In these times of quarantine and social distancing some of us have been having a lot of free time and in order to not forget how to be productive have developed some quarantine routines.
On the other hand, Freelancers like us keep working from home and feel busier than ever. In reality, whether quarantine or not, having proper time management has always been a struggle for many people these days.
This article is directed to the people who often feel stressed out with too much work or too many responsibilities, to the people who feel like they have more tasks on hand than time to do them.
We want to help you make the most out of your time and use time effectively to get more things done each day. This can help you to lower stress levels and improve your productivity whether at work or at home.
Let’s not forget that time management skills take time to develop and will look different for each person. You have to focus on finding what works best for you and your busy schedule.
Check out our 5 ways to improve your time management skills and increase productivity:
Remember to choose the ones that fit you the best!
5 Ways to Improve Time Management Skills
Create a Schedule
Having a to-do list before the start of each day will help to prioritize tasks and focus on what’s essential, focus on a goal. Make sure that these goals are attainable too, and when there’s a big task you need to complete just schedule your day around it.
Avoid overwhelming yourself. It’s a better option to push the other tasks to the next day and still be on schedule than to overwork yourself one day and not be able to work the next day.
One of the benefits of making a schedule is the sense of accomplishment and improvement you’ll feel while checking off the tasks as you complete them. This will help you keep your motivation at the highest level, so you can keep completing your tasks and improving as a Freelancer or employee.
Learn What and When to Prioritize
Now that you have your schedule at hand, remember to review it from time to time in order to brush out unimportant tasks. These kinds of tasks could end up consuming much of your time and energy because, since they are easier or less stressful to complete, we tend to use more energy than needed.
We recommend you identify and focus on the tasks that need your immediate attention. Once you know where to put your energy, you’ll start to get things done in the most productive way.
It’s not only about completing whatever task comes your way but focusing on the right ones.
Set Boundaries & Deadlines
The hard part of following a schedule is not making one, but sticking to it. Setting proper boundaries and deadlines is a must in order to keep focused on your tasks at hand.
Let’s start with the deadlines. The deadlines you set have to be realistic. When scheduling, try to set a deadline a few days before the tasks are due so that you can complete all those tasks that may get in the way.
A great advice to keep your focus up while working is to write reminders near your workspace, such as sticky notes or notifications. Also, to keep your motivation remember to reward yourself when you meet a difficult deadline!
And now we go to the second part, boundaries. These are essential in order to meet your deadlines, even more, if you are a Freelancer or a work-from-home employee. You need to remind the people in our area, whether is an office or your home, that you need to work in peace.
People can’t read your mind, so it’s up to you to set boundaries when necessary. Communication is key here, so remember to be polite and direct when specifying:
- Which hours of the day you don’t want to be disturbed at all, except in case of an emergency?
- What counts as an “emergency.”
- When you are free to take quick phone calls or answer simple requests.
- How your team should proceed to schedule long-duration meetings for more complex issues.
Differentiate Bad Distractions from Good Distractions
You are going to get distracted while working, it’s a fact. No matter how hard you try, you are there will always be a distraction here and there. So, it’s not about avoiding distractions but about using distractions efficiently in order to stay productive.
A distraction could be taking a short break for example. Let’s not forget that breaks are a healthy way to keep being productive. So be sure to add short breaks to your schedule and use this time to take a cup of coffee, walk around the corridor, or even a short trip outside for some fresh air.
What you should avoid is to do activities that will end up taking most of your time. We recommend you avoid social media, emails, texts, app notifications, or even browsing on the internet.
These might seem like regular activities we do each day, but let’s be honest, when you start doing them it’s really hard to find the end.
Procrastination might as well be the counterpart of productivity.
As we said before, it’s good to have breaks, but if you let procrastination rule your daily life it can result in wasting essential time and energy. Generating at the same time bad influences and possible major problems in both your career and personal life.
Avoiding procrastination is no easy task. But that doesn’t mean there are no countermeasures to try to do it. The truth is, that we tend to procrastinate when we feel bored or overwhelmed. So try to schedule in smaller, fun activities throughout the day to break up the more difficult tasks.
This may help you stay on track.
Practice These Management Skills
These are only some of the skills that will help you fit more activities into your schedule. We assure you that, with practice and effort, you will start to feel like your tasks become easier and easier to complete.
We already proved this because that’s the result we see in our Freelancers!
At Freelance Latin America we want to help you accomplish your personal and interpersonal goals, and a good way to start is to have your schedule on point.
There are also a lot of tips that you can find right below or up to your right, so be sure to check them so you can keep constantly improving yourself!
And remember, if you need anything else do not hesitate to contact us.
We are always at your service.
