Organisation and Time Management

By Sarah O'Driscoll (Counsellor)

Organisation and time management tend to be two key principles of our lives that many people struggle with, if we do not apply and execute these correctly the result is often stress, anxiety, disarray, and feelings of being overwhelmed.

So, what do we mean by time management? Time management is the ability to manage time using a range of skills, tools and techniques, to effectively manage tasks, projects, goals and schedules. (Ashby, 2020) Being able to manage your time effectively in all areas of your life is essential to being organised and to complete your day to day schedule: from days to day errands and tasks to meeting deadlines at work and reaching KPIs. If you can get time management right you will feel more organised and in turn less stressed and more in control and focused.

Some key strategies you can implement to help get you started:

Set priorities – the easiest way to do this is to write a “To Do” list, this can be done at the start of your day, week or month whichever suits your lifestyle best and prioritise those items. The goal is not to complete every single item but to complete those that are of high priority.

Use a planning tool – this may be in an electronic form or diary/schedule, the key is to refer to it often, these tools can help jog your memory and refocus your time on your schedule and priorities.

Get organised – the first step is to declutter, get rid of everything that you do not need, clear your space, this can also relieve stressors before you even start to try to manage your time. The second step is to implement a system that allows you to handle information once or less this typically can occur in 5 ways:

1. Throw it away, delete it or get rid of it
2. Delegate it: give it to someone else to do , file or respond
3. Act on it yourself, then throw it away or file it
4. File it temporarily until it needs action, or you receive further information
5. File it permanently where you can find it later

Schedule your time appropriately – scheduling is not just recording what you need to do but it is making a time commitment to yourself to do the things that you want and need to do. Schedule your high priority items at the time of day you are most productive this will ensure these items will be completed.

Stop procrastinating – there are so many reasons we put off tasks, we may not want to do them, or they may be overwhelming. If this is the case, try breaking these tasks down into smaller more manageable tasks or implementing a reward system on completion.

Self-care – it is equally as important to schedule “relax” time, this relaxes and rejuvenates you both physically and mentally and allows you to accomplish tasks more effectively. To reduce stress, you can reward yourself with “relax” time after you accomplish certain tasks. (Chapman, 2020)

In conclusion, prioritising, commitment and scheduling are the keys to being effective at time management, if these can be mastered stress and anxieties will decrease and feelings of control and accomplishment will prevail.
 
References:
Ashby, D. F. (2020, July 25th). Definition of time management. Retrieved from Management Skills advisor: http://www.managementskillsadvisor.com/definition-of-time-management.html
Chapman, S. W. (2020, July 25th). Time Management. Retrieved from University of Georgia Extension: https://extension.uga.edu/publications/detail.html?number=C1042&title=Time%20Management:%2010%20Strategies%20for%20Better%20Time%20Management