Time management is one of the toughest things to master as a person, but becomes even doubly difficult as a parent whether working outside the home or not, especially a parent of a young child. I’ve struggled with focus and being task oriented for almost my entire life, and I have a lot of hobbies outside of my day job, so having strong time management skills were a MUST. It is because of this need for laser focus, that I started looking into different way to stay on course and meet my goals. I thought that it would be a great idea to share those tips with you in a new series that I’m simply calling Time Management for the Busy Mom.
Let’s be honest, even on some of our best days we struggle to stay focused and on task. One chime from Facebook, a notification on your phone, or a co-worker calling your attention to something other than the task at hand, is enough to derail even the strongest and most focused of individuals. And once you’re pulled off that task, it’s hard to bring yourself back to exactly where you were before.
[Tweet “The dictionary defines time management as the ability to use one’s time effectively or productively, especially at work.”]
I’ve read that it can take you 15 more minutes to get your focus back on track. The worst part? In that time, it’s easy enough for someone else to come along and interrupt what you’re doing. It’s enough to make a grown-up cry!
Believe it or not, there are many, MANY different ways to keep you focused on the end result. Simply doing a search of Google will turn up millions of hits on how different individuals handle their procrastination, and stay focused. Just like with anything, no one way will work for one person – if you try one method and it doesn’t work, I encourage you to try again and not give up! You will find your focus gold and will wonder how you ever survived without it.
Since we as mom’s, whether we work inside or outside the home (this can be SAHMs too), learning how to be focused and have great time management skills will help make your days run smoother and will keep your sanity about you.
Here’s my list of the Time Management Techniques that I’ve tried:
This list is not all encompassing of every possible time management trick out there, but can be used as a guide to find your comfort zone. I will also be covering each item in their own post to provide details on how each works, how I used it, whether it worked or not and some ideas on how you could tweak it to work for you.
- Pomodoro Technique
- Urgent / Important Lists (Prioritization)
- Block Your Time
- Creating “Tickler” Files
As I try new or different ones and as I do, I’ll update my post and share those results with you, too.
If you’re looking for some great posts that talk about time management here are some additional options:
For bloggers: Blog Clarity’s post on 25 Tips to Become a More Productive Blogger or Write Better and Faster with One Simple Tip.
For Moms: Time Management Tips for Moms or Time Management: 6 Tricks for Parents to Stay on Track
Your turn!
Have you tried any Time Management techniques before? Did it work, did you feel more productive? If so, I’d love if you shared them in the comments below.
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