Unfortunately, time management is not a fancy way of saying time travel, but it results from getting into some effective routines. Routines make everything more manageable, and there is a comfort to a routine that you don’t get with “shooting off the cuff”.
While there can be beauty in chaos, you don’t want that chaos around your career or finances. There aren’t many instances in our lives that can be improved with a vital understanding of time management. Having a managed, stress-free schedule can make a massive difference for your finances. A lot of similarities can be drawn between managing money and time. For example – you are always wondering where it went!
Time Management means you MAKE more money (per hour)
Effective time management is an essential skill for any successful human being. Successfully managing one of these aspects allows us to transfer our resources into the other. Daily, we face a multitude of time pressures. Time management is about taking control of your available time – before it takes control of you!
We are streamlining your life!
Many people fall into the trap of completing tasks as they pop up… or focusing on doing the simple tasks first because they’re easier. Unfortunately, this can lead to overlooked time-sensitive or urgent tasks, creating far more work pressure than required. The most effective method for overcoming this is to determine your priorities. It’s simpler than you think, especially if you follow our advice and create a daily to-do list.
Being able to prioritise stretches everything further. By prioritising tasks, you intend to accomplish your tasks in order of their hierarchical importance. Prioritising and completing tasks that matter more also creates a better sense of personal success. Having a clear focus on your time and money goals will make it easier to stay on track. A focus on goals will also help you prioritise what matters most.
The A-B-Cs of time management!
For a straightforward way to prioritise your tasks, try thinking about each of them on three priority levels: A – is the most urgent, B – is relatively time-bound, and C – is something you can postpone tomorrow without any adverse effect.
The Difference Between Priorities and Goals
Think of goals as part of the ‘bigger picture’; tangible milestones you’re trying to achieve (e.g. saving for a house deposit). Priorities are what you’ll need to say yes or no to reach that goal.
For example, to pay off your mortgage faster, your priorities need to be making your money work harder for you.
Get that Routine happening!
Remember what we said early about how routines can destress your life? This is where comfort and order come in.
Having a routine will cut down the amount of time spent on decision making each day. Albert Einstein owned several variations of the same grey suit he wore every day. He reasoned he could use the extra brainpower and time for more beneficial purposes instead of deciding what to wear.
We recommend creating a simple to-do list that you can follow each morning and afternoon.
Example Routine/To-Do List
Morning
- Turn on the computer and make a coffee
- Check email and respond to urgent ones
- Review to-do list – adding non-urgent emails
- Review lesson plans for the day
Afternoon
- Send emails as needed
- Tidy any mess from the day
- Write a to-do list for tomorrow
- Prepare materials for the next day’s work
Don’t Freak Out!
If you don’t meet all your time management goals straight away, don’t expend energy on stress. Building resilience is all about making ongoing progress in time management. If you’ve done your best, there is simply no point in adding stress to your to-do list for tomorrow.
No matter how hard you work to manage your time, there are still only 24 hours in a day to get it all done. Spend a while observing your day-to-day work as objectively possible to identify areas where improvements can be made if you feel you need to.
If your mortgage is an area that you know some improvements can be made, our team at Credit Connection would love to help you with that. Booking time here for a no-risk no-obligation meeting with our team can show you how you can save years off your mortgage.
Talk about REAL time management.
