Managing your time effectively is crucial for your overall professional success. No matter how talented you may be, if you are unable to complete tasks and projects within set deadlines or show impactful results for the amount of time invested, you won’t be able to reach your full potential. Check out these ways to improve your time management skills and take your career to the next level:
Establish Priorities and Boundaries
Your productivity hinges on fiercely protecting your time and focus for the most important actions related to your goals. Establish your top priorities for both the bigger picture and the more short term and use it as criteria for determining if a task that pops up deserves your attention. This will enable you to create boundaries that prevent you from wasting valuable time on tasks that don’t align with your goals and make decision-making a snap.
Build in Buffer Time
Often the best of intentions for productivity go awry simply because of underestimating how much time it will truly take to complete a task. Prevent scrambling to finish in time (and therefore not submitting your best work) by building in buffer time. Give yourself more time than you think it take, such as mentally setting a deadline of a week before the actual deadline or blocking out two hours for a task you think would only take one.
Work With Your Own Tendencies
Self-awareness is your ultimate tool for time management. Observe the times of time in which you can easily focus versus when you tend to lack energy or motivation. Then, schedule your day accordingly – for example, if you are more alert in the morning, plan on tackling your tasks that require deep concentration and then save your administrative tasks for the afternoon when you start to hit a slump.
Debrief Regularly
Time management is an ongoing skill that requires practice to remain sharp. Set aside time on a consistent basis, such as monthly or whenever you complete a major project, to debrief on how long it took (compared to how long you estimated it would take), any challenges you faced, what you did well, and how you would like to improve going forward. Keep tweaking your tactics as needed to maximize your productivity with the least effort.
Explore New Opportunities
Are you ready to find a new job? PrideStaff San Jose can help make your job search easier and more effective. As a leading staffing firm in the San Jose area, we will utilize our expertise to match you with the opportunities that are the best fit. Search our available jobs today to get started.
