Eliminate Overwhelm – 9 Hacks to Help You Save Time

How do you handle life when there’s a mountain of things to do each day, and it always seems to take time to get done? There are many strategies for taking charge of your life - tidying up, organizing tools, making to-do lists, and time management - but here are a few easy things you can do to save time.

Cut Down on Phone Calls

Do you need to pick up the phone so often? Reduce the number of times you pick up the phone by asking yourself if you really need to. Use email for everything you can, and call someone on the phone only if you need to discuss something.

Shorten Conversations and Meetings

Establish a time limit and a clear meeting agenda, and follow it. Limit your small-talk time. Keep an objective in mind and concentrate on achieving it during a casual conversation. When having a formal discussion, keep a goal in mind and focus on achieving that goal. Once achieved, wrap up the conversation.

 Limit Email Time

Daily email exchanges can seem endless. Set a time limit for how much time you will spend checking your email at specific times of the day. For instance, 30 minutes in the morning for emails, 15 minutes following lunch, and so forth. Reading the most important message and responding in that order is preferable to reading the first message.

Avoid Social Media

Social media can be a major time-waster. So do whatever it takes to eliminate the distractions: avoid social media, turn off notifications, and delete the app from your phone.

If you use social media to communicate, use only the chat function. You don't have to use Facebook's default app if you download Messenger instead. You can then delete the Facebook app from your phone!

Remember to set aside time and set limits if you use it for business, just like you do with emails.

Become off-grid

Avoid the outside world and lock yourself in your office when you need to concentrate on a task without interruption. Make it clear that you don't want to be bothered. This is also smart for anything requiring intense concentration, like strategic planning or other tasks.

Time Manage Your To-Do List

Set a maximum time limit for each item on your daily to-do list. This is the most time you can spare for the task. In addition, set a timer as you begin each task. This prevents one item from taking too long and pushing others off your list.

Run a Time Audit

Conducting a time audit is a great way to start managing your time more efficiently. This involves keeping a log of everything you do and how long it takes. You can do this for a few days or weeks to see exactly how you spend your time. It'll then be clear to you what you need to cut out.

Take Care of Yourself

Take care of yourself mentally and physically at work and during personal time. Get plenty of sleep, eat well, manage stress, and stick to regular routines. If you maintain your health this way, you'll stay more focused and work more efficiently.

Take Breaks

Take many small breaks throughout the day to keep your focus. During these breaks, you should engage in some activity that's just fun and relaxing.

Always look for parts of your day that you can trim, and you’ll find yourself working smarter with less stress.

Want to learn more about how you can manage the people and situations around you? Head to my new Eliminating Business Overwhelm course and discover tactics to manage your time wisely.

If you just want to dip your toe in then my Kickstarter program with Overcoming Overwhelm meditation (just $7 / £5), you can enrol by clicking the purple button below:

The 3 Keys To Conquering Business Overwhelm