It all started in 147 BC. One simple invention changed the trajectory of every person around the globe.
Hipparchus proposed dividing the day into 24 equinoctial hours, further splitting them into 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness.
Today, in the twenty-first century, you still only have 24 hours in the day. I don’t say it lightly, because time is one of the few things in life you can’t change.
And if you can’t change something, you need to accept it and manage it better. Mastering time management skills is a must. But I don’t want you to be thinking that time management is all about doing more and fitting more into your day.
I want you to think about time management as a tool to have the time of your life because you follow your dreams. Interested? Keep reading to learn how to master time management in three simple shifts.
But before we start, are you part of my community? Join my newsletter to get the latest action steps on how to eat a healthy plant-based diet, de-stress, manage your time better, prioritize yourself, and anything in between so that you INCREASE your energy, SAVE time and INVEST well in your wellness!
Why Is Time Management So Important?
In our productivity-obsessed lives, it is the norm that you work long hours, have more things to do, and have more responsibilities. You often feel tired, almost on the brink of exhaustion. You do so much yet still lack the time for almost anything.
But that is only one side of the coin. Not having enough time can seriously impact your performance. Not only at work but in your personal life too.
A lack of time goes hand in hand with a lack of energy.
And lack of energy has serious consequences. Because when you don’t have energy, it doesn’t matter if you have time or not. You may want to do more things in less time, but if you are missing the energy and motivation, it won’t happen.
When you are busy, spinning many plates in the air, stuck in traffic, or missing a deadline losing sanity is a given. To regain sanity, you need to understand that time management is important.
And there is one more reason why mastering time management is a must.
Take a seat, close your eyes and imagine what you would be able to do if you had an extra hour in your day.
I don’t mean you had more time to fit more chores on your do-to-list. What would you do if all the projects for your kids’ school were done, all the business negotiations were completed, your dinners were cooked, and dishes cleaned? If there were no more places to go?
What is in your dream closet?
Maybe you want to write a book, do an art course, take up piano lessons, or travel to India. Or maybe you want to have undisturbed me-time where you don’t have to feel responsible for others?
It is time for your dreams.
How Do I Manage My Time
I used to be the ‘I don’t have any time’ person. It was my mantra for a really long time. Why? Because I genuinely thought that I didn’t have time!
How could I have had time if I worked full time, studied full time, ran a side hustle, and socialised a lot? With my daily commitments, I didn’t have time to eat or sleep.
I’ll tell you a secret. It wasn’t because I didn’t have any time. No. It was because I didn’t pay any attention to time.
I thought that time is unlimited, and that I could create more. But you can’t create something that cannot be created. You can’t feel accomplished at the end of the day when your to-do list is the length of War and Peace by Tolstoy.
So, how do I manage my time now?
Yes, I use different time management strategies and techniques. But they are just tools. The real breakthrough came when I understood that there are certain mindset must-haves around time management.
Only when you make the mindset shifts you start having time. You will not only have the time to do your daily tasks, but you will have time to follow your dreams too.
Mastering Time Management
You can learn all the time management hacks, but trust me, some mindset shifts around time management need to happen first. As otherwise, the tools, strategies, and hacks won’t produce the results you want or need.
After all, you want to be productive and sane at the same time. So, here are three mindset must-haves to master time management.
# 1 Time is Money
I am sure you have heard the saying time is money. You may know this, but do you use it when you make your to-do list or when you set your daily priorities?
The first mindset shift that has to happen to master time management is to understand that time is a resource. It is exactly the same resource as energy, money, or food.
The good news is that you already possess this resource! You hold this very precious resource in your hand and you are responsible for how it is used. The more conscious you are about how you spend your resource, what ROI you get, and who benefits, the more efficiently you will use it.
Contrary to money, energy, or food, time is the only resource that cannot be multiplied. In a way, it is more precious than money.
So, look at your daily tasks. Do you receive the ROI on them? Is the way you spend time bringing you the money you want?
#2 Work Smart not Hard
I often hear that you want more time. But I want to tell you that having more time is not the issue here. Research shows that if we had more time, we would fill it up with more things!
Can you see how this works?
Have a look at your to-do list and circle all the tasks you are excited about. You may soon realise that most of your day is filled up with things you don’t even want to do.
If you ask me, I don’t need more time to fill with things I am not interested in doing. You know that there will only be twenty-four hours in a day. It is not possible to add more.
You need to manage the time you’ve got.
When you start managing what you have, it becomes clear that some activities should go because they don’t bring any value to your life. You become aware of how you want to spend your time.
That is how you work smarter, not harder.
When you know what brings you the biggest ROI on your time and what activities get you to the finish line, you start having time for the things that truly matter to you.
# 3 Manage Your Time
I hope you start putting things in place and see that you can’t create more time. Staying stuck in the mindset that you can and keep adding more tasks to your day makes it impossible to succeed.
Time is a resource that you already possess. Unless you give it away.
Time must be managed, preferably by you. You need to understand that if you don’t manage your time, somebody else will.
Why?
Because there will always be another client who wants something extra, there will be your friend who needs this one more favour, there will be another episode of your favourite show to watch.
Your time (AKA resource) is valuable. So it makes sense that others want some of it. But the reality is that if others allocate your time, you won’t have any to use.
Depending on the stage of life you are at, some of your time will be already allocated and you won’t be able to change it. You need to accept it. But it makes even more sense that you take the first dips in managing the time that you have available, doesn’t it?
How to Improve Time Management
You can have the best strategies, techniques, and hacks to manage time, but to master time management you need to shift the way you look at time.
You may feel like if you had more time, you could get more done. But you can have the time and energy and follow your dreams with the twenty-four hours you have.
Time is a resource that you need to manage. As any good financial planner will tell you, you need to learn how to manage it wisely to get the ROI you want. Because the truth is, if you don’t, somebody else will.
So, are you ready to find the time to follow through on your dreams?
Join my newsletter to get the latest action steps on how to eat a healthy plant-based diet, de-stress, manage your time better, prioritize yourself, and anything in between so that you INCREASE your energy, SAVE time and INVEST well in your wellness!
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