All of us have struggled with how to better manage our multi-faceted lives. We are constantly faced with the competing demands of work and our lives outside of work with little sense of accomplishment. We feel a loss of control when one particular area becomes more demanding of our time and other aspects of our lives suffer causing everything to become lopsided. In fact, we’ve come to define this imbalance using an image of an unevenly weighted scale implying a competition between work and life.
But is there another way to approach it...
· What if we shifted our focus and recognized the boundaries of work/life is not finite nor competing but rather intertwined?
· What if we think of our time qualitatively vs quantitatively adding value to our life rather than taking away from it?
· What if we reminded ourselves on what we value most in life i.e. health, family, relationships, friends, work, or finances. How would we prioritize them?
Here are some suggestions on shifting your paradigm regarding time, increasing your productivity and prioritizing the things that matter.
1. Learn to set your boundaries and say no without feeling guilty.
As women, we struggle with this. We have been conditioned to take care of others at the expense of taking care of ourselves. Saying no and setting boundaries is core to understanding what’s important and being clear about where we want balance and why. Saying no doesn’t mean you are doing less than your very best.
2. Understand the fundamental difference between urgent and important; it’s the key to prioritizing and ultimately being more productive. Dwight D. Eisenhower understood this clearly. “What is important is seldom urgent and what is urgent is seldom important.”
Determine which activities are both important and urgent for you. These are typically activities that are very time sensitive, have long term impact and have significant value for you, i.e. family crisis, proposal for a profitable new project, accepting a last minute meeting with a high profile investor.
Always ask yourself: Will this activity have a profound affect on my success, survival and or well-being?
3. Think weekly, the number 5, and start on a Sunday.
- Sundays are great days to start planning your week. Don’t wait until the frenzy of Monday mornings, it will be too late to get a clear view of what may need to be done.
- Think weekly vs daily when you calendar. You will have about 112 hours in the week which you can spread your activities across. You're not trying to cram everything into 8 hour increments. Its less pressure and less stressful.
- Prioritize your activities. Understand what is both urgent and important. Look across all facets of your work and your personal life. You’ll probably end up with a combination of 6 or 7 priorities over a week’s time. Looking for some help in prioritizing better? Contact us for more tips.
- Once determined, then ask: If there were only 5 major moves to accomplish each priority, what would they be? Think of the 5 moves like a project. What are the deliverables, activities, and deadlines that will help you accomplish your goal. Then block out dedicated time on your calendar to do only this work.
4. Learn to pivot your priorities.
Unexpected events will occur and throw a kink in your plans. Don’t forget that time is malleable. You can make smart adjustments by keeping focused on what matters most to you. For example, redefine what your weekends might look like. “Working hard, Playing hard” won’t provide the quality of time you want.
Mix it up. Remember your work and other aspects of your life are intertwined and have a fluid relationship. Focus on the quality of the activities you want to do and when you want to do them.
5. Understand your distractions.
The average American watches TV 4-5 hours per day which can add up to a lot of extra hours that could be spent progressing your life’s agenda. Determine what those diversions might be for you, then look for ways to cut back and enjoy your newly found time.
For more tips on prioritizing and organizing your life, contact us with your questions.