Time management. Some people get it and some (like me most of the time) struggle with it on an ongoing basis. There just don’t seem to be enough hours in the day. Give me a ‘Hell Yeah’ if you feel the same! I’ve tried a variety of things to try and improve, but the success of these endeavors varies. My most successful one so far has been a little app called Todist. Even though I normally HATE lists, this app makes it easy to manage and organize. I’m still trying to figure out how to be better… This post will not provide you with a magic solution, but hopefully will help you make better use of the time you already have.
Podcasts Instead of Music
What do you listen to in the car or while walking the dog? Answer for most people is music. Spotify, Apple Music or maybe even Tidal, pumping the beats whether 70’s, 80’s or newer. Until a few weeks ago, that was me until @SavannahJessie recommended a Podcast to listen to (top of the list below). Now I had dabbled in Podcasts previously, but they just didn’t hold my attention. This one was different and it started me on a journey to broaden my mind. Now these podcasts don’t always have to be career/work related as long as you are learning something with the time you are spending.
Projectified with PMI (Season 1, Episode 6) – Agile Ways
Criminal (Episode #55) – The Shell Game
WorkLife with Adam Grant – The Creative Power of Misfits
Squeezing in the Work
With all the demands placed on us at work and by ourselves, it can feel like there isn’t time to get to the gym. It’s too far away. If I go then I have to do my hair (not a problem for me) or I’m too tired. There are a million and one different reasons not skip the workout, but your health is worth more than all of them. This is where the BigBrnz Challenge comes in. Work you can do with out weights (with the rare exception) in the comfort of wherever you are. Even if you don’t follow along, Sit-ups during commercial breaks, Push-ups first thing in the morning or Wall Sits are all work. It’s just a matter of doing that little bit extra.
Stretching the Hours
Depending on who you ask or Google, the average person needs between 6 and 10 hours of sleep. If you want to be really nerdy you could probably narrow that down to somewhere between 7 and 9 hours, but for this discussion lets go with the first estimate. I’ve been struggling with getting things done (i.e. not enough hours in the day) so I’m trying a little experiment to see if I can lengthen my time. @savannahjessie and I have started a routine of having a set wakeup time (between 430am and 5am) in order to get to the gym. By doing this we will hopefully free up our evening to do other things. Since the 3rd of March I’m averaging just over 6hrs a night and while I feel a little bit slower in the mornings occasionally, there haven’t been any serious detriments yet. I will keep you updated on progress, but the goal is to get the body used to the smaller sleep window and teach it to be more efficient. Hit the pillow, go to sleep.
Anyone ever tried something like this? How did it go? Do you have any other tried and tested methods that work to either increase productivity or lengthen the available useful time in the day?
Beez
