Time is something that just about everybody wishes that they had more of. Whether we want more time off, more time to complete an important task, more time to spend with loved ones, most people would love to have more time
The thing is – there are only so many hours in the day and so many days in a week. The trick is learning how to manage your time so that you can make the most of it. Amazingly, when you become a master of time management it will start to seem like you actually do have more time!
Time management is especially important for entrepreneurs and other folks who work from home and have the freedom to set their own schedules. At first this lifestyle seems like the best thing ever, but the truth is that many self-employed people end up spending all day procrastinating and wasting time, because of poor time management skills.
Does that sound like you? Listen, I get it. When you are self employed and working from your home office, it can be particularly challenging to use your time wisely, especially if you haven’t developed the self-discipline to sit down and execute without checking Facebook every ten minutes.
Are you ready to admit that this is an area of your life that could use some improvement? If so read on for some helpful tips that will help you utilize your time wisely, so you can be as productive as possible.
Self-Employed At Home? Use These Time Management Tips:
Set “Work Hours” – First of all, set certain work hours. In order to get your daily tasks complete, it is crucial that you have certain hours when to complete them. Depending on the job at hand and your other responsibilities, you should designate hours during your day in which you will focus on working.
Create A Set “Work Zone” – Decide where you will work in your home. Many times, it can be challenging to focus on work if you are sitting in your living room, the place where a lot of relaxing happens. You should’ve seen me a couple of years age. It was horrifying. I had half drank cups of coffee, and dirty plates scattered all over the place, and I was always taking breaks to rip bong-hits and play video games. So do yourself a favor and decide which room or area of your house you will work in and stay in that area during your designated work hours (and make sure not to bring a bong in there!)
Create A “To-Do” List & Stick To It – This one is important VITAL to your success. Even if you do nothing else, please promise me that you will create a solid to-do list for yourself. Before you start a new month you need to know what you are going to do that month and have it all planned out, week by week and day by day. So ask yourself – what do you need to get completed this month in order to reach your goals? (Please, please, please tell me you have written down your goals!) Anyhow, after you’ve decided on what you need to be doing every day, write it down on a piece of paper so you have a visual reminder to look at when you need to review what you are supposed to be working on. Everybody who is anybody has a to-do list. It’s quite helpful. If it helps, mark each task off of the list as you complete it. By doing this, you are showing yourself that you are being productive and doing the things that need to get done. It can also motivate you to continue working so you can complete the tasks as needed.
I think that we can all agree that working at home, for your self is way better than having a job and letting somebody else tell you what you need to be doing. After all you are a grown person and not a child. However, if you want to be successful in the long run then you absolutely need to master the skill of being able to manage your time.
Use the information I’ve shared with you today to set your work hours, create a working space, and track what you are doing day-to-day so that you can make the most of your time, and get yourself closer to achieving your goals. In the end, you have to accept the fact that you will not be given more time. We all get the same 24 hours each day, so do what it takes to ensure that you are able to use what you have productively.