Everyone feels as though they just can’t squeeze enough out of the day. You hit 10pm and wonder, “Where has the time gone?” If you feel like you don’t get enough done every day, you’re not alone. Here are 10 tips that will help you have a productive day, every day.
- Create A Morning Routine
The best way to get started is to have a good morning routine. This will look different for everyone, but no matter what it looks like, it should work for you. A good way to start is to set your alarm to the same time every day. Eat a good, healthy breakfast, and leave yourself lots of time to get ready for the day ahead.
- List Out Your Day
Every day, you’ll have something you’ll need to get done. Creating a to do list can help you get there. “The best way to write a to do list is to write your three most important goals on the top of the page” says professional time manager Abigail Peters from UK Top Writers. “No matter what you do today, make sure that those three tasks are accomplished.” If you do this regularly, you’ll feel a real sense of accomplishment.
- One Thing At A Time
Sometimes you’ll feel as you can get nothing done, as there’s so much to do at once. When you feel this way, the best thing to do is to focus on one thing at a time. Pick one item on your to do list, and follow it through. Complete that task, and then find another one that needs to be completed. If you follow this cycle, you’ll be able to get a lot done during the day.
- Make Appointments With Yourself
You know when you make an appointment with someone, you clear your diary for them? You do it so you’ll have no interruptions when you’re meeting that person. Try doing this for yourself, too. Block off some time just for yourself, where you can focus on whatever it is that you need to do, with no interruptions.
- Use Online Time Management Tools
The internet is a wonderful place, and you’ll find that there’s lots of tools available to you if you need some help managing your time. Here’s some suggestions to get you started:
- Week Plan: This site offers a free weekly planner that you can take advantage of.
- Grammarix: This tool is a great way to write good emails and save time.
- Trello: Collaborate with others through tool, which is an effective and time saving way of doing so.
- Elite Assignment Help: Outsource your daily writing tasks to this service.
- State Of Writing: This business writing tool can help you out a lot.
- Huffington Post: This article is all about time saving services you can use.
- Take Breaks
It sounds counterproductive to take breaks when you’re trying to fit more in, but it should be done. If you try and power through, getting everything done with no breaks at all, you’ll reach burnout quickly. Instead, use the Pomodoro technique. For every 25 minutes of work, take 5 minutes to recharge. You’ll get a lot more done this way.
- Look At How You Use Your Time
You think that you don’t have a lot of time, but in fact you’ll have more than you’d think. “Try using an app that asks you to log your time” says business coach Rebecca Davies from Revieweal. “You’ll see the chunks of time that you could be using more effectively almost right away.”
- Make Yourself Unavailable
If you’re busy, having notifications pinging on your phone or screen can be very distracting. When you’re deep in a task, try turning off all non essential notifications. Come back to them when they’re done, as they won’t be going anywhere. Your notifications aren’t as important as they appear to be, so give yourself some space.
- Have An End Of Day Routine
Just as you have a routine to start your day, you need one to finish with. Clear your inbox ready for tomorrow, write a list of everything that needs to get done the next day, and clear off your desk. Again, this will look slightly different for everyone, but the goal is to get yourself ready for the next day, before you finish up.
- Reflect On The Day
When the day is over, reflect on the day itself. How did you do? Did you achieve everything on your list? Did you avoid distractions? Use a journal to keep track, and learn from any mistakes that you make.
These ten tips will help you squeeze the most out of your day, without feeling stressed or run down. Give them a try for yourself and you’ll see the difference they make.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR – Rachel Summers is an experienced writer living and working in the UK. She works as a journalist specialising in education, including Student Writing Services, as she has a passion for helping students get the most out of their years in school. Her writing focuses on tips for making school easier for people who are studying, and tools that can help them get the assistance they need. Visit her Blog.
