Implement Your Time Management Plan
Once you have your specific goals written down, it is time to implement them. Remember that changing behavioral patterns cannot be done overnight. Statistics have shown that it takes 21 days on average to effectively change a habit. The objective is to change your behaviors over time to achieve whatever general goal you've set for yourself, such as increasing your productivity or decreasing your stress. You do this by setting specific goals, but tracking the over time to see whether or not you are accomplishing them.
One thing you should not do is to try and implement your entire list of specific goals all at the same time. Start by working on just one or two of them until they are integrated in your behavior before moving on to the next. By trying to implement too many changes at once, you will just create stress and stress always produces negative results in the end.
Use Time Management Tools
Whether you are a pen and paper or a computer type of person, the first step to physically managing your time is to know where it's going now and planning how you are going to spend your time in the future. If you prefer paper, one of the most popular is the Day-Timer system. It provides a modular system where you can pick and choose various formats to create what works best for you.
One of the most popular software programs is Microsoft's Outlook or Fantastical for the macOS that lets you schedule events easily and can be set to remind you of events in advance, making your time management easier. If you use email to correspond with your clients, it can make it much easier to create a record of your conversations also.
Prioritize Constantly
Just like a proper breakfast provides your body with the fuel it needs to function well, you should start each day with a time management session to prioritize the tasks for that day. A daily business planning session of just 20 to 30 minutes will let you focus on your business goals and energize yourself for the day ahead. By spending time organizing yourself at the start of each day, it will save you time during the day by keeping you on track.
Your daily business planning session is your chance to:
- Review the progress on the specific goals you've set. If you are consistently not completing the task on your schedule each day, then it is time to allow more time for your tasks.
- Set your daily agenda. Decided which of your goals you will be working on for the day.
- Prioritize your tasks of the day. Remember the story about the rocks? Fill in your Big Rocks first and then the gravel, sand, and water. You may not get to the sand or water, but that is okay. It is not necessary to obsessively order tasks to get a sense of what's important that day.
Make sure that your daily business planning is uninterrupted. Don't take phone calls during this time or sitting someplace where people are wandering through. Your planning session will set the tone for your entire day.
When you are setting your daily agenda, slot your most demanding tasks into your most productive work times. For example, if you are a morning person, then it makes sense to schedule your creative tasks into a morning slot rather than into the afternoon when your mental energy is low.
Resist the temptation to grade yourself on how well you keep to your daily agenda. If you don't accomplish all the tasks on your list for the day, that doesn't mean you've failed. It just means you didn't accomplish everything on your list.