Your Essential Guide to Effective Time Management

Time is one of our most valuable resources, yet most of us go to bed each night thinking of how we could have used it better. That's why effective time management is crucial for our personal and professional success. 

We all know this, but many of us fail to act on it. In fact, 82% have no semblance of a time management system. Fortunately, if you're one of these people, we're here to help.

In this guide, you’ll learn the basics of time management and the most essential and proven strategies and tips for mastering it. But first, let’s delve deeper into what time management is.

Time management refers to how we prioritize and utilize our time. The hallmark of good time management is finding or developing a consistent, reliable system that improves efficiency, increases productivity, and helps one find balance between work and personal life.

Time management is crucial for establishing a healthy lifestyle. Whether you want to boost your productivity, improve your work-life balance, or you're a team manager looking for ways to improve your employees' performance, it all starts with the well-planned use of your daily hours.

The benefits of time management are countless, but there are a few that stand out above the rest like: 

1. Increased productivity. It’s no secret that time management systems lead to increased productivity. Whether you’re a C-Suite executive for a massive company or a freelancer in business for yourself, the global economy loses 50 million hours per day due to unrecorded tasks. Effective time management helps remedy the problem. 
   
   

2. Better work-life balance. The real bane of poor time management isn't the absence of productivity but rather the lack of time for the things and people we love. When we're at our most efficient, it's easier to be present in the most important parts of our lives.
   
   

3. Reduced stress. Better time management often leads to better stress management. In fact, medical experts cite that those with poor time management issues are more likely to experience stress, sleep deprivation, anxiety, and depression.
   
   

4. Less decision fatigue. Good time management will translate into a better ability to make crucial decisions. Why? Simply because you’ll have more headspace. When you have clarity over your work and a solid plan for achieving each goal consecutively, you free up your potential for imagination, creative thinking, and innovative problem-solving.
   
   

5. Improved mental health and well-being. Poor time management hurts productivity, which then leads to poor work-life balance and, ultimately, burnout. When we start to gain a better grip on those two areas with effective time management, it's easier to live well-rounded lives.

Seasoned professionals also note that managing your time well leads to higher chances of success. You can better realize your goals as you regain control of your days and direct your work with solid decision-making.

There's not a single person who wouldn't benefit from time management. But while it's an all-encompassing practice, there are many different ways to do it. Some of the most prominent time management strategies for managers and individuals alike include:

Strictly time-based / cliff-hanger approach

Managers are focused on goals and getting them done efficiently. Sometimes, this can lead to overload for employees whose time isn’t correctly balanced. In the case of personal time organization, reaching quick results and respecting deadlines can be just as important as the quality of the work itself.

Initiative/ impulsive approach

These types of managers are more spontaneous and prioritize relationship-building in their team. While this strategy is more sensitive to the differences in people, it can result in reduced productivity and loss of direction. As for individuals, the impulsive approach is often seen in the artistic professions. It can lead to spurs of creativity but sometimes also to delays in completing tasks on time.

Steady approach

The most balanced strategy usually brings the best outcomes for managers and solo professionals. With this approach, time is perceived as a source of healthy pressure — but it’s not the only leading factor in day-to-day work. Managers juxtapose the needs of the team and the tasks at hand while seeking harmonious ways to make the two meet. Individuals take a steady approach to these tasks, balancing due dates with their current workload and potential.

By now, you're probably wondering how to best manage your time. This list carefully selects the most powerful time management tips. They can help you streamline personal or professional working hours processes and improve the quality of the resulting output.

If you want to expand your knowledge of top time management techniques, don’t miss our detailed article on the best systems for time management.

#1. Plan, plan, and then plan some more

You simply can't manage your time well without a plan. The best time management techniques are similar in that they involve sorting your workload and devising a plan of attack.

Even beyond day-to-day planning, it’s important to not lose sight of overall company and individual goals. You can guide your goal setting by embracing SMART goals — or Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Timely goals. That way, you can ensure you spend time on activities that help you accomplish your goals.

#2. Prioritization is key

Planning out which tasks you’ll work on is helpful, but you’ll still end up wasting a lot of time if you struggle to prioritize what’s on your to-do list. You can use methods like the Eisenhower Matrix or Eat The Frog to figure out what to work on first.

Once you have identified the different levels of importance and urgency, you should stack the essential ones at the top of your to-do list — the ones the Eisenhower Matrix would refer to as both important and urgent. By doing this, you can ensure you meet deadlines, prevent burnout, and do the best job possible on your most important tasks. 

#3. Conduct time management audits

If you want to know where your time goes throughout the day, your best helper is the time management audit. With many time audit templates available online, they’re straightforward to prepare and offer numerous time management benefits. Here are some basic steps you can take to conduct a time management audit: 

1. Write down how you plan to use your time during a particular week or month. 

2. Track the hours each day and note what activities you complete. With real-life data, you can easily compare whether your intentions match what you accomplish in your working time. 

3. Once you're finished, you can make the necessary adjustments to gradually integrate your targets and daily schedule.

#4. Reduce distractions in your workflow

No matter how well you plan and prioritize, the possibility of an unplanned distraction is always there. While you can't eliminate them altogether, you can take steps to minimize distractions. 

For one, you can try setting your phone, email, Slack, and other communication tools to "do not disturb" when you need some focus time. If even that's too ambitious, try using a productivity method with built-in breaks like the Pomodoro Technique to get some much-needed phone time. 

If you work from home and find yourself distracted by your significant other, pets, or kids, check out our guide to managing remote work distractions. 

#5. Learn to delegate

A lot of good time management centers around the ability to say no. It’s tempting to want to have control over every project or task that comes your way, but some are far too miniscule to be worthy of your time. That’s why a lot of the best productivity techniques involve delegating lesser work to other members of your team. Fight the urge to micromanage and identify and delegate low-risk work to your employees. The results will soon follow. 

#6. Assign time slots for your tasks

Choosing what tasks to work on and prioritizing them is just the beginning. With meetings and other nonnegotiables on your schedule, it’s important to find chunks of time in your day that you can maximize with scheduled work. If you’re not so great at this method, consider the Time Blocking or Task Batching methods. They’ll help you identify similar work and batch them together to make better use of your free time. 

#7. Embrace single-tasking

Sadly, we live in a world that glorifies multitasking as an elite skill that the most productive people master. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but this belief is a total farce. The most productive people actually embrace single-tasking — the less-glamorous opposite of multitasking.

Multitasking is very ineffective and the vast majority of people are less productive when they do it. In fact, studies have shown that multitasking can actually put a damper productivity by up to 40%. 

#8. Organize similar tasks together

We’ve already touched on this one a bit in tip #6, but organizing similar tasks together is another great way to make effective use of your time. Instead of scattering them across the day, it’s more effective to batch tasks of the same kind together. By doing this, you can save time by completing similar work while you’re in a similar frame of mind.

On of the reasons this tip works is because studies have shown that it takes 23 minutes to refocus from a distraction or sudden shift in priorities. By keeping similar work group together, you eliminate this recoil time.  

#9. Plan the most important tasks first thing in the morning

For most people, mornings are the most productive time of the day. Even if you don’t feel fully awake yet, your brain is still fresh and able to process information much better. That’s why it’s best to use this time for the most complex tasks or those that are high priority and require the highest level of focus. 

#10. Know when to stop

Did you know that studies have shown that the average worker is only productive for less than three hours per day? This is a shocking statistic when you realize that one in five business owners work 60+ hours per week — a staggering statistic that has been proven to lead to an increased likelihood of stroke. 

We know working too much is bad for us, yet we do it anyway. Sometimes, the most productive you can do is simply know when to quit. Raw hours do not directly correlate to productivity and often lead to burnout. It’s important to call it quits to stay fresh and come back again stronger the next day. 

#11. Plan pauses between work streams

Similar to the last tip, a great work ethic still requires some discipline. If you’re not taking enough breaks throughout your day, you run the risk of becoming burned out, which then hampers your efficiency in the long-term. By planning proper breaks, you can become more consistent in the long-term, reduce the risk of burnout, and improve your overall well-being. For example, if you have to work on legal contracts all morning, planning a fifteen or half-hour break before you dive into your email inbox will keep you fresh.

 It’s up to you to find the best way to spend the pause. However, it’s probably better to put your screens down and go for a walk, get some exercise, or step out for some fresh air. 

#12. Find your work pace

Think of your career as a marathon, not a sprint. In the same way that a runner paces themselves throughout the course of the marathon, you should pace yourself throughout your workday. If you’re a morning person, maybe you’ll embrace the Eat the Frog method and turn your productivity up a notch to complete your most challenging tasks. Then, as the day wears on, you can gradually slow your pace. This way, by the end of the day, you’ll be working on your simplest tasks and already starting to transition your brain to the things you want to focus on in your personal life. 

#13. Set clear goals for work meetings

Did you know that meetings take up somewhere between 550 to 750 hours of our time annually? That’s why it’s crucial to maximize the time you spend in meetings. If you’re not sure how much time you waste in meetings and are trying to become more efficient, you can try a few things like: 

• Creating a mandate that all meeting invites will require a written agenda

• Utilizing tools like Fireflies to record meetings so attendees can choose to skip and catch up in their free time

• Utilizing time management tools like Hubstaff Insights to ensure your team has a healthy ratio of meeting and focus time

• Following the lead of companies like Asana and Hubstaff to implement a no-meeting day to protect your employees’ schedules. 

#14. Learn to refuse work

This work is similar to delegating in that it frees up your schedule. But what happens if the work passed to you is so irrelevant and time-consuming to delegate that you don’t know where to start? 

Getting better about refusing work is never comfortable, but saying “no” is a healthy mechanism we need in most areas of life. Whether it’s a new freelance gig or another task for your team project, you should know when to refuse. If you’re swamped with work, and you can see that extra tasks will be a heavy burden, your best bet is to be honest and straightforward with where your limits are.

#15. Don’t work on vacation and on weekends

According to SHRM, almost 50% of remote workers work over the weekend. On average, remote workers also spend an extra 48.5 minutes per week working compared to their in-office counterparts.

While some wear this as a badge of honor (and we’ve been guilty of using similar statistics to justify remote work productivity), it’s nothing to be proud of. It’s crucial to take weekends, holidays, and vacations to recharge. While it may seem counterintuitive in the present, it’s important for longevity in our careers.

#16. Think about single items, not your whole task list

When you have a busy day in front of you, it’s far too easy to get hung up on every item on your to-do list. But, as we’ve learned, multitasking actually makes you less efficient, so look to single-tasking to increase efficiency.

Break tasks into smaller parts and look at single items rather than the whole pile of work waiting for you. Then, you can adapt to the smaller tasks that need to get done right now and handle them one by one calmly and productively.

#17. Analyze your daily habits

Another great time efficiency tip is to be more introspective. Oftentimes, we take an additive approach to better productivity when, in reality, we can look inward and try to rid ourselves of negative habits. 

Analyzing your habits is a great way to improve efficiency. For example, if you’re working from home and not from an office, you can see how often you find distractions in specific tasks or jump to the fridge for snack breaks. In the case of office work, you can pay attention to your rituals, necessary and unneeded interactions with colleagues, and even eating habits. 

Once you have a good overview, you can figure out how to eliminate excessive distractions and build meaningful relationships with teammates and partners.

#18. Use the best time management apps

We’re biased, but there’s only so much an individual can do to be more efficient without turning to technology for help. Today, there are a number of time management apps designed entirely to help users more efficiently manage and utilize their time, like: 

• Calendars. Calendar apps like Google Calendar are a good starting point for planning, as you can visually arrange your tasks for the week and month. It’s great for Time Blocking, Task Batching, and some of the other productivity methods we mentioned above.
  
  

• Task managers. You can also use organizers and task managers, where you can input projects and tasks, add information, and set completion deadlines. In addition to identifying time wasters, these tools can also help you keep project spend under control.
  
  

• Time trackers. Well, we’re obviously biased, but you truly can’t get a handle on how you manage your time without tracking it. Time tracking tools like Hubstaff help you track hours to tasks and projects, gauge productivity, and identify time-wasting apps and URLs. 

#19. Sneak exercise into your day

While it may seem counterproductive to exercise, one’s mind and body are more closely connected than we think. Exercise has been proven to reduce stress by up to 30% and improve one’s overall mental and physical health. 

If you’re not convinced that stress plays a factor in productivity, studies have shown a correlation between high stress and low productivity scores. In other words, taking a few minutes to go for a run, take the dog for a walk, or do some yoga could help you be more productive in the long run. 

#20. Diversify your routine

It was Ben Franklin who said “Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise.” But while it’s great to have a consistent routine, it’s also important to shake that routine up when things start to feel monotonous. 

Especially as creatives, shifting one's routine is a great way to rejuvenate one's self and get the creative juices flowing again. If you're a morning person, try sleeping in a little. If you like to work out at night, try getting up early and working out before work. Experimentation with your routine can help you find new energy that helps with time management. 

#21. Change your landscape now and then

If you’re working fully remote, sometimes it’s worth capitalizing on the freedom of movement you have. While in-office workers are often tethered to their desks, remote employees can work from anywhere in the world.

If you're not effectively using your time working from home, a change of scenery can help. Try popping by a coffee shop, library, or bookstore. If you have calls, you can take them on the go. Try going for a walk to maximize your time. You could also embrace the digital nomad trend and take your work on the road. 

These subtle changes could help you recharge, gain more creative momentum, and ultimately find more effective time management.

Do you feel like your workday is a massive ball of chaos? It might be that you’re trying to handle too much at once. Then again, the problem might also lie in how you organize your time and plan (or fail to prepare) your tasks.

It’s helpful to regularly assess the state of your time management. You can check a couple of factors that will give you an idea of where you’re standing by asking yourself the following questions:

• Do I often interrupt working on a task to answer emails, calls, or chats?

• Do I often feel like I don’t know where my day went?

• Do I get negative feedback on my recent projects?

• Do I often miss deadlines?

• Do I feel overwhelmed by the number of pending tasks?

• Do I feel like I’m losing control over my workflow or even my life?

If you have more than one ‘yes,’ there’s a good chance your time management skills could be used in some work. The good news is that there are ways to fix it.

Get started with your improved time management approach

Good time management skills are essential for efficiently tackling challenging and urgent tasks. Utilizing time management tools can significantly assist in allocating time effectively while simultaneously helping to minimize distractions.

By continually improving time management skills, individuals can ensure they stay on top of their priorities and maximize their productivity in both personal and professional pursuits.

Learn how to avoid time management challenges here.

Bonus: Cheat Sheet

Download these top tips to manage your time more effectively.