Rule 3
You spend 90% of your working time on 3 tasks. Seriously. All the other activities you engage in can be delegated or outsourced. Why are we talking about this? Because those 3 tasks are something you really understand, and if you aren’t weighed down by small, unnecessary tasks, you’ll be able to focus on them more effectively. Effectiveness brings profit. Try making a list of the things you’re working on. Then ask yourself: if you had to spend the whole day on just one activity, which one would it be? Then ask the same question for the second and third.
For example, if you’re a graphic designer, it’s far more rewarding for you to focus fully on creative work, communicating with clients and writing a specialist blog that your customers read, rather than doing your own bookkeeping, printing business cards, tidying the office and even coding websites yourself. It’s far more worthwhile to focus on your core tasks and hire someone else to handle the rest.
Planning saves time
Did you know that one minute of planning saves 10 minutes of work? It’s true – organise your priorities and energy this way and you won’t forget a thing. Plan both short-term and long-term activities. For example, at work you can plan by the day, week, month or year. At the start of each day or week, write down the most important tasks you want to get done. For each activity, make a note of how much time you estimate you’ll spend on it. Rank the tasks from the most urgent to the least important.
Get into the habit of preparing a list of key tasks at the start of each day. There might be just 3, or there might be 10 – it’s up to you. When planning, follow this rule: set reminders with deadlines straight away. Nobody can remember everything, and a reminder email can save the day.
Never plan your time 100%
If you do, you’ll immediately receive a very important email from Mr Murphy (the man who wrote Murphy’s Laws), or your mother-in-law will ring and spend an hour talking to you about how her cat is getting on, or some other disaster will occur that ruins your plans. Plan for approximately 60% of the day, i.e. about 5 hours.
Communicate effectively
Do you constantly check your email too? That’s a huge time-waster. Set aside time three times a day to check your email and deal with all your correspondence. Let’s be honest – which emails can’t wait three hours for a reply?
Got an important phone call coming up? Then plan it in first. Write down what you want to achieve and a brief outline so you don’t forget to ask anything or highlight any important information.
Multitasking wastes time
Some women may be able to focus on several things at once, but here at AITOM we believe that’s just a myth. If you want to do a job properly, you need to focus solely on that task. Do just one thing at a time. Our brains simply can’t handle listening to a lecture, writing a blog post at the same time, and dashing off to deal with emails in between.
Break large projects down into smaller parts
You’ll find it easier to work on the project. You’ll avoid the problem of not knowing where to start, and you’ll find solutions more quickly. Break your tasks down into related blocks and work in blocks (for example, phone calls, emails, graphic design, writing, etc.)
Work your magic with time
Set deadlines. If your tasks are just floating around in limbo, you might never get them done. Set your personal deadline as early as possible before you actually have to hand the task in, even if it’s just a day earlier. After all, it’s always better to have things ready in advance, just in case.
If you have an unpleasant or demanding task ahead of you, set aside a specific time for it. For example, spend two hours a day on it until you’ve finished, but never more than two hours.
Reward yourself
Especially for those unpleasant tasks. The human brain cannot work for 8 hours straight. Once you’ve completed a task, set aside some time to think. But that doesn’t mean staring out of the window. Make a plan, read a specialist journal or a few chapters of a book. Simply develop your ideas; this way you’ll keep up with trends in your field and learn something new.