In my last post, I mentioned time as our most valuable resource. Indeed, time is still running out, and we can’t stop it. Often at the beginning of the year, we make some plans that usually disappear after a month or two. Since we can’t manipulate time, you can look at each day from a slightly different perspective. We can try to manage ourselves in time.
I want to talk about what we can do to have more time every day. Simple and small changes can give very noticeable results. You don’t have to agree with me, and I even expect it. I hope to encourage you to self-analyze: Are you satisfied with your life?
Multitasking sucks!
Nothing’s gonna change that. We think multitasking is great, and everyone should be able to do it. Are you sure it is so cool?
In my opinion, we are trying to multitask to get better employee performance. Ultimately, we expect to do everything at once, although splitting into stages and separating activities could turn out to be a much better solution.
Multitasking doesn’t work, and we should avoid it. Try to make a phone call and write your code at the same time. Seemingly simple tasks turn out to be challenging to combine because neither of them is well done.
Avoid meetings
Probably you don’t have to be everywhere. I don’t mean avoiding important meetings. Often 5 minutes of meetings may turn out to be better than the hours of exchanging e-mails. You have to remember that a good meeting has specific rules.
A clear-cut plan is necessary. Each meeting must also have a clear goal that we want to achieve. Making meetings for the meeting itself is a great way to spend time at work. Do you want to spend your life like this? If the goal has been achieved or the meeting plan has been implemented - it’s over. There is no point in extending the meetings to discuss something else.
However, before you go to the meeting, think about whether you are needed? Some meetings are not worth attending. Sometimes it is enough to leave our thoughts behind and let others use them. We then have time for other activities instead of passively participating in the meeting and wondering when it will end. It is also worth making sure that the meeting does not extend. If we have a given time for a given section, let’s keep an eye on this time, even if we have to finish the meeting on a different session.
Each meeting is an intellectual effort. Try to spend the whole day in meetings, and you will be exhausted.
Grouping of similar tasks
Computer science teaches that context switching is expensive. The current processing status must be saved before any other processing can be performed. In addition, you still have to go back and finish, that is, load the entire state, set everything. Simple operation and how complicated the operating procedure.
It is the same in our life. Jumping between tasks does not happen immediately. Our mind is still analyzing the old task, even though we have already started a new one.
You should avoid context switching and do as many things as possible in the block. You can set a specific time for a given category, e.g., writing and reply to e-mails or write a blog entry. After completing the tasks/time is up, you can go about something else.
It’s worth finding your best time for a given category. I’m the most productive in the morning, so I prefer to do most of the creative tasks in the morning. I can schedule more schematic things for later. It’s important to try and test. It is possible that you may not find the perfect solution right away.
Summary
Since you can’t manage time, let’s try to manage yourself in time. Simple changes can add value to your life.
Avoid multitasking, focus on one activity, and try to do the best you can. Group tasks into blocks to make it easier to achieve goals and perform planned tasks without distracting and switching context. Remember that meetings can be tiring; make sure that each one has a clear goal, plan, and a specific time frame.