This is how I improved my game in time management.
In the era of distractions, it’s less likely for us to finish our tasks on time with no interruptions. While external factors play a big role, most distractions come from within, such as procrastination for the sake of perfection.
Hustle or not at all.
I used to think that way, as well, until I realized that it took me nowhere. So, I started to just show up every day with whatever I had at hand to achieve my personal goals. Every single day I envisioned my plans and tried to just do it with the time I had. Did it work out?
Yup, until it didn’t. Showing up daily for yourself with no clear timeline and structure apparently backfired. Over time I unintentionally built a sense of belief that whatever I did, I’d always fail — no matter how much I tried, it would only lead to nothing.
Dipping myself in the thought of unworthiness caused by a sense of failing, I dropped everything and just let go of whatever project I had. This is why now I have only-God-knows-how-much unfinished projects and looking back, I only saw them as proof of my inconsistencies.
Somehow, I decided to confront this pattern of mine, separating mistakes from myself as a person and treating it like any other errors that could be improved. Since most of my failures were caused by bad time management and self-control, I committed to failing small by dividing my day into sections. It is the art of anticipating failure and building a safety net based on (evaluated) past mistakes related to time management.
Simplicity is The Key to Better Time Management?
Failing to prioritize and allocate your time could be inevitable, but know that you could control how much damage it causes.
During my school days, I had this mindset that was truly a block to my self-growth. I had this, ‘If I fail to do something I aim to do in a day, I’ll try again the next day’. It sounds like a classic self-motivating tactic to trick your mind that you’ll show up again and again, to prove yourself that you’re persistent. But, then, it turned me into someone who undervalued her time. There was no route to the goals, no preparation for stuff going south. ‘There’s always be tomorrow’ until there wasn’t.
Reflecting on this pattern, I started to look for better planning tools, especially during college. I’ve tried almost every popular tool, such as time blocking with e-Calendars, project management with e-Kanban, and the list goes on. The tools worked well, but I kept looking for the most suitable and simple task management that I could follow through in a long term. I used various techniques until I came across a tweet that I can say was truly a game-changer for me (I’m still trying to find it to attach here as you scroll down).
How to Divide Your Day
Here’s the core idea of the tweet: Divide your productive time in a day into several sections: morning, midmorning, afternoon, and evening. So, if you fail to get it done in the morning, you can try again in the afternoon, or in the evening. You don’t have to wait until the next morning. This especially works if you’re dealing with a long-term challenging project or goal that needs consistency and discipline. But, I personally utilize it in organizing tasks while working my 9–5 job.
This method allows me to be less hard on myself while still focusing on finishing my tasks so they wouldn’t get shoved to the next sections. All I need was a Google Keep to type down what needs to get done that day (I usually only choose 2–3 things maximum) and start to divide them into the morning and mid-morning sections, according to their level of difficulty. In the afternoon, I start to do the simpler assignments or continue half of the morning tasks if they got interrupted earlier. This way, I could focus on one thing at a time.
One modification I added to this method is the structure of each task. I write down each step on how to finish the goal and do it accordingly. I even set the upbeat jazz playlist as the first step and had to checklist it first before moving on to the next. It gives me a sense of accomplishment and a rush to complete all the steps.
Final Takeaway
Each person has their own way in managing their time, but if you’re into something simple and easy to follow up, you can try to:
1. Divide Your Day Into 4 sections (Morning, Midmorning, Afternoon, and Evening).
2. Choose 2–3 priority goals.
3. Put the most challenging tasks/goals in the morning and mid-morning sections.
4. Put the simpler tasks in the afternoon.
5. Break down the goals into steps.
6. Checklist every step you’ve finished.
7. If gets interrupted, put half of the morning tasks into the afternoon sections
This method indirectly ‘forces’ everyone to prioritize certain goals and estimate the duration of each task to prevent it from getting pushed to the next section, so it can be finished on time.
Hi! Thank you for taking the time to read my work. By profession I am a copywriter, but I also write on personal development, productivity, and book reviews. If you’ve enjoyed this article, please kindly share it with anybody who might be interested in reading it.
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