The Magic of Time Blocking
The budget is done, the programs laid out - you take a deep breath, but you can’t relax yet. There are notices to prepare, permits to procure, and materials to purchase. Welcome to the new year!
In today’s fast paced world, there isn’t a “slow” time anymore. The key to productivity isn’t just working harder - but working smarter. The time management practice that I learned and now teach isn’t about filling your calendar; it’s about reclaiming control over your most valuable resource - time. It’s about using your secret weapon - your mind - to get more done than ever before.
We all have those days where we are busy the whole time but we get nothing done, or at least not the things on our “to do” list. We flit from item to item, visit Bob down the hall, run this or that to Tom, Dick and Harry - all valuable jobs but they don’t get us to the result we are looking for. The truth is that job we just handed out isn’t organized the way we know it could be, but that’s because we have too many little things to do and not enough time to do it all. I used to think this way too, but that just ain’t the truth!
Time blocking is the intentional practice of specifically blocking out time for particular tasks or activities. Instead of multitasking, you focus on one task at a time within its allocated block of time. This creates a structure that can help you accomplish more with less stress.
Time blocking works by:
Reducing Decision Fatigue: By planning your day in advance, you eliminate the need to decide what to do next, freeing up mental energy for more important tasks.
Increasing Focus: When you sit down at your desk, there is no more flitting from email to email. Time blocking minimizes distractions and helps you fully focus on the task at hand.
Enhancing Productivity: Time blocking helps you to prioritize the tasks that are truly important and urgent, allowing you to allocate your time to the things that you really want done.
Improving Work-Life Balance: By scheduling time for work and personal activities, you train your brain to stick to your commitments. When it’s time to leave for the day, having completed all the items on your plan, there’s less guilt about leaving on time. This leaves you free to be fully present at home.
Time blocking is magical. It can help you gain control of your time and as the philanthropist Charles Buxton once said, “You will never “find” time for anything. If you want time, you must make it”.
You got this!
