Do You Know How To Manage Time At Work?

Managing time at work not only has an impact on productivity, but it does so in a very significant way on physical and mental well-being. In short, it is a factor that decisively influences our state of health.

When time is short at work, the direct consequence is that we spend more hours on it. The accumulation of pending issues, the time that we steal from planning and correct decision-making ends up taking a toll on our health.

There are some simple techniques and strategies to apply that can help us. Now, as in any process, it requires practice and effort, especially in the beginning. The good news is that if we do it, it will be another one of those routines that we will end up carrying out over time and without realizing it.

Wonder what you are trying to achieve

It is important to ask yourself about the ultimate goals of the job. In short, you work for money, but there are some factors that must be considered within the work dynamics itself that give us clues to the way in which we intend to obtain our immediate and future income.

There are jobs where the only important factor is money, productivity, or the quantity of what is done. And there are situations in which, in addition, other objectives are sought, such as performance; that is to say, in addition to quantity, quality.

These factors, productivity, performance and perception are the basis of the art of knowing how to manage time at work. From there we will develop a system that allows us to work with less stress, more control over what we do, greater motivation and as a consequence a feeling of greater satisfaction and energy.

Organize your goals

Another important strategy is to evaluate the goals and objectives to be achieved in the medium and long term. The organization of daily work should be a consequence of the study of goals. And for this, it is convenient to fix it in time, because from them we will plan the actions and activities that it requires to be able to achieve them on time.

It does not hurt to organize the objectives based on a month -at least-, to later organize the goals of the week and with it the daily work. However, we cannot forget that goals can change often, so it is advisable to review them.

Within a medium-term planning, for example, monthly, it is convenient to contemplate a time for unforeseen or urgent actions that may appear and plan solely and exclusively work activities during the hours dedicated to work.

Daily activities scheduling

To organize daily work, it is very effective to make a list of things to do or what we would like to get done. Both can be divided into three groups and classified in order of priority.

• Group A. Things to do immediately and without delay.
• Group B. They are important, but they can wait another day.
• Group C. Important, but may take a little longer.

Afterwards, the things that must be done with a specific time, such as a planned meeting, picking up the children from school or going to class, will be marked on the agenda. Once this is done, the activities that make up group A are added in the first hours that are free.

Then, those of group B, and the remaining open spaces of the C group. If there is not enough time in the day for all of them, those of groups B and C are left without adding, which are placed on the following day, changing the degree of priority if necessary.

If the priority level is the same, all activities will be organized by degree of difficulty. In this way, priority will be given to the most complex ones, which will be carried out in the early hours of the day and the most pleasant or easy tasks are left for the end of the day, at which time we no longer have the same strength.

Some more tips for managing time at work

It is important that we organize daily activities, counting on leaving some free time between activities. It is not advisable to schedule the day beyond a normal schedule. Time is needed during the day to do other things that are not work, such as going to the bank or doing the shopping and, in addition, these must be combined with personal activities that help to disconnect from work.

It is also essential to learn to say no assertively when an unexpected task is asked of us. Now, watch out for dangerous perfectionism! Sometimes, something cannot be finished because we think it is not perfect and, in most cases, it is simply insecurity that forces us to delay a task in time.