Time. It is a concept that has baffled the minds of some of the greatest philosophers known to man from Plato, to Aristotle, to Isaac Newton.
Luckily for them, however, they didn’t have to contend with one of the most challenging and seemingly unsolvable problems known to modern man: effective time management during a global pandemic.
Exaggerations aside, for many of us, the sudden shift from a ‘typical’ 9-5 at the office to more flexible working from home has created as many problems as it has solved.
In this article, we look at 3 reasons why our time management may be suffering. As well as providing ways in which positive psychology can help you get back on track.
1. The Stories We Tell Ourselves
Our own personal narratives, how we describe ourselves, can often dictate how we perceive ourselves and our abilities.
If we tell ourselves a story of negative reinforcement (“I’m disorganised/lazy/unintelligent etc.”), we eventually condition our minds to lock in these negative affirmations which subsequently manifest themselves through our actions.
The problem is these stories may no longer be true, or perhaps were never true in the first place. Think about who told you these stories; are they founded on facts? Where is the evidence to substantiate these claims?
If you do find evidence, then you can take positive action to address those areas rather than giving the issue a generic and unhelpful label. If you don’t find evidence, then each time that negative voice speaks up, you can practice answering back, standing your ground and letting it know there is no evidence.
Tell Yourself a Different Story
Saying out loud “I am organised/I work hard/ I am intelligent” may seem ridiculous and a little embarrassing at first. But, these positive affirmations help our minds to change our personal narratives.
When you actively hear that you are a productive, hard-working, intelligent person, you begin to believe it.
2. Tackling the Expanse of Time
We may not have realised it at the time, but our pre-pandemic working days were naturally divided into smaller, palatable segments that gave structure and focus to our working day.
Getting dressed. The commute to the office. Attending meetings. Coffee breaks. Lunchtimes. These all provided us with an uncomplicated way for our minds to process time and to focus on the immediate task in front of us.
Working from home does give us more free time overall. It also, however, means that many of us now experience our working day as a vast expanse of time with no real markers other than ‘start work’ and ‘finish work’. This can wreak havoc not only on how our minds process and compartmentalise our working day, but also on how we allocate and focus our attention.
Structure Your Remote Working Day
The easiest way to tackle this is to inject your day with structure.
Whether it be going for a walk at lunch, adopting the Pomodoro Method of working (work for 25 minutes, rest for 5 minutes (or any other time split that works well for you), scheduling morning and afternoon comfort breaks, making a note of non-work tasks that pop into your head when you are working, then completing these during your scheduled break time, or all of the above. Breaking up your day allows your brain to definitively recognise work and rest periods.
3. Understanding Your Strengths, and The Power of Saying No
Although it is important to amend our personal narratives to accurately reflect our capabilities, it is paramount that we don’t end up tipping the scales too far the other way.
Changing your narrative from “I can’t do anything” to “I can do absolutely everything” will inevitably lead to you taking on an impossible workload that will eventually lead to burnout.
Taking on too much will mean not being able to meet deadlines, not completing to-do lists, leaving things until the last minute, or forgetting about the important events of significant others. Do not feel pressured by yourself or others into taking on too much. It is far more beneficial for everyone involved for you to be realistic and to manage others’ expectations of you.
High achievers enhance the efficacy of their time management by having a realistic understanding of their own strengths. And they will set tasks based on these skills, such as:
- Set goals based on your own strengths and build a professional life around your best assets.
- Build a network of contacts with complementary strengths. And share tasks with these people, rather than trying to do everything on your own.
- Learn when to delegate to others, when to ask for help, and when to say no.
Positive Ways of Saying No
- “This is an interesting project, unfortunately, other commitments mean I would not currently be able to dedicate the time required”.
- “I’d be happy to work on this project and recommend sharing this with [X] to ensure it is completed on time”.
- “After looking over the proposal, I think [X] would be better suited to this project”
- “I would be keen to work on this task but with an extended timeframe to ensure quality”
Remember, there is no blanket solution to effective time management. Identify the causes relevant to you. And work every day on developing the necessary skills to make your working day work for you.
