[20.06.24]

Life is very busy – running a business, running a house, finding time for partners, children, family and friends, as well as finding time for ourselves.  So time management is essential to help us achieve all that we need, and want, to do.  Important elements to time management include: running a good diary, writing  to-do lists, prioritising tasks and delegating tasks.  So why do some things on our to-do list never get done – they just keep moving from one to-do list to another?  Here we explore some of the reasons that may be:

1. Guilt – finding time for ourselves can be challenging and will very often be pushed to the bottom of our to-do list because of guilt.  Business owners will often think: “I will find time for myself when I have achieved everything on my to-do list”.  The problem with that is there are always more and more things to add to our to-do lists – so we never get to the point of achieving everything and therefore giving ourselves permission to do something for ourselves.  And yet we all understand the importance of making time for ourselves.  We need to re-frame finding time for ourselves – to investing in ourselves so that we have the energy, creativity and drive to deliver everything else on our to-do lists.  So carve out the time for the things that restore and relax you, building it into a routine or putting it into your diary to ensure that you do invest in yourself.
2. Procrastination – we all have things on our to-do lists that we simply don’t want to do!  The fact that it just sits on our to-do list day after day, moving into month after month, has a dampening effect on us.  So challenge yourself to take it off your to-do list: a) does it really need to be done – it hasn’t been done yet and the sky hasn’t fallen in; b) can I delegate it to someone who would actually enjoy the task – be honest about this – it wouldn’t be fair to simply delegate the task to someone who similarly doesn’t want to action it; c) I just need to get on with it – in which case allocate a time in your diary when you are actually going to action it – and just do it – perhaps give yourself a reward afterward!
3. Size of task – whilst we don’t like the saying “how do you eat an elephant – one bite at a time” – we understand the premise behind it.  If the task feels too big to even start, break it down into smaller tasks – you may be able to delegate some of the smaller tasks to ease your workload.
4. Distractions – our phones never stop making noises, whether emails, texts, whatsapps or phone calls!  They continually distract us from our to-do list.  Think about turning your phone to silent or put it in a drawer so you can focus your energy on your to-do list!
5. Non-specific – does your to-do list include topics rather than actions?  For example: “gardening” rather than cut grass or weed border in front garden.  By being non-specific, whilst you may do some gardening, it may have to carry over to the next day and then the next day.  This can have a negative effect on us, as it seems the task is never completed.  Being specific ensures that we focus on what needs to be done that day – and enables us to have the satisfaction of ticking the action as completed.
6. Multi-tasking – the problem with multi-tasking is that we can end up with lots of things started but nothing completed.  Focus on one thing at a time – the sense of achievement of ticking something from your to-do list, will encourage you to move onto the next task.

Follow these steps to ensure that you have an effective to-do list which you will achieve:

1. Brain dump everything you need to accomplish. This is your list of possible tasks.
2. Mark the items that truly need attention today.
3. Estimate the time you need for each item.
4. Build in some time for the unexpected items which will present themselves during the day.
5. Prioritise the items for today, just in case you can’t get them all done. Focus on the most important or highest value actions first.
6. All other items on your “possible tasks” list, either delegate, place on an unfinished task list, or assign a date for when you will action them.

Castletons Accountants