GAIN MORE TIME IN THE NEW YEAR!

When you say ‘I don’t have enough time,’ you are actually stating that you don’t have time for activities you would like or need to do. We all have 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at our disposal. In 2019, however, you can make it feel like you have more time. How? By making different choices about how you manage your time. Below, we present 4 strategies that can help you with this! All have been prepared by Elizabeth Grace Saunders, author of the books Divine Time Management and How to Invest Your Time Like Money.

Give up something

The beginning of the new year is a good time to reflect on why you do what you do and to give up activities that no longer bring you joy. Think about what you spend your time on and which of those activities no longer bring you positive experiences. Is being a project coordinator consuming a lot of your time while not bringing you satisfaction? Or maybe you spend too much time browsing Facebook? Or playing Candy Crush? Many of these activities take up two hours of your time, if not more. By eliminating them from your life, you automatically create space for new activities.

Limit something

Sometimes you can’t or don’t want to completely eliminate certain activities from your life. However, you can set boundaries between them and what is truly important to you. For example, you can limit the time spent on email by checking it three times a day at specific times, instead of having it open constantly. You can also set a specific time limit for apps on your phone or Netflix. Remember to stick to the set limits. Reducing such activities by even 30 minutes a day gives you 3.5 more hours weekly and 14 more hours monthly. You can dedicate these hours to exercising, reading books, sleeping, or other activities for which you previously lacked time.

Delegate tasks

The next task to gain more time in the new year is to delegate tasks to someone else that you don’t need to do personally. This applies to both work and home responsibilities. When planning your day, consider if there is something at work that absolutely must be done by you, and what could be done by someone else. Think about the tasks you perform at home. If there are many, you can ask other household members for help or hire someone to do it for you. This can save you four to five hours a week.

Add something

If you want to finally start doing things that you ‘never have time for,’ start prioritizing that activity first. Sign up for yoga classes, book a trip, meet up with friends. When you prioritize what you really want to do, you will always find a way to complete all other necessary tasks. You will only give up those that are neither your responsibility nor bring you pleasure.

Source: https://www.fastcompany.com/90280742/how-to-redesign-your-days-to-give-you-back-a-few-extra-hours-every-week