Today is checklist day. Can you completely check off your checklist every day? Or do you have no checklist at all and are you lagging behind the facts every day? Are you the type who spends an evening at the office because otherwise you would drown in the sea of ​​work? When you use time management correctly, you are once again the FINAL BOSS of your own agenda. So take a few minutes to read this blog. The Smart Checklist is essential for this.
Checklist and time management and smart checklist
Time management is the effective and efficient performance of activities and tasks. It aims to increase effectiveness, efficiency and productivity. Time management is about setting priorities and making a realistic schedule. It is a skill that you can learn by working smarter and planning your tasks better. So don't first clean up the confetti on your desk & test the volume of the radio while the Project Big deadline is approaching.
Awareness of your time
Are you aware of how you spend your time? Awareness is the first step towards change. Become aware of how you spend your time. Therefore, keep track of how much time you spend on each task over a certain period of time, such as a day or week. Write down every task: from answering your email to reading long-winded reports. And don't forget to note the coffee chats and countless phone calls.
Identify your pitfalls
And what do you spend the most time on? Take a critical look at your noted tasks on which you spend your time. Which important tasks do you spend the most time on? And how much time do you spend on routine chores? Now let's look at the cause. Why does that one task take so much time? Could you have done this more efficiently? For example, consider the following:
– Do you do a lot of tasks that are not part of your core duties?
– Do you plan your work too late or do you plan too little?
– Are you often interrupted while performing your tasks?
– Do you suffer from insufficient discipline, perfectionism or nonchalant behavior?
By making an overview, you quickly gain insight into what you are wasting a lot of time on. Immediately address the pitfalls that you can solve immediately. So that you do not fall into your trap twice (or rather a hundred times).
Make a plan
Make a global plan in which you record what your activities are. Distinguish between main and secondary issues. Then divide your work over several weeks. With a weekly plan you know exactly what you have to do every week and this ensures focus.
Because let's be honest, it happens to all of us that a colleague asks you for help and you immediately drop your own work. Of course you want to help that colleague, but ask yourself whether this should be done immediately or whether this can be done at another time.
Take your weekly planning and divide it over the number of working days per week. By making a daily plan you maintain focus and you can make choices more easily. So don't postpone the most important tasks, start with them. Put your first priority here. It is also important that you do not completely fill your schedule. Keep in mind that certain tasks may take longer, but you can also help that one colleague.
Evaluate
To find out whether you are achieving your goals and planning, you must evaluate regularly. Take a critical look at your planning and adjust it if necessary. By sticking to things that are already going well and adjusting things, you will become better at time management. You learn to manage your time more effectively and efficiently and this produces (even) better results.
Need help?
In this blog we have briefly helped you get started with time management. Do you want to get started with time management immediately today, on the day of the Checklist? Then register immediately for the Time management training.
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You can find more background information about the smart checklist at smart checklist (Wikipedia).