Have you ever gone to bed wishing you could find more time in your day? Not being able to finish your daily tasks can be stressful and discouraging. More importantly, tasks not done today have to be finished tomorrow; which may lead to missing deadlines, causing havoc, and wasting time. Good time management tips can help smooth out the edges of a busy day and can provide you with enough time to complete all important tasks, as well as providing you with some free time to use however you please. Here are 5 tips you should try and live by to free up time in your day.
- Have protein for breakfast:
[Image by Nujalee]
Having breakfast is important, especially if you’re going to school, but a protein-rich breakfast can provide you with enough energy to last you until lunch. Doctor of Medicine, Kristie Leong gives her high energy breakfast tip when she says, “Make your breakfast rich in protein.” As Dr. Leong says, a meal high in protein is more likely to keep you full until lunch time. She suggests thinking outside the box and choosing “less conventional high energy breakfast foods such as a black bean burrito or cottage cheese” instead of high carb meals like pancakes and toast. Other foods high in protein include eggs, meats, nuts, and many dairy products.
- Prioritize your tasks for the day:
[Image by Stuart Miles]
This is a tip I picked up while attending a time management workshop. What you do is make a list of ten things you have to do in your day and then you pick the three most important ones. These three tasks are the ones that have important deadlines coming up or are necessary for you to continue on your day. By choosing to complete your three most important tasks you feel more accomplished and relieved and, since these tasks are usually the most time consuming, if you finish early you have more time to do your other tasks. You can also prioritize your tasks by grouping them into three subcategories each being; necessary, would be nice, and free time. All tasks in necessary are those that cannot be put off or delayed. They either have strict deadlines or expiration dates and include finishing your lab report, paying your bills, and changing your flat tire. The tasks in would be nice are more lenient; they can include washing your car, doing laundry (as long as you still have clean clothes or else this would be necessary), and cutting the grass. Tasks in the free time, category are just as they sound, and include anything you would do in your free time like, reading that new novel or going out for a movie.
- Don’t try and do it all at the same time:
[Image by Adamr]
While working on different tasks may seem like a good idea, multitasking is not very productive. According to Multitasking: The Cognitive Costs of Multitasking, an article by Kendra Cherry, research has shown that people are slower when switching in-between tasks, instead of finishing tasks separately. Research also has shown that, “Multitasking can reduce productivity by approximately 40-percent…” You are safer off finishing one task at a time, taking 3 minute brakes as you go along, giving yourself time to rest.
- Don’t try and do it all:
[Image by Pong]
We’re all human and sometimes we think that we can take on more than we can handle but the truth remains that we all have limits. Susan Ward, business writer and author of the article, 5 Ways to Get More Time: Time Management Techniques for Super-Busy People, understands that saying no can be beneficial. She suggests to, “Decide what roles and activities are important to you [allowing you to] live your life accordingly.” You don’t have to be a volunteer and a philanthropist and a dancer and a chef and an entrepreneur to enjoy life. Just pick what you enjoy the most and don’t feel obligated to participate in every community/charity event.
- Sleep—seriously:
[Image by David Castillo Dominici]
On a good day you might get four to six hours of sleep, if you’re lucky. Lack of sleep can be a host to numerous problems that don’t only affect you. According to WebMD, lack of sleep can cause problems like forgetfulness, aging skin, weight gain, impairment of judgment, and can even kill your sex drive. Also, sleep is incredibly important for those attending school. Healthy Sleep, a resource from the Division of Sleep Medicine at Harvard Medical School, states that, “…a sleep-deprived person cannot focus [their] attention optimally and therefore cannot learn efficiently [and] sleep itself has a role in the consolidation of memory, which is essential for learning new information.” Although, sleep is almost always jeopardized by busy schedules it is important to fit in at least 8 hours a day for a reenergized morning.
Finding free time in your day can be difficult and at times stressful, but with the proper techniques anyone can have a productive day. As always stay beautiful, stay healthy, stay kind.
[Image by Winnond ]
rtbbmagazine
rtbbmagazine