3 Tips to Make the Most of Your Time

Did you know you can manage your time better by making use of “lost time”? Lost time is time you didn’t even realize you were wasting in the first place. People tend to think of time management as working with large blocks of available time, but you can do a lot by just grabbing those extra 10 or 15 minutes between other activities.

Run ahead, not behind.

When you get behind schedule, it can make you feel pressured and stressed. Plan ahead to get things done because this gives you a buffer. Take along those thank you notes you’ve been meaning to write, and finish them while you wait at the doctor’s office. Listen to podcasts and audiobooks while driving in the car. Return phone calls while sitting in car line (hang up when it’s time to move!) and if you’re a writer, plan blog posts ahead of time so you’re not scrambling at the last minute. Prep items you’ll need for meetings — anything from work appointments to kids’ music lessons and Cub Scouts. Allow an extra 10 minutes to get to appointments so you’re not late, and if you’re early, you’ll have a few minutes to knock out some emails, read a chapter of that book club pick, or make a shopping list.

Delegate.

Most people like to do things themselves because they know that the job is done to their standards (myself included). But if you do things others can do, it’s draining your time. Some time drains include mowing the grass or cleaning the house, scheduling meetings, handling social media updates.

Get your kids and your spouse involved with household chores, or consider hiring a cleaning person to come in one or twice a month to help out. Hire a neighborhood kid to mow the lawn, and think about whether you need a virtual assistant to help out with scheduling meetings or business social media updates.

Deal with emails the right way.

Handling email causes more people to get off track than any other online task beside social media. Manage your time wisely with email by setting aside a specific time to deal with email and setting a time limit on how long you’ll take responding to messages. If those emails are not important, don’t save them to look at later — they’ll only pile up in your inbox. Try a once-and-done policy — look at emails once and either respond to them, act on them, or delete them.

How do you make the most of your “lost time” — let me know in the comments!