7 Best Tips to Improve Your Time Management Skills

 Time management is a challenge that a lot of people struggle with. In our modern-day society, we are bombarded with an assortment of distractions that take up our time. In all my working experience operating in corporate office environments but especially now as a virtual assistant and freelancer, I've learned that time management is crucial. Being self-employed means that there is a lot more emphasis on managing our time correctly to provide efficient and reliable service to clients. Time is precious, and it is the one commodity that we cannot gain more of. Once it is used up, it is gone forever, so we should spend it wisely.

Perhaps you are someone who is also juggling your day, feeling overwhelmed by all the responsibilities you are required to perform. Maybe you battle with procrastination, forever putting off stressful tasks and running out of time to complete them all. I would like you to know that you are not alone. Many of the people I know and have met in my career, feel or have felt the same. I too have faced these same setbacks previously in my life. Fortunately, I have found better work techniques to improve, and even solve these dilemmas. Here I would like to share this advice with you, in the hope that these steps will assist you in doing the same.

1. Planning

One of the best methods, planning forms a very important part of time management. There are various ways in which we can do this. You could make use of a diary, either a paper one or even go digital. I have often used my email application calendar to ensure I have scheduled enough time in my day for each task as well as to ensure all my appointments are never missed. Set a timer or automated reminders if you need to, as this will ensure you always stay on track. Make sure to also create a to-do list to keep track of all the tasks you need to accomplish. I cannot begin to tell you how this alone has saved me many times in my career. You may be like me and have a great memory, but we are only human and life can be overwhelming. There is always the possibility of forgetting one or more important things which we tell ourselves we will remember, but this isn't always the case.

2. Prioritise

The next important step to planning is to prioritize all your work and responsibilities. Start by sorting out everything on your to-do list or your schedule in order of importance. By focusing on the most urgent of these first, you will be able to manage your time better by completing the bigger and more important ones. Smaller tasks require less time and will be more manageable once you are ready to take them on and not to mention less stressful. One of the handy and effective ways is to sort out your schedule into what is required daily, weekly, and monthly. Each day, focus on your daily duties, thereafter you can begin on the weekly one and plan time for accomplishing your monthly tasks as time allows.

3. Multitasking

Coming from a corporate background, I have seen and experienced that there are numerous companies today that expect staff to multitask. Some even list this as a required skill for job vacancies they advertise. Trying to do too much all at once only slows us down, as the human brain can only focus on one thing at a time. It also takes time away from tasks you can be attentive to. Where you could be concentrating all your energy and quality of work on a task and giving it your best, your attention will be divided. In turn, this will slow you down, as you will continually stop and start something as you continuously change focus to and from other things. For your mental health, ensure you avoid this as it is damaging to your productivity. Stay focused on one thing at a time, complete your current task, and then move on to the next.

4. Resources, apps, and programs

In an age of technology, we have a large selection of tools to assist us with improving our quality of work, as well as providing many automation tools to make our lives easier. There are a large number of resources online, apps, and programs we can use to choose from – including time management apps, to-do list software, project management software, communication apps, social media automation tools, and so on. These will increase your productivity and help you be more efficient.

5. Rest breaks

While it may be necessary to stay focused on our work at hand, it is also particularly so to take short breaks regularly. Once you complete a task, repay yourself with a tea break. You could take a walk outside, stretch your legs and get some fresh air. This works wonders to rejuvenate you for the next job you need to do. Also, sitting down for too long can be harmful to our health. This includes eye strain from staring too long at a computer screen, which could induce a headache. If you take a few minutes out for yourself to recharge in between your busy schedule, the quality of your work will be good, plus you will be more energized and motivated to take on the rest of your daily schedule.

6. Schedule email and phone response time

Emails and phone distractions can be time-consuming. Periodically throughout the day, we have a collection of emails, text messages, and calls coming through to us. Continuously bringing to a halt what we are working on to attend to these and return to our task, is just as detrimental as multitasking. Scheduling time slots in your day for responding to emails and phone texts puts more emphasis on the tasks you are working on and lessens any interruptions. Unless it is an emergency or urgent work-related matter, take care to limit switching your focus.

7. Limit distractions and interruptions

If you would like to improve your time management, it is both important and necessary to work in a quiet environment, free from distractions and interruptions. As a virtual assistant, you are often communicating with various clients over the phone or online and may be working on several projects that require a lot of attention. A dedicated space or separate office will be essential to cultivating this type of working environment. Another successful method is to use noise-cancelling headphones, if necessary. I found this technique especially useful if there may still be distracting background noise outside, for example, as it takes away any diverted focus from this disruption and places it all into your work.

There are various strategies and methods available online, and most of them embody the guidance outlined here. However, I am certain once you have implemented all of the above advice, you will see a noticeable improvement in your time management skills. It is never too late to make better use of the time available to us, so start applying these steps today.