(bookboon.com)

I’m happy to say the first week of the New Year was a productive one. As planned, I continued to expand on the efforts I started in 2014. However, I am realistic enough to know if I want this year to come close to what I would like, I’m going to need to become even more proactive and diligent with how I spend my time. Time Management is a topic I always come back to because routinely our schedules and priorities change and need to be reviewed.

It’s purpose is to ensure you are maximizing all the hours given in a day. The first step is to be honest with yourself about the time you have available. Then, figure out when you are the most productive. You may want to do things the last hour before you go to bed, but if you do your worst work late at night, then planning to do stuff at that time isn’t smart. Next, decide to prioritize or you will go crazy attempting to do everything. For example, ask yourself what are the most important items you must get done first, and what may also be important, but has less urgency or requires less time?

Time Management sounds like a simple concept, but doing it well demands major sacrifice. Often you will have to choose doing work at lunch, instead of hanging out with your co- workers. You may have to spend your evenings busy, instead of lying on the couch soaking up the latest reality t.v. drama. On the other hand, the alternative of choosing to be idle in these hours will prove to be a waste of your time and talent. My suggestion is to make a schedule for all 7 days of the week based on the hours you have free, and fill it in with the activities that best fit those times. If maintaining this process proves to be a challenge at first, that’s ok. Sticking to it will eventually get you in the habit of doing things as they have been arranged.

Finally, don’t forget to inform friends and family of your schedule changes so they can be supportive of it, and understand why you may no longer be as accessible. It’s only the second week in the New Year, if we set the right foundation down we are able to lay the groundwork that will allow us to have an awesome 2015.

(gappyearexperiment.com)

Let’s get it started!

Rachel Bryant Lundy