It’s Monday morning. I’ve got a steaming mug of coffee in my hand and I’m staring at my computer screen blankly. I should be scheduling blog posts, composing tweets, checking analytics – anything but just staring into space. The big ball of Things I Need To Do is just floating around in my head like an unorganized mess. It’s intimidating and I don’t know where to even begin.

We’ve all had mornings like this at some point. Sometimes we waste our time away when we could be doing something productive but just can’t get started because we don’t know where to start. Putting a little effort into time management can help alleviate feeling intimidated by all the things you need to do. I’ve put together some ways you can maximize your productivity and get rid of that wasted time.

Take Notes

First and foremost, you should be keeping track of what you do. There’s an old saying that goes, “You can’t manage what you don’t measure.” That definitely applies to your time! Make a note of what you did and how long it took you to do it. Did you take any breaks? Were you multitasking? By keeping a consistent record of what you’ve gotten done you can begin to identify your bad time use habits. You might discover that trying to multitask means that you take much longer to get any tasks done.

Or you might find the opposite. Every person is efficient in different ways so keeping your own record will help you identify your own problems. It also means you can identify good time management habits. For example, maybe having that cup of coffee at 10 really does help you get more done!

Scheduling

Keeping a consistent schedule is crucial for good time management. Keeping a record of everything you do can help make your scheduling much easier as well. From your records you might be able to identify a certain time of day where you get more things done. Some people are ‘Morning People’ while others are ‘Night Owls’.

Don’t try to force being productive during a time of day you know you’ll be tired. Figure out the time you’re usually the most productive and craft a consistent schedule around that time. Knock out your important tasks that require lots of focus during that time and leave the more routine or everyday tasks to the rest of the day.

Additionally, it’s important to set aside time just to get your schedule straight. Entrepreneur.com suggests you should take the first half hour of every day to set up your schedule. This helps solidify your plan for the day in your head. By doing it first thing every day you also can limit how much time is wasted by that dreaded Things I Need To Do bubble floating in your head aimlessly.

Delegate

“Small business owners are generally notorious for their reluctance to delegate in the belief that they can do the job better,” says the New Zealand government’s small business owners’ advice page. In other words – don’t be afraid to delegate some less-important tasks! There’s no need for you to do everything yourself, especially some of the more basic tasks.

Identify your employees who can take on more work and assign them some new tasks. With basic tasks like e-mail correspondence or quality assurance, just a little guidance is needed to start with and then they will be fine. Use that time instead to work on the bigger picture for your business, like finding new ways to innovate and one-up your competition.

The Right Tools

There’s no better time for time management than right now. With most people using smartphones and tablets, there has been a huge increase in the amount of time management tools and apps for those platforms. But also keep in mind that the most technological solution might not be the right solution.

Like I said earlier in this article, everyone is effective in different ways. You need to identify what works for you. Personally I find that color-coded pens and a nice pad of paper are the most effective way for me to plan out my day and remind myself of what tasks need doing. For you it might be a whiteboard in your office or a neatly organized Google Calendar.

Experiment with different apps and scheduling tools to find the method best for you. Ideally it will be quick and in a place you can easily refer back to throughout the day to keep on track. If you need some ideas for apps to try check out this Lifehack article with 15 time management apps with various styles and focus.

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