It doesn’t matter how hard you wish for it; you can’t put a ‘stop’ on time. You’ll experience days where you feel like nothing is getting done at the workplace, aka you’re wasting time. An extensive survey by Forbes shows that about 89% of respondents wrote that they waste time daily.
Thus, it would help if you had proper scheduling to ensure you don’t waste time at work. That’s why here we’ve compiled a list of the most useful tips to help you stop losing time at work:
Organizing And Prioritizing
The first step in ensuring you don’t start unproductive in the morning is organizing and prioritizing.
Your first job before waking up for the next day should be prioritizing your tasks. Once you figure out the essential assignments of the day with closing deadlines, you can better focus on completing them on a priority basis.
Making To-Do Lists
Making a to-do list can mean the thin line between productivity and a wasteful day. Without one, you’ll end up spending a fair amount of your morning figuring out what you should first work on.
You can use calendars, sticky notes, mobile apps, and management software to make weekly to-do lists. Moreover, you can put daily time remainders to ensure you don’t fall behind.
Avoiding Multitasking
It can be tempting to multitask; you feel like you’re getting a lot done. However, multitasking is an excellent way to waste time, and you’ll get less done.
Instead of dividing your time to complete tasks halfway through, you can focus on finishing one and then the next. It lets you concentrate better on the tasks at hand.
Eliminating Distractions
From your colleagues’ interruptions to wasting time on social media, there are many easy ways to get distracted.
To make sure you stick with your schedule and efficiently finish your projects, you need to eliminate all distractions. Moreover, you can work on creating an ambiance that helps you focus the best.
Setting A Time For Emails
Even if you log in to check your emails for five minutes, you might end up spending half an hour cleaning your inbox. Furthermore, if you prefer to read and respond to received mail instantly, you’ll find that you waste a lot of time here.
Reduce the astounding number of hours on checking emails by carving out a dedicated time slot for such activities to mitigate distractions.
Using A Timer
Making a schedule is easy; following it is the more challenging part of time management. While scheduling, make sure you create a time slot for each task. Many like to use a time -blocking technique like The Pomodoro Technique where you chunk your work slots into 25-minute “pomodoros” and schedule small breaks in-between.
Now when you start working on a task, put on a timer alongside. It’s both challenging as well as fun!
Knowing When To Say No
Your job responsibilities are probably crushing you as it is. Besides this, you’ll have a couple of commitments of colleagues as well.
However, you’re not Superman, and it’s okay to turn down a team member’s request. But just blatantly saying out ‘no’ may sound rude. What you can do is explain to your friend what you’re busy with. You can do this via email, text, or in person.