Losing track of time and finding that you have a lot of work to do at the end of the day or the end of the week can be discouraging. Instead, organize your time effectively so that you can clear away work projects and have time and energy to do the things you enjoy. One way of looking at it is to determine how much each minute is worth in terms of your salary. Linda Francis, time management expert and author of "Run Your Business So It Doesn't Run You," says that if you make $30,000 a year, that means every minute is worth 26 cents. Viewed this way, she encourages people to use calendars, prioritize, delegate and track time in 15-minute increments to end time-wasting habits.
Use Time-Management Tools
Use the time-management tools that really help you. To organize your time, use what makes the most sense for you. Do you prefer a large wall calendar to view all your work deadlines a week or month at a time? Or, do you like digital "to do" lists you can revise daily and delete projects as they are completed?
If you do not use the wall calendar, ditch it. Try a digital calendar instead where you can set appointments and keep phone numbers handy.
Delegate Tasks
Avoid doing everything yourself. Delegate tasks to other people at home and at the office. For example, hire a college student to do small errands like getting dry cleaning, shopping for groceries or walking your dog. At the office, assign smaller, less high-priority projects to people you are mentoring or who are your support staff. Of course, remember to share the credit for the projects they work on and they will be more likely to pitch in when you are in a crunch.
Track What You Do for a Day
Track what you do for a day or a week to see how you are spending your time. You could list what you do every hour--opening mail at 8:30 a.m., returning voice mails at 9:30 a.m., replying to emails at 11 a.m. and the like. Determine if what you are actually doing is the most productive. Could you ask an assistant at the office to return your voice mails or respond to emails?
At home, does it make more sense to convert to online bill pay to avoid hovering over a checkbook, envelopes and stamps every month? Some companies will give you a small discount to do so.
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