So. You’re learning how to better manage and prioritize your time. You’ve learned how to manage your calendar – an amazing place to start if we do say so ourselves. We’ve also talked about how to manage your inbox.
And with those two huge elephants addressed, it’s important to learn how to be more productive at work with all that time you’ve guarded for yourself!
So now, it’s time to learn how to manage your energy, fit everything, and have an ideal workweek.
Sounds too good to be true, doesn't it? But trust us: It's possible. And you don’t even have to take our word for it.
Our very own CEO Tricia Sciortino – a seriously skilled time-management master – shares exactly how she guards her time, prioritizes her work for maximum productivity and manages her schedule to work more efficiently here.
“So, for a few years, I've been managing through the process of how I can have an ideal workweek so that I'm working at my best, I'm in a good rhythm and all the things are getting done.
“My first tip? Create an ideal workweek template for yourself. Share it with your team. Share it with your assistant if you’re lucky enough to have one.
“With this template, I make sure that the things that I know have to happen weekly are pre-scheduled, recurring and sit at the same time on my calendar.
“So if, for example, I meet one-on-one with all of my direct reports weekly, those meetings will be scheduled at the same time – ahead of time. And I do the same with all of my other team members.
“I also have other predetermined meetings that I need to participate in or run, whether it be a management meeting, leadership meeting, or project meeting, that will set at their specific cadence.”
“Determine when you’re at your best and schedule accordingly.
“For example, I'm a morning person, so I prefer to have all my meetings before 2 p.m.
“So, if you look at my calendar today, you’ll see that most of my meetings are before then; that’s my personal preference.
“My afternoons are then for things like administrative work, tasks or things I need to work on if I hadn't already delegated them to my amazing assistant.”
“Last but certainly not least is my tip to leave buffers – or blank spaces blocked out – on your calendar. Why? Because some commitments are yet to be determined and this is life. Things come up.
“So leave breathing room and give yourself an opportunity to jump into something you might not have planned to jump into because life happens. Business happens. And you're going to need space in your calendar to deal with things happening that you had not anticipated.”
With these three tips and by developing your ideal workweek, we offer one last bonus tip about how to manage your time effectively: Don't feel bad about sticking to it. This approach to being more productive at work only works if you actually abide by it.
OK. We lied. One more tip …
You’re going to have to get comfortable saying ‘no’ or ‘not now.’ This is your final – albeit incredibly critical – final step to helping you prioritize your time by identifying what needs to be done this week, what can be done next week, what can be done the end of the month, what can be pushed off to next month and what needs to be declined.
But if the thought of telling someone ‘no’ or ‘not now’ makes you squirmy, fear not!
Here’s a plug-and-play handy-dandy ‘cheat sheet’ of responses for just about every professional invitation or request that threatens to come between you and your effective and productive time-management at work!