How to improve quality of your life with better time management

Are you consistently unable to finish important stuff each day?  

You start your day with thoughts like :  I will finish the report, I’ll ask for a raise, I'll do the laundry, I'll take my wife for dinner etc. Alas! When you lie in your bed in the night, you find that most of this things are still undone.  

The report is still a draft, you didn’t get time/courage to ask for a raise, the laundry has started smelling really bad and, because you were late from the office, your wife left for a bridge party. You start again the next day and, - it goes on. You are unable to manage your TIME.  

Experience tells us that poor time management skills effect our productivity and ultimately quality of our life.  Time management is a learn-able skill. By managing your time effectively, you can be more productive and be more confident of achieving your goals. Here are some useful time management tips:  

1- Prioritization is the key

 Set up you priorities for the day. In the morning, create a written list of things to do in the order of importance. Writing your daily tasks will clear your head. You will remain focused throughout the day because you know what needs to be finished in the day and what can wait for tomorrow.  

2- Perfection is an illusion 

The pressure of being perfect all the times hinders your productivity. It makes the job more difficult and you become hard on yourself.  So, don’t run after perfection. You can never be perfect. In fact, nobody can. Don’t waste huge amount of time to do everything with perfection. Give your best to the task at hand but learn when to finish wasting more time and move on. The job can be finished latter.

3- Plan every day in advance 

 Before lying in the bed think about the activities for the next day. Plan in your head the tasks you will work on tomorrow. A to-do-list will keep you safe from getting lost in your work. You won’t miss the deadlines.

 4- Create deadlines 

 Set a deadline for each task. Deadlines create a sense of urgency. However, remember to be realistic in setting up the deadlines. Ask yourself repeatedly whether the task is humanly doable within the time frame you are setting up. Be lenient on yourself. But, once you setup the deadline, be firm. Push yourself to the limits to complete the job in time.  

 For some, managing their time may seem difficult in the beginning. However, with practice and consistency this will become a habit – a very useful habit to improve productivity and quality of your life.