Get Ahead with Time Management

Print out this quick tip to get ahead with time management and try it for one week to see how it works for you. It can take less than five minutes for you to get ahead of your projects, your schedule and your competition. Five Minutes in the Morning Do it first thing in the morning, maybe as you are enjoying a cup of coffee or sitting at your desk and mentally preparing for your day. Get a notebook and pen ready. Do not get distracted by email or phone. Prepare to donate five minutes or less of your time to yourself. Go ahead, you are worth it. Some people prefer to do this exercise at the end of each day and that is not a problem. I suggest doing this at the very beginning of each day because it sets the tone for the rest of your day. It is more effective to feel rushed by the desire to get started on your activities than to feel rushed by the distractions of what is really on your mind at the end of the day. Your List of Things to Do Tomorrow Many people find it effective to make a daily list of things to do today. It can be helpful in keeping track of important activities, meetings or chores that need to be completed. It also creates a feeling of accomplishment as items get checked off the list one by one. It is always nice to see progress. Starting today, we are going to kick progress into the next gear. We are going to start thinking about what we need to accomplish tomorrow. As you start each new day you will already have a list of things that you need to do today because you made it yesterday. You already have a jump start on your projects and your competition because you were already thinking about what you will do today. Furthermore, your mind had a chance to sort out some of the details on how you will accomplish your goals because you had time to think about them the day before. As you make your list for tomorrow, you will be able to reflect on how your decisions and actions today will contribute to your activities and goals for tomorrow. If you are planning to complete some paperwork, presentation, or interaction tomorrow then you may be able to do some of the preliminary research, analysis or preparation today. Planning for tomorrow will change the way that you think about your priorities and how you invest the quiet moments of today. Another important advantage of planning based on your list of things to do tomorrow is that many activities require collaboration with other individuals. By planning in advance, you can communicate and coordinate with other resources so those people can also plan and prepare accordingly. Urgent or Important? What is the difference between urgent and important? The urgent things are those milestones that must be complete by a scheduled deadline. The deadline may be today, tomorrow or several days in the future.