The more accessible we are, the less time we seem to have to complete the tasks before us. It doesn’t help that we are constantly being “notified” when new messages or alerts come in, further distracting us from what we are trying to focus.
Coupled with our Email Reminder service, the following three tips help me to organize my time:
- Complete most important tasks first.
This seems like a no-brainer but is amazing how we often get distracted by the “easy-to-do” instead of the “must-do” in our inboxes. Whether you make a list the night before or spend 15-minutes at the start of your day while you have your coffee, you need to identify the two or three tasks that are the most crucial to complete before the end of the work day and do those first.
Everything else that can wait you can push forward by using our Email Reminder service to remind you when your schedule next permits. This gets those “lesser” tasks out of your inbox and out of your mind, while still giving you comfort that you have actioned them as much as you can for the time being.
- Learn to say “no”.
As a co-worker, friend, or business contact, our tendency is to want to pitch-in where we can and help others out. This makes for a co-operative atmosphere and a sense of well-being.
Unfortunately, when these additional requests start to interfere with our own work, we must pull back and begin to decline opportunities. Make a rule that you will only commit to those projects or requests that you know that you have time for. If your work isn’t getting done, you are not helping anybody.
Again, Email Reminders can help you organize which additional requests you want to tackle now and which you can defer until later. Those that you don’t want to take on can be declined immediately or you can set a reminder for a couple of hours (or days) in the future to prompt you politely decline then.
- Devote your entire focus to the task at hand.
Close your browser and put your phone away, preferably out of sight and on silent. Your entire concentration should be on this one task. Yes, I know it is easier said than done, however, the more distractions that you can block out, the better chances you are of getting things done.
If you insist on keeping your inbox open, while working, then you need to leverage the power of Email Reminders to defer any requests for your time that come in. Deferring allows you to concentrate on what you are doing, confident in the fact that you have actioned the request without feeling that you have ignored it.
The name of the game when it comes to time management is exactly that, managing your time to better match when you can more efficiently complete tasks. You need to be diligent enough to make hard decisions about what you can accomplish in the allotted time and completely focus on what you have committed to.
For more information on DirectedAI Email Reminders, and to sign-up for a free trial, click on our Pricing page.