Time Blocking – It’s the new To-Do List
We’ve been writing down tasks, completing some of them, and adding more to lists for years. It seems like a rational way to accomplish the things one must get done, however, as the world moves faster, becomes more connected and more complex, simply writing down everything we have to do, and hoping we will fit it in, is not enough.
The to-do list fails because it makes no distinction between tasks that may take fifteen minutes and those that may take three hours. It also assumes that these tasks will magically be completed in the amount of unscheduled time available on your calendar. So, how do we ensure we get things done? One effective strategy is time-blocking your daily schedule.
To ensure you make the most of every hour, and get all those things on your list is done, consider time blocking everything! Here’s how to start:
#1. Assess your list. Look at your current to-do list and assign an amount of time to each task. Be reasonable and realistic. Can you really write that proposal in an hour? Can you really cut back and forth across town in 30 minutes?
#2. Prioritise. Are there tasks that must be completed before others can be undertaken? Are there tasks that can be delegated to someone else on your team? Do external deadlines determine when certain things must be done?
#3. Put together your daily schedule much like you would for a jigsaw puzzle. Find space for the highest priority and most time demanding tasks first.
#4. Finally, the difficult, yet most crucial, part: you must protect these time blocks and work on the tasks assigned when you have assigned them.
Having protected blocks of time to work on specific tasks allows you to get “in the zone”. These periods of work are exponentially more productive, creative and enjoyable. Scheduled time blocks ensure that everything on your list gets done when it needs to.
Regardless of whether you use pen and paper or a computer-based calendar system, the process is the same. Take the time on Sunday, or the previous Friday afternoon, to plot out your upcoming week and then make revisions each evening for the next day as you move through tasks. As things come up and priorities change, make mindful adjustments to your time blocks, but do not abandon them.
Commit to converting your to-do list into a time-blocked calendar for the next three months. We think you’ll be surprised at how much more you get done in the time, and that the quality of that work will improve.
For further discussion about the health of your business or personal finances please don’t hesitate to call and chat with one of our expert accountants and business advisors. Just one conversation will help you identify tools to assist you to grow your business or personal wealth.
Contact us for a no-obligation chat today:
Torquay: (03) 5261 2262
Winchelsea: (03) 5267 2673
