard you try? Then you have to do something about this. Because it is clear that willpower is not enough. For example, you can exchange your telephone for a device that only allows you to make calls. Either you turn off your phone or leave it at home.
Learn to let go
This has to do with punctuality and the ability to meet deadlines. Outside your working hours you have to cut the connection with work. This act is a sign of respect for your own time. In addition, you take care of your physical and mental health when you do this.
Don’t bring your work home. Because it is fundamental that you keep the personal space and the workplace separate. The best thing you can do is create one email address for work and another for personal stuff. Never let them run together. Because the ideal way is that you learn to completely disconnect from work when you are not there.
Make the most of your free time
Your job can wear you out. When you get home from work, you may just want to sit on the sofa and watch TV. You don’t want to “think about anything.” Or you go to sleep immediately to regain the energy you have used up. But sometimes it can happen that after sleeping you still don’t feel that you are really rested.
Resting doesn’t mean doing those simple activities that you hate the most. But it doesn’t have to be passive either. The ideal way is actually that your moments of rest are enjoyable, creative and emotional. This will help you avoid wasting time. It is better to spend your time with your family, with the people who are important to you. Talk to them, go for a walk or take up a relaxing hobby. Do this and you will notice how your fatigue will really disappear.
Time is a measure we give to life. It’s life itself. That’s why your time is so valuable. Wasting time for that reason causes negative thoughts and feelings. They are thoughts of incompetence or feelings of uselessness. So try to make time to relax and do things you enjoy. It is worth it.
Featured image courtesy of Lev Kaplan, Elith Smicht
