Hey there Reader,

This week we will look at time management techniques.

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Article of the Week​
Managing Time

We've all had these days where you ask, "Where did the time go?". Managing your time is one of the most important things you can do to improve your career and life.

Time management is the act of planning and making sure that you get what needs to get done done. It’s about working efficiently, not wasting time and energy on unproductive tasks, and using time well.

When you manage your time properly, it helps you become more productive and effective in all areas of life. Time management can help you:

1. Get more done in less time
2. Save money by being efficient with your work schedule
3. Organize yourself better so that you don’t feel stressed out or overwhelmed

There are various ways by which people have created routines to manage time. That being said, the same technique won't be effectively applicable to everyone. Every person has their own way of managing time so experiment with all the types and see what works for you.

"Eat That Frog" Technique

This technique makes sure you do the most important and the most taxing work first so you can skim through the other tasks throughout the day.

It works as follows:

1. Establish a goal. What is it that you most want to accomplish?
2. Make a deadline to complete that goal.
3. Make a list of everything you need to do to reach your goal.
4. Sort this list according to priority. The most crucial items are most likely the most difficult. This is your "frog."
5. Take some action. Eat the nastiest frog first if you have more than one on your plate.
6. Repeat this cycle every day to ensure that you are always doing something that will help you get closer to your goal.

This technique works best for abstract thinkers and people who have long-term goals they want to work on.

The Bucket of Rocks Theory

In this method you imagine a glass jar as your time in a day, which you will fill with rocks, small pebbles and sands.

1. The Rocks are the most important tasks that must be completed today, such as office work.
2. The Pebbles represent tasks that must be completed but can be done later or by someone else. For eg, shopping for kitchen.
3. The Sand represents interruptions in your day, such as phone calls, text messages, emails, social media, and so on.

Filling your jar (Starting your day) with distractions like chatting with colleagues or social networking, and then continuing to fill your jar with pebbles (urgent tasks that can wait) will have your jar almost full in no time. There is no longer a place in your jar for the rocks, which are the most important activities during the day. As a result, your day is unproductive.

This technique is helpful for people who think visually as it helps them visualize the time in a physical form.

Rapid Planning Method (RPM)

Rapid Planning Method is a time management method which focuses on keeping you in track with what you want to achieve with your work. Each letter of RPM can also be broken down separately as well.

As an example, if you're a student in a college:

Now that you have your result, purpose and action, there are five steps to begin using the method.

1. Capture - Write down everything that you want to do. Pen it down or write it on your notes app. Put it all out there.
2. Chuck - Go through your list and give priority to each work depending on how important or useful it is. Filter and 'chuck' out the ones which are not important right now.
3. Plan - Plan how will you work towards your results. Will you work on 3-4 things at the same time, or will you prioritize working on the most important part and focusing less on others?
4. Action - All the planning part is done. Time to start taking action to get to the goal. Make a schedule, divide your time and work your way to the end.
5. Review - After all that's done don't forget to review your progress every day or week. Keep coming back and checking on how you can work harder, better, faster, stronger.

Rapid Planning Method works very well for students, parents or people who have long-term goals.

Action of the Week

1. Pick up one of these methods according to your liking, or try out all three of them a week each.
2. Document your experiences in a notes app or a diary and see your progress week after week.

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Laters!

Vineet from DASAR