Self-care through Time Management and the Truth behind it
Not sure where to start? Me too! 😁
Well, sort of. I am not sure where to start with this topic because there is a lot to cover. Originally, I had everything in one blog post but it’s so much that I decided to divide it in 2 parts. That way you have time to digest the information and not get overwhelmed.
Lets start with WHAT THE HECK IS TIME MANAGEMENT?!
Time management is the coordination of tasks and activities to maximize the effectiveness of an individual's efforts. It’s managing time effectively so that the right time is allocated to the right activity.
But before we dive into the nitty-gritty of time management let's look at what you are trying to achieve and why your current tools and systems are not working.
👇 The Hard Truth 👇
Often people think that an outside force – a coach they’ve hired or systems they want to use, will solve their difficulty with time management. However, the big secret here is that they need to look inward and know themselves before they start on anything new and foreign to them. What do I mean by that: I want you to examine your behavior and be honest with yourself about the reasons why you are unable to stick to the schedule or complete the tasks or you are always late for meetings. What are the things that are distracting you? Why are you procrastinating? Do you have an ADD or ADHD, if so, what strategies will work best? Do you want to be doing all of those things on your agenda? How do they make you feel? These are the questions you need to start with. They are not easy and require some self-searching and honesty.
Here are some thoughts on Time Management
I want to encourage you to think about:
where and how do you spend your time?
What do you like doing, how would you like to spend your time, what is stopping you from doing that?
To be completely honest these days I catch myself aimlessly scrolling through IG and I don't like it. I know it's a habit and I am working on curbing it and doing something more productive, like reading the books on the coffee table that are sitting pretty (I’ve never read them, so can't answer any questions regarding the content).
Time is our only non-renewable source.
Everyone has exactly the same number of hours per day. How do you spend yours? Are you doing what you really want to do in life? Are you being smart about how you use your time? That is why today we are talking about time management!!! My favorite topic :)I've done talks about it, blogs, posts, consults, you name it. I am very passionate about utilizing your time to its fullest potential AND leaving space for unstructured free time to create, relax and enjoy is very important! At this point, my friends laugh when I pull out the calendar app on my phone after they ask me if I want to do something with them. I LIVE in my calendar (I use a calendar so I will be using that term)
Here is why:
💥 "What gets scheduled gets done" - Michael Hyatt
You can follow this principle as closely or loosely as you want but the truth is - you need to make sure you get all the things that are important to you done. And if you tend to overcommit and don’t keep track, it's a recipe for a big headache! I know many people “don't need" a calendar or planner and they are perfectly capable keeping track in their mind. Here is my issue with that:
Why the heck do you want to keep all the details in your head?!
Cluttering it with information that you could've simply written in a paper or digital planner (or both). It's a big effort to extrapolate that info at a moment's notice from your already hard-working mind… I guess I don't understand why you would make your life more difficult. Even when I write things in my calendar, I remember that I am doing something on the 16th, for example, so I have a loose idea of what my day would look like. I don't need to remember all the fine details about every meeting, class, trip, everything. That's like if you remembered your flight number and info on all of your upcoming trips. To me that is a wasted effort.
Multitasking VS. Focusing on one thing at a time
Are you a multi-tasker? Some people wear it like a badge of honor. Is it a good thing or a bad thing?! It really depends on the situation.The only time that I really need to multitask is when I am coordinating a move or an event. In those situations, we need to track so many different moving pieces to make sure everything comes together nicely and we are getting the desired outcome.Otherwise, I am all about one single task at a time. Why? Because I am focused on what's in front of me and I am more likely to finish it faster than getting distracted by the 10 other things in the background.That's not to say that there aren't many different pieces to the project that I am currently focused on. Multitasking within the project's limits is OK. Switching gear between projects - not so much. You lose track of your thoughts, ideas, and conversations. I mean, you could write things down but sometimes when you are in the moment all you need to do is voice it out and run with it, develop the idea, and something great comes out of it. I hope you will take some time to think about how you are currently spending your time. Perhaps even journal and see what comes out, often we have the answers within us, but we don’t spend the time listening 😉
xo Pavlina