Time management - how to manage your time. Planning frees up time

This technique can be used not only at work, but also in everyday life; try to accustom your children to it from childhood. Measured - analyzed - planned - executed - analyzed. A few steps on initial stage and repeated repetition will lead to the execution of actions automatically, after some time it will become a habit and will be performed on a subconscious level.

Time management is convenient

In general, it can and should be customized for yourself. Often, organizing time is required only in cases where we do it because we have to, have you noticed? It seems like an interesting thing, but maybe you’re a little bored, maybe your mood or well-being is not right, maybe you’re just lazy, then you have to turn on the internal mechanisms of self-discipline, adjust motivation to the desired level and control your activities.

Do you remember when you don’t have to do this? In two cases: when laziness and idleness are complete, and when we are so carried away by work or business that we do not notice how time passes. In such cases they say: “I didn’t have time to look back, but the working day was over.”

Where is the truth?

The truth is always somewhere in the middle, however, if some recommendations help one person to be more effective, then they can be effective for at least several more people. Now we will not discuss how to organize our time when mother laziness has overcome us, or when enthusiasm is burning in our souls. I will share with you two simple methods that can be effective for you when you just need to work.

2 Simple Ways to Organize Your Time

First way:

Just do it.

Second way:

Just take breaks more often.

Are you smiling? I see your misunderstanding... In fact, friends, the methods are time-tested. I assure you that for some of you they will be a lifeline at the right time. It’s better to take more breaks, maybe after fifteen minutes, maybe after 10 or 5 minutes, but even in this case, you will move forward and not stand still. You will not notice how you will get involved in work and you will no longer need breaks.

About the techniques

These are very simple ways to organize your time. I know that using things like planning tasks, dividing tasks into important and urgent, the “Pomodoro” technique, keeping a diary, using, etc., will result in significantly speeding up our activities, this is indisputable.

But you still need to find the main thing that your body listens to and your consciousness does not resist too much. Find something that will help you.

Let's divide our affairs

Let's remember once again that all our affairs can be divided into 4 groups:

• Urgent - Important
• Important - Not urgent
• Urgent - Not important
• Not urgent - Not important

Find information about this Eisenhower method and learn how to use it in your planning. And do the most important things first: urgent and important. This method helped me a lot to cope with the huge turnover of cases, which had no end and end at the time when I worked as the head of a branch of an advertising company, and at the same time I was working on several areas of equal importance.

Who controls whom?

Gradually it became clear that it was no longer the turnover that controlled me, but that I managed my affairs and successfully organized my time. Artem Farievich’s advice about the “monkey” that managers constantly put on my neck helped in time; I learned to return their own “monkey” to them, they had to come to an agreement with it themselves. I learned to say “no” in a timely manner, to refuse without offending the other person, to politely end a conversation if I realized that he was stealing my time.

Friends, all this is very interesting, in fact. Now, sometimes, it is even difficult to understand what is more effective in solving and performing certain tasks. It is important to understand that you will have your own methods that will work for you.

When you realize that you know how to value your time and the time of other people, it becomes clear that you begin to get more done in the same time as before. You are gradually mastering the art of time management, the main task of which is organization of time.

In custody

Friends, you must always remember that if overload begins, you can stop and take a deep breath and exhale. This is also a great product - it helps! We always want balance: mental, physical, and material... Our life directly depends on the quality of our time, which we devote to work, family, friends, and travel.

When we know why we are working on our own, and this is certainly ourselves and the most Dear people in our lives, without any doubt, our quality of life will improve. And this is exactly what makes it worth living, creating and achieving a balance between health, wealth and happiness.

The time management process and strategy are aimed at making the most efficient use of time. In this article we will try to figure out what methods and skills not only increase productivity, but also contribute to the development certain type thinking. In addition, consider the problem of wasters that consume much more of your time than you can imagine.

How can I take control of my life again?

Today it is very easy to overload yourself with information, communication and tasks. Very often, all this simply gets the better of us, leaving only a feeling of depression from the fact that it is simply physically impossible to cope with several tasks at the same time. Such situations lead to chronic stress and fatigue. The whole point of success lies in easy, but very effective time management techniques.

Time management: what is it?

In general, the debate over the fact that such time management can take a very, very long time.

According to Wikipedia, this is a technology for organizing time and increasing the efficiency of its use.

Learning a new skill or strategy is a process whose steps need to be carefully thought through. You will feel uncomfortable at first: this should not be scary, because practicing something new always requires a lot of effort and spending a lot of time before the habit takes root in everyday life.

7 principles of time management

Understanding the main rules of time management will greatly facilitate your start in mastering this science.

Track your time

The only method for improving time management skills is learning and understanding your current time management habits. For example, you can write down in a notebook every 15 minutes what you are currently doing. Within a week, you will understand exactly where you are spending your time effectively and where you are wasting it. After analyzing the information received, determine how you can improve productivity.

Don't even try new strategies until you've succeeded at this point.

Define Important Goals

After identifying your time management habits, you are ready for the next level - defining and analyzing specific goals. They must be:

• specific (in terms of the final result);
• measurable (sometimes it is difficult to determine how the fact of achieving a goal can be assessed);
• achievable (real assessment of one’s own material and intangible resources);
• realistic (in terms of the time period planned to achieve the goals);
• time-defined (clear indication of the time frame allocated for the implementation of goals).

Make a plan for further action

After formulating goals determine the follow-up plan. Draw on paper a general scheme of actions that will lead you to your desired goals. Then divide them into specific tasks with clear deadlines. After that, create a list of daily tasks. Let it contain a maximum of six extremely important tasks that need to be completed.

It is very important to devote more time to essential rather than urgent tasks(after all, many of us often spend almost the whole day “putting out fires,” that is, solving constant current issues). Falling into a peculiar trap of routine routine, it is difficult to focus on priorities.

Divide tasks into parts

By grouping tasks into similar categories, You will become more productive and efficient in managing your time. For example, you can set aside a certain period of the day for necessary phone calls or work on emails. When the time allotted for completing a specific task runs out, you just need to move on to the next item on the plan (even if you didn’t have time to make all the necessary calls or send scheduled emails). You can divide tasks into:

• stationary (those that you perform at your desk);
• dynamic (those that do not require presence in the office).

Set specific time frames for completing tasks

When setting tasks, immediately determine how long it will take to complete them. Without clear deadlines, you will spend a lot of time on other time-consuming tasks. That's why it's important to make every item on your list realistic and achievable.

Try as much as possible to complete a certain action within the specified time limit, and when the time is up, immediately take on a new task. Don't let perfectionism stop you from achieving success!

Follow the Pareto principle

Pareto's Law or the 80/20 Rule states that 80% of your efforts produce 20% of your results. And vice versa: 20% of efforts are 80% of results. Knowing this secret try to identify the priority tasks that most influence future success at the end of the day, month or year. Focus on implementing these tasks first, and then start doing the 80% of actions that bring only 20% of the results.

Balance your schedule

And finally make a plan for your daily/weekly/monthly routine, which will allow you to move forward by focusing on the most important goals, tasks and activities. Subsequence – great way forming and strengthening new habits that will help you manage time effectively. Be sure to maintain a balance between your personal and professional life.

Developing a plan is not just about creating a list of things to do. Tasks should be written down in such a way that the plan can be supplemented or changed on the go. This can be done as follows:

• write down all tasks. The list should be comprehensive but concise, since it is very difficult to work with a plan that is too extensive;
• estimate the amount of time to complete each task; allow for additional time for unforeseen events. As a rule, much more time is spent on all planned actions than expected. Don't forget to include recurring tasks that you complete on a regular basis;
• set priorities.

How to manage time: 6 effective strategies

Applying certain strategies every day will make it much easier to achieve peak productivity and efficiency.

Be flexible in your plan

You should understand: living a day according to a clear plan is more a rarity than a reality. Unforeseen events can suddenly change the course of your day, partially or even completely. You should prepare in advance for an unexpected turn of events by providing an alternative plan. This buffer will make it much easier for you to deal with unforeseen circumstances during the day. However, you should be careful or risk getting lost in all these scenarios. Allocate a certain amount of time for force majeure events, then continue to complete your planned priority tasks. Think bigger by focusing on more promising things.

Organize your work correctly

Organizing your work begins with organizing your thoughts. If you have too much information floating around in your head, work on creating a habit of writing it down on paper. When plans, tasks and ideas are transferred to the workbook, your mind will clear and it will be much easier for you to get organized.

Be consistent in setting time limits

Although flexibility in creating a plan and daily routine is important, key value, If speak about specific tasks and actions belongs to the immutability of time restrictions. Be sure to determine the amount of time for priority tasks and always stick to these limits(well, unless you manage to complete the task ahead of schedule). Such consistency in time management solves many time management problems.

Organize your work environment correctly

Do you lose valuable minutes every day searching for documents? If so, there is an easy way to stop wasting time. You just need to organize your papers/folders so that you can easily and quickly find everything you need at any time. Pay attention to your computer and email system. If it takes too much time to find the right icon, folder or file, this means that the information storage system also needs improvement. In fact, creating ideal order in the workplace is very easy. It's much harder to maintain it continuously. The easiest way is to put things in their place or sort letters immediately upon receipt. Already at the moment when you leave even one sheet of paper in an unintended place, you lose control of the situation.

Use reminders

Two simple ways, reminding you of scheduled tasks:

• use of stickers;
• Carrying a voice recorder with you.

These options are best methods to remember quick ideas that can later be transferred to your daily to-do list.

Identify bad habits

During the organization of the work process and work environment, try to pay attention to habits that steal time, thereby hindering the achievement of progress and success. Identify these habits working to get rid of them once and for all.

9 techniques for effective time management

Regardless of how busy you are during the day, you can find some time to start using one of the techniques below to improve your time management skills. In this way, you will certainly be able to better manage not only your work schedule, but also effectively plan your vacation.

Computer literacy

Improving computer skills consists of correct use of the software. This allows you to significantly save time, energy and effort to perform specific actions. Even creating shortcuts to your most popular programs on your desktop can significantly save time spent writing a report or preparing a presentation.

Creativity

Creative approach allows develop unique ideas, helping to save time and increase productivity throughout the day.

Critical thinking and problem solving skills

Being able to critically assess the situation, you spend several times less time on the thinking process, and more time on work and completing tasks.

Delegation

Possibility to delegate work to someone else allows you to significantly save time. Having a second pair of hands for time-consuming tasks allows you to concentrate on other things.

The ability to pay an outsourcing specialist or personal assistant to perform tasks well is a kind of catalyst that can significantly increase personal productivity.

Negotiation skills

Disagreeing with others about work issues often distracts us from more important issues. Acquiring skills effective negotiations will help you quickly reach a satisfactory agreement, which in turn will free up more time to solve other problems.

Emotional intellect

When negative emotions get the better of you, you become unproductive, wasting valuable time. Emotional intelligence involves active process of controlling emotions. By learning to exercise them correctly, you will increase productivity and improve the results of your work.

Multitasking

Spend some time grouping tasks and plans, as well as developing and improving multitasking skills. However, very important tasks that require a lot of attention and thought should be taken seriously. In this case, multitasking is playing tricks on you. cruel joke: You spend more time than you manage to save.

Decision Making Skills

Everything is simple here: The faster decisions are made, the more time you save!

Speed ​​reading

By increasing your reading speed, you will increase the amount of information you can absorb.

5 methods to help you get more time

Even by using at least a few of these methods on a daily basis, it is much easier to achieve main goal time management - maximum productive use time.

Using Affirmations

Practice proves that simple affirmations with a positive attitude– the right step towards realizing your goals.

The following affirmations are suitable for improving time management skills:

• Every day I use my time more efficiently;
• keys to successful life my hands;
• I manage to do everything, creating a more interesting and successful life for myself.

Regular breaks

The body and mind need constant breaks. It would seem that continuous work for five hours can increase productivity. In fact, it should be understood that Without rest, our brain spends much more time on basic operations: slows down creative process and even the ability to solve problems decreases. Conversely, regular breaks refresh the mind and creativity, facilitate the thinking process and improve the flow of information.

Ability to refuse

Confidently answering “no” to requests for help or support, you don't allow other people to manipulate you and your personal time. Of course, each case should be considered individually, being able to distinguish impudence from a sincere request.

Systematization of processes

A well-thought-out process system can significantly reduce the time allocated to perform specific tasks. When creating such schemes, it is imperative ask about simplifying existing actions. Consider the situation not only as saving time, but also energy, money or effort.

Commitment to continuous improvement

Try your best to improve yourself and your skills every day. This will come in handy no matter what task you're currently working on or what function you're performing, as this tactic allows you to improve your thinking capabilities and expand your awareness of how to better cope with your daily routine. You learn to ask yourself the right questions correctly and in a timely manner, answers to which can save time and money.

The Way of Thinking of an Effective Time Manager

Effective time management effective methods and strategies are only half the path to success. You should develop a mentality that will naturally support all these aspirations, expanding your awareness of the time frame. Take a closer look at a mindset that focuses on quality time use.

Ask the right questions

The first step to a quality time mindset is asking the right questions. Answers to them should stimulate the development of a mental chain on the topic of the features of time management. A couple of times a day Ask yourself the following three questions:

• How can I make the most of my time at this point?
• How do these actions affect my future?
• am I the best specialist on this assignment?

Become an optimistic realist

Optimistic realism is positive attitude regarding everything related to completing tasks in the most effective way, effective way. In addition, this quality also implies an objective assessment of all kinds of obstacles, challenges, problems that arise on the way to achieving the goal.

Be proactive, not reactive

Proactivity means that you are physically and emotionally prepared to complete the tasks for which you are responsible. Despite surprises and force majeure, you remain adequate and calm, keep everything under control. Proactive thinking will lead you to the right decisions and make you more productive.

Conversely, if you react to certain events or circumstances too emotionally, you will subsequently experience constant fear, weakness and stress.

Use focused concentration

To succeed in time management, you need to focus all your attention exclusively on a specific task. Get rid of distractions and fully concentrate on the priority task.

Don't look for perfection

If you're used to looking for perfection in everything you do, don't expect perfectionism from time management. It should be understood that perfection is a rather subjective concept. If something seems perfect to you, it doesn't necessarily mean that others think so too. And vice versa: things that are imperfect in your eyes can be the height of perfectionism for someone. So, ask yourself: is those extra ten minutes dedicated to completing the task really necessary? Will they affect the final result? If not, draw your own conclusions!

Show commitment and discipline

Be conscientious and consistent in completing tasks. A high level of self-discipline will allow you to complete tasks on time without missing deadlines. This trait is a characteristic of real time management gurus.

Be enthusiastic

Regardless of the surprises or problems that come your way during the day, smile and maintain a good mood. See everything as a challenge to move towards your goal. Also enthusiasm will support high level energy even when it seems that everything around is literally collapsing.

Developing time management skills: 5 exercises

Time is a subjective phenomenon, and our brain has the ability to control the perception of this phenomenon. That is why, Time management is an appropriate way of thinking.

To learn to think correctly, you must do special exercises. By using them, you will be able to consciously and fully live every hour of your life.

“Time is money” is a popular but completely false saying. Time is not money, time is your life!

It is very important to complete these exercises(from start to finish) even when it will create some discomfort for you.

Remember that the brain learns best when exposed to challenging conditions.

Using the exercises below you can get up to seven additional hours per week, Therefore, excuses like “no time” simply don’t work. Consider this as an investment in one of the most vital currencies.

These methods are more likely to be one-time experiences rather than new habits. Use them not constantly, but only for a while.

1. Create extreme conditions. Start additional projects or set new goals for yourself, allocating short deadlines for their implementation. This will lead to work overload. Yes, it may not be the easiest experience, but it is in chaotic circumstances that you can quickly master basic principles time management. In fact, this will become a natural reaction of the brain to the situation that has arisen.
2. Throughout the day, create short but clear visualizations of the next few hours. Regardless of whether you have this time written down in your notebook or not, simply close your eyes for a few seconds and imagine yourself performing specific actions over the next three to five hours. This exercise greatly improves your ability to manage time and organize your work.
3. Plan your day down to the minute. Write down on a piece of paper every action that awaits you tomorrow morning. Even include things like brushing your teeth or taking out the trash on the list. The purpose of the exercise: to teach your mind to organize time in very detail. Live the next day according to your plan, marking each completed step with a triumphant tick. Well, in the evening, analyze how much you managed to accomplish everything you planned, and draw conclusions. Prepare the same detailed plan for the next day. In total, you will need to repeat the exercise three days in a row. Well, then do it again, but without paper - record all the things in your memory. Lower minor details, focusing on the highest priority tasks for the next day.
4. Every time you procrastinate, do five squats. Yes, this is not a joke. Have you checked your email unnecessarily? Five squats. Have you been wandering aimlessly on social networks? Five squats.

   The method is quite controversial, but it has at least two advantages:

   • you finally realize how often you get distracted by unnecessary actions, wasting your time. Thus, you can significantly reduce periods of procrastination;
   • physical movement speeds up blood circulation and provides access more oxygen to the brain, which directly affects increased motivation and improved concentration in the process of further work. Few understand the value physical exercise for quality time management.

1. Get a stopwatch and use it from morning to evening. When starting a new task, clearly determine the amount of time you are willing to devote to it. Start a timer and stick to your plan. Set immediate deadlines for each task immediately before you begin. Also consider activities that are time wasters or time wasters. For example, decide how much time you can spend browsing funny photos on the Internet, and then start the timer.

The last task will teach you to control the current time when performing tasks. This skill is the true cornerstone of time management.

6 most common time wasters

As beneficial as it is to develop effective time management habits, it is equally significant to realize how much time we waste on activities that provide no value. A few examples will help you clearly understand how we waste much more time than we can imagine.

Procrastination and laziness

Procrastination is the habit of avoiding certain activities by inventing various excuses. We must be especially careful, since such delay often overtakes us where we least expect it. Even simple things like over-planning, taking long lunch breaks, taking too many breaks are all signs of procrastination.

Watch for these cues and work to develop a more goal-oriented mindset. effective time management.

The trap of waiting

Waiting, whether in a queue at the supermarket or waiting business meeting, means only one thing: you are wasting your time instead of doing something more important and productive. However, even real time management gurus sometimes simply cannot avoid such situations. But if you prepare thoroughly, you can still benefit from this. For example, prepare reading materials in advance or make necessary phone calls during this time.

By devoting every working minute to actions that bring you closer to your future goal, you wisely use the most valuable personal resource - time.

Distractors

Anything that distracts your attention leads to loss of concentration and interruptions in the creative thinking process. Studies have shown that returning to interrupted work can take anywhere from five to fifteen minutes. To avoid such situations, warn your family/colleagues/friends/subordinates that you will not be available for a certain period of time.

Ask not to disturb you unless there is an emergency reason.

Habit of constant employment

Visibility permanent employment– the most common form of procrastination. During the day, we all perform many extraneous tasks that have nothing to do with our plans.

Therefore, always return to the 80/20 rule: start doing those 20 percent that determine 80 percent of success. And only after finishing them, proceed to the remaining 80 percent of the tasks.

Technological pitfalls

In the long run, the technology may even be very useful. If you abuse it, it will consume too much of your time, provoking a state of procrastination.

Spending too much time on the Internet, constantly checking email, watching TV, telephone conversations or radio programs can take up all your time: you simply won’t have time to complete priority tasks.

Three emotions that waste time

Three types of emotions that constantly take up your time are anxiety, stress and feeling overwhelmed. They make it impossible to actively manage time.

But if you manage to use and actively apply all the suggested principles, methods and strategies discussed in this article, these negative emotions will in no way affect your productivity throughout the day.

Conclusion

Implementing time management habits into your life requires a lot of effort and effort, but consistent practice and daily application will lead you to satisfaction and freedom. By devoting time to practicing these strategies and methods, training a certain way of thinking, you will not only gain more time, but you will literally regain the joy of an active life.

Lack of time - important question, which worries many. You always want to do more things than you can do. People are used to blaming the crazy pace of life and excessive workload. Cases are constantly piling up and dealing with them is becoming increasingly difficult. Not everyone knows how to set priorities correctly; all tasks seem important and urgent. Time management skills - competent managing your time- will solve this problem.

What is time management?

This is a foreign language term that literally means “time management.” It sounds incorrect because we have no control over its course. And here management of personal time, which everyone is given 24 hours a day, makes the right sense.

Proper distribution of tasks throughout the day improves efficiency and quality of life. It is not difficult to manage relationships over time; most of the tools are known to many. In fact, not everyone uses them. Important elements such as defining goals and priorities, planning personal time, finding motivation, and analyzing time spent are often overlooked.

Development information technologies gives rise to new time wasters: Email, social networks, entertainment resources, ICQ, Skype, online games, video services... How to stop minutes and hours slipping like sand through your fingers? reveals reserves of time, entering into a fight with its absorbers.

Completely giving up idle time will not make you happy. Sometimes you need to pamper yourself by doing nothing, it's good for your mental health. You just need to learn how to manage your attachments. Reducing quantity time sinks frees you up to important work or communication with family. By the way, vacation planning has a special place in time management.

Organization of the working day

The ability to properly organize the workday is important for all workers, especially for managers. A double burden is placed on their shoulders - time management and setting tasks for subordinates. Regular employees also need to plan their work properly to achieve career success.

Currently, a number of independent time management schools, each of which interprets the rules of time management in its own way. At their core, these norms are universal. Here are a few such rules that, if you adhere to, will significantly improve your production performance.

Rule 10/90

Labor productivity increases by 25% if you adhere to a predetermined plan. In the morning, you don’t need to rack your brains about where to start working. Gradually resolving issues and completing priority tasks will significantly reduce the time spent on them. This is exactly what it says time management rule called "10/90". Its essence is that you need to spend 10% of your time planning a task. Subsequently, this contribution will save 90% of the time for solving it.

• Good Pre-Planning Prevents Poor Performance

You need to be able to clearly identify the highest priority tasks based on their importance and urgency. Complex tasks can be broken down into small ones, building a decision tree. At the same time, the main thing is not to get bogged down in trifles, moving away from the final goal. An excessive number of subtasks can interfere with the solution of the main task.

Forced efficiency

• The main thing is to have time

The law also calls for highlighting the most important things in work “ coercive efficiency" We must clearly understand that there is never enough time, so you must first solve the issue that will bring the greatest benefit as a result. It is recommended to cross off each completed plan item. This will not only relieve your head, but also bring moral satisfaction, which will give you a new charge of energy for work.

Solving unpleasant and global problems

• Eat the frog and cut the elephant

Don't put off unpleasant things until later. This is one of the most important mistakes leading to emotional overstrain. Eat a frog means at the beginning of the day, without any thought, to close an unpleasant issue, after which the burden will fall off your shoulders and good mood. A new surge of energy will increase your productivity, and the remaining tasks will not require excessive effort.

If the matter is so big that it is impossible to take on it, then you need to “cut the elephant into steaks” - break the big matter into interconnected matters of a “digestible” size. IN scientific world this approach is called decomposition.

Today, many companies have begun to implement time management technologies. Basic rules for organizing time help employees manage it more rationally and correctly. On this moment methods and principles of time management are covered in some detail by leading Russian and foreign authors. Vivid examples and many useful tips Anyone interested in time management in more depth will be able to find it.

Competent organization of recreation

When managing your working time, you must not forget about organization of recreation. Continuous work can exhaust even the most resilient employee. In order not to feel tired and driven, you need to skillfully plan short-term and periodic rest. Only rhythm and maximum disconnection from work will allow you not to lose your taste for it. In addition, a good distraction will allow you to relax more effectively.

Rhythm of breaks and shifting attention

As the snapshot of working hours shows, for most employees, rest breaks occur spontaneously. They can easily get distracted by a call mobile phone, an article on the Internet, to a personal question from a colleague. A coffee break, a smoke break, or communication with loved ones is also irregular. Time management calls for vacation planning with observance of certain periods of time, because even school lessons are held in a similar manner. For one hour of work, you need to allocate 5-10 minutes of break.

Switching attention improves performance. Monotonous and monotonous activities must be contrasted with active exercises, a walk or a business trip. If you've been sitting at the computer for a long time, it's time to do something with your hands. Even talking on the phone can bring you out of your fatigue.

Great vacation - detailed plan

Proper organization of leisure involves not only managing working time and breaks. Everything needs to be planned carefully free time, since we spend much less on vacation than on work. Work shapes professional experience, and leisure shapes moral attitudes and life perceptions.

In order to enjoy life, you need to be able to rest well. This is a real problem for many people. After a vacation, some people feel even more overwhelmed. That's why strict time management sometimes it is the best assistant in competently organizing and planning your vacation. A to-do list should be compiled for every day so as not to waste precious time. But this does not mean that on vacation you need to be busy with endless work around the house or in the country. If possible, you should try to plan weekday evenings, weekends and vacations so as not to regret the lost time.

Time management for a new mother

With the arrival of a newborn in the family, the usual life of the spouses changes. New worries require additional time. When caring for a child, you need to find time to visit medical institutions, daily walks, development and games. Having children adds a new category to time management skills.

Women's time management

Time management for women and mothers This is an independent discipline, since fragile shoulders are always entrusted with many specific responsibilities around the house and caring for children. Torn between household chores, the young mother does not have time to redo everything. There is practically no time and energy left for yourself. For desperate women, time management is a lifeline, bringing moral relief and freeing up time reserves.

Competent organizing household chores and caring for the baby will allow the young mother to ensure that order reigns in the house, dinner is prepared on the stove, and the child grows up feeling the attention and care of a precious person. At the same time, it is important that the mother remains a well-groomed and beloved woman. To do this, you need to develop a flexible daily routine, according to changes in the baby’s sleep and wakefulness patterns.

Time management for new mothers includes many standard time management techniques, since caring for children is comparable in its workload to work activity. The right combination of rules and techniques will make a woman friends over time, bringing new colors and pleasure to life.

Relatives playing with children - relaxation for mom

A young mother needs to be able to accept help from her parents. The first assistant in household chores should be the husband. Children like to spend time with their dad and grandparents, so you shouldn’t limit them to this. Any care from relatives is additional reserve time. You need to thank your family for their interest and help, but also don’t forget to praise yourself. This should become important rule, which will bring personal satisfaction and self-esteem. After all, there is nothing more honorable than raising and getting a child on his feet.

Features of time management for children

Children's time is mainly managed by parents. It is adults who establish mode for baby, set aside time for games, determine tasks around the house, enroll them in clubs, and monitor the completion of school assignments.

In order for a child to grow up organized, parents need to make efforts, including working on themselves. Often grandparents, and even the parents themselves, “disable” their child, denying their children the opportunity to gain independence.

• more freedom - more responsibility

Gradually expand the boundaries of freedom for the child and at the same time limit your fathers and mothers from being overprotective of their grandchildren. With the expansion of freedom, personal responsibility must also increase. Any person, even a small one, must learn to organize their time independently.

Game approach

Children new information absorbed much faster when it is served in game form. With this approach, it is never boring, and the children willingly complete the proposed tasks. For example, a timer can be chosen as a toy, with the help of which the child will learn to carry out assignments without exceeding the set time. Using pictures or drawings, you can talk about your daily routine and try to create a visual list of daily tasks.

Adults, before starting to teach children, must look at themselves from the outside and give themselves an objective assessment. Training will only be effective if personal example when parents themselves know how to competently organize their time, make clear plans and adhere to the established daily routine. In this case, children will follow their parents and imitate them with pleasure.

Maintaining consistency

Children quickly get used to a certain regime, the observance of which acts as a kind of guarantee of safety for them. Disruption of routine can cause feelings of agitation and anxiety. That is why consistency certain actions are so important for children. Parents must strictly monitor this, without deviating from the implementation of the designated plans.

Getting used to planning

An important step in the process of teaching children time management is teaching them to plan their time. For kids, you need to say out loud the order of actions, mark what has been completed and what needs to be done next. Children school age must be able to independently create to-do lists and plan personal time.

Reward system

When teaching children time management, adults must develop reward system. It is desirable that it be clear and understandable even to children. You can reward them with stickers or give grades for completed tasks. Using a cumulative system, you can determine a more significant reward. Parents must remember to praise their children for their successes and achievements, no matter how small. This will be a good stimulus for development, which over time will develop into real skills.

Time management and life management

As we noted at the beginning of the article, the term “time management” in the strict sense is not entirely correct. Time flows regardless of whether we want to control it or not. We can only manage our affairs effectively, which ultimately results in savings time of our lives. There is a less common but more appropriate term - life management, or managing your life. That’s why we called the article “ Time management - managing the time of your life».

Whatever we call this useful skill, it is vital for every person. Anyone who calls planning boring is missing the downside. Is it really more interesting to live without a goal, to float with the flow in an unknown direction, drowning every day in the chaos of unsolvable matters? Is it worthy to waste precious time on ineffective work, depriving loved ones of your attention?

They used to say that time is money. Now it is increasingly said that time is more valuable than money! In the information age, you can earn more money at any time, but lost time is lost forever; it is an irreplaceable resource.

The rhythm in which most of us live can hardly be called calm and measured. Lack of time, rush hour and severe time pressure are challenges that not everyone can cope with. Constantly being in a state of “I don’t know what to grab onto” is hardly suitable when it comes to personal effectiveness.

Emotional stress blocks productivity, leads to fatigue and apathy. Therefore, in order to avoid becoming a victim of stress or, even worse, chronic fatigue syndrome, let’s take up time management or time management.

All successful people do this

All successful people very productive. They work hard and achieve a lot, but this is not the same thing. Productivity, first of all, means a result, not a process. If you intend to improve your productivity, be determined to do so. People waste time because they haven't decided to improve their productivity.

And if you make up your mind, then don’t back down and repeat what all successful people do until it becomes second nature to you. The main secret of personal effectiveness lies in proper time management. Time management helps you avoid the unenviable fate of being a hostage to your own business or career.

Planning frees up time

Those who have achieved success in their lives devote a lot of time to planning. Daily planning is essential for increased productivity and effective time management.

The 6 P's rule states: Good pre-planning prevents poor performance.

You should always plan and think on paper. If a goal is not on paper, then it does not exist. The list of tasks is a kind of map that will not let you go astray towards your intended goal. Peter F. Drucker, in his book The Effective Manager, gives a good analogy for getting things down on paper:

“People kept in a dark room quickly lose track of time. But even in complete darkness, most people retain a sense of space. If you are in a lighted but enclosed room, after just a few hours you will no longer feel the movement of time. And if you want to calculate how long you are in such a room, you will be greatly mistaken in your calculations. Therefore, if we rely on our memory, we do not notice how our time is spent..."

Working with a to-do list on the first day increases productivity by 25%. In the evening, prepare a list of tasks that need to be done tomorrow. When you come to work, you will always know where to start your day.

Continue working with your list throughout the day: when a new task appears, add it to the list based on its priority in relation to previously planned tasks. After completing another task on the list, be sure to cross it off. This will give you a feeling of satisfaction with your work, add enthusiasm and energize you.

Plan from big to small, from long-term to short-term, from life goals to a plan for the day. Give each task a fixed deadline.

Always divide a complex task into small subtasks. A decision tree helps here, where the key task is a tree, and the subtasks for its implementation are branches. Continue branching until the process of completing the entire task becomes simple and transparent.

Before you start doing anything, remember the 10/90 rule: 10% of the time spent planning before starting a task will save 90% of the time in solving it.

The most important thing is to determine the main thing

The task of time management is to determine the main task in time. Prioritization allows you to effectively manage your to-do list by assigning each task its own level of importance.

The ABCD method is well suited for setting priorities. This is a very simple way of planning, and it consists of assigning a priority to each task on your to-do list.

Thus, a task marked with the letter A indicates the most important task with the most serious consequences in case of failure. The main rule of the method is not to take on task B until task A is completed, but to take on task B while task B is open, etc.

The letter D means “down!” This letter should be used to mark unimportant tasks that do not affect anything. To prioritize each group of tasks, use numbers that will indicate the sequence of tasks. Thus, the most important thing on your list should be designated A1.

Law of forced efficiency

The main secret to time management is focus and purpose. Start by solving the priority tasks and do everything sequentially, that is, one thing at a certain period of time. By quitting something and returning to it again and again, you reduce your effectiveness by 5 times.

Mozart could work on three compositions at once and create real masterpieces. But this is the exception rather than the rule. Bach, Haydn or Verdi could only work on one piece at a time. They didn't start working on next piece without finishing the previous one.

Use the Law of Forced Efficiency, which says that there is never enough time for everything, but there is always enough time for what matters most. Therefore, it is important to pull yourself together and force yourself to do first what will bring the greatest benefit and result.

All cases can be divided into 4 groups:

1. Urgent and important;
2. Important, but not urgent;
3. Urgent but not important;
4. Not urgent or important.

This classification bears the name of the American president and is called the Eisenhower method (window, principle).

1. Primary tasks are things that are urgent and important. Trying to put off such matters for later will create unnecessary problems for you - you need to take on them yourself and immediately.
2. Next come important but not urgent matters. Such tasks can be put off, but they can have a powerful impact in the long run. Non-urgent and important things have a habit of becoming urgent and important if they are constantly put off. To prevent this from happening, provide a time reserve for them in advance.
3. Urgent but unimportant tasks have little impact on your success. Dealing with urgent but unimportant matters does not produce results and can greatly affect your effectiveness. Such things take up most of your time reserve. These are exactly the tasks that, if possible, need to be delegated or their number reduced.
4. It is logical to assume that non-urgent and unimportant tasks have no meaning in principle and do not carry any consequences if they are not completed. You can safely cross off such things from your list.

What does it mean to "eat a frog"?

The old saying goes: if the first thing in the morning you have to eat live frog, the consolation can be that this is the worst thing that can happen to you all day.

Brian Tracy, a successful business consultant, compares the frog to the most unpleasant and important matter that should be done today. By putting it off, you create unnecessary emotional stress and undesirable consequences. You need to act without unnecessary thoughts and delays - just take it and do it. This will give you a boost of energy for the whole day.

Saying “no” saves a surprising amount of time.

The most important word for organizing your own time is a polite “no.” Learn to refuse and say “no” to tasks that are not among your chosen priorities. Be tactful and refuse so that the person understands that you are not rejecting him personally, but the task.

Keep track of what you spend your working and free time on. Note activities that are wasters of your time (for example, discussing the news with colleagues, aimlessly switching TV channels, or reading flyers and newspapers).

3 questions for your effectiveness

Always ask yourself what the long-term consequences of a task are, and what will happen if you don't complete it at all. Ask yourself the following 3 questions throughout the day:

1. What are the most important and valuable things to do?
2. What can I and only I do that will significantly improve the situation?
3. How to make the most of your time?

Answering these questions will double your productivity.

What can a trash can do?

People who perform well work at a clean desk. Unproductive and uncollected people have wild chaos on their desks. Develop the habit of sorting out papers in a timely manner, throwing away unnecessary ones, and working at a clean desk. It has been noticed that up to 30% of working time is spent searching for the necessary paper. A trash can is one of the most effective time management tools.

The principle of balance

The easiest way to avoid panic when faced with an ever-increasing amount of work is to take a deep breath and say, “I can only do what I can,” and calmly start making a list. Analyzing the tasks facing you, you will always see that you have enough time to solve vital important questions.

Be careful to maintain balance in your life. By working until exhaustion, you will not be able to deceive the body, it will still take its toll, and if you do not stop, it will do it forcibly. And this is clearly not part of your plans.

But in order to be effective, just time management is not enough. It is important to monitor your health and keep yourself in good physical fitness. Your life should be rich, there should always be time for your family and relaxation.

The basic principle of balance: the amount of time at home and the quality of time at work are important.

You and the main people in your life should always come first - for this reason it is worth working on your own effectiveness.