As business owners, our time is often our most valued commodity. However, time can also be the hardest to manage, and the technique that works for person A may not work for person B.
Thankfully, there are several time management techniques available, so you don’t have to limit yourself to something that doesn’t work for you.
To get you started, here are five of my favorite ways to manage your time and reclaim your productivity.
Time Blocking
Time blocking is a simple, straightforward way to manage your time. All you have to do is schedule your tasks into your calendar and block out how much time each task will take.
For example, let’s say you have a meeting at 10 am. Go into your calendar and block out how long you think it will take (30 min- 1 hour). Then, let everyone know you’ll be completely unavailable during that time.
With time blocking, you’re allowing yourself the space to focus on one task at a time. That, in turn, will boost your productivity and keep you more organized throughout the day.
It’s great for visual people who need to see their schedule laid out for them, and it’s easy to schedule out weeks in advance so you wake up knowing what the day will bring.
Or, if a calendar isn’t your thing, you can always try a time-blocking app like Plan or Week Plan until you find a routine that works for you. Just don’t forget to schedule your breaks and meals.
Kanban
Adopted in the 1960s by Toyota Automotive in Japan, the Kanban technique lets you follow the progress of your project through every step of the way.
It works by determining the number of steps in a project or task, creating four columns (backlog, to-do, in progress, done), and organizing the steps within those columns.
For example, let’s say a task has ten stages. With the Kanban, your process would look like this:
- Backlog- brainstorm and define all the stages needed to complete the job.
- To-Do- add the stages you need to work on
- In-Progress- Add the stages you’re currently working on
- Done- add the stages you’ve finished
Start with the highest-priority stage and work down the list until all the stages are in the done column.
With the Kanban technique, you can solve multitasking and missed deadlines by learning how to implement SMART goals, delegate tasks, and work on projects one step at a time.
Pomodoro
Developed by Francesco Cirillo, the Pomodoro technique is perfect for creative thinkers and those feeling burnt out by the daily grind.
To use this technique, separate your work into 25-minute chunks (called Pomodoros after Francesco’s Pomodoro-shaped egg timer) and 5-minute breaks. Then, after four rounds, take a 20-minute break.
The result is a workday that looks a bit like this:
Work (25 minutes), break (5 minutes), work (25 minutes), break (5 minutes), work (25 minutes), break (5 minutes), work (25 minutes), break (20 minutes).
This pattern of working and breaking can help keep you focused, energized, and on task for as long as it takes. It will also help you avoid distractions, manage stress, and set priorities.
Plus, with numerous 5-minute breaks, there’s plenty of time to take a walk, grab coffee, and go to the bathroom without disrupting your entire schedule.
Eat That Frog
Created by Brian Tracy for his book Eat That Frog!: 21 Great Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Done in Less Time, this technique focuses more on the tasks than the time it takes to complete them.
You start by picking your most important (or most dreaded) task of the day. It then becomes your “frog” and the thing you tackle first. Then, you can organize your other tasks in descending order.
Here’s what it’ll look like.
- Task A — Your “Frog” and the task you MUST do first (or suffer the consequences).
- Task B — A lesser task but still vital to the day.
- Task C — A task you could do, but it wouldn’t be the end of the world if you didn’t.
- Task D — A task you’d delegate to someone else so you can focus on task A.
- Task E — A task you can eliminate from your list.
The “Eat the Frog” technique will help you set SMART goals, identify priority tasks, eliminate multitasking, and better plan your days. Then, your time management (and productivity) will soar!
Time Study
Finally, we have the Time Study technique. As the name suggests, a time study can chart where your time goes during the day. It can also help you discover toxic habits (like time wasted browsing TikTok), create boundaries between work and home (don’t answer emails during dinner), and refocus your efforts in the right direction.
To use a time study, record your activity every fifteen minutes or when you start a new task. Personally, I do both.
A typical day might end up like this:
- 10 am- answer emails
- 10:15- start X task
- 10:30- working on X task
- 10:45- checking logs
- 11- meeting
- 11:15- meeting
- 11:30- check on X
- 11:45- social media
- 12- lunch
- etc.
By recording your activity every 15 minutes, you’ll get a bird’s eye view of your time throughout the day. Then, you can adjust accordingly.
You can use apps and other time-tracking software to perform a time study, but I like the pen-and-paper method. For some reason, the time study feels more substantial if it’s on paper.
However, finding a good template can be difficult, so I made one for you. All you have to do is print it out and fill it in.
Final Thoughts
There are several ways to manage your time more effectively, so there’s bound to be one that suits your needs.
The five techniques are some of my favorites, and they’re an easy way to step into the world of time management and take control of your most valuable commodity.
