Time is one of our most valuable resources. It is important to manage it properly to succeed in life. With how busy our lives have become, how difficult it can be to prioritize time effectively, or even recognize what time is really for anymore, how we handle our time becomes more significant.

Time management isn’t just about doing things in order of importance; it’s also about using those things that matter the most to you to make sure that you don’t spend your time working without spending enough time living your life.

There are many different types of time managers out there, some who seem to do everything with such precision and speed that they create a feeling of emptiness later, and others who appear to have all the time in the world but are so focused on getting through their daily tasks as quickly as possible that they neglect other parts of their life.

We can learn a lot from both types of time managers – whether it is learning how to give ourselves permission to take our time off, or figuring out which activities are worth putting aside energy for and which ones are not, we are always going to benefit from understanding how people organize their days.

Develop good habits

A lot of people feel overwhelmed with all that they have to do, and how little time there is to do it.

In such cases, they give up and spend their time trying to save as much money as possible or looking after their family.

Others may keep busy by working long hours so that they make enough money to survive, but this only makes them unhappy.

We’ve discussed before the importance of being happy at work, but if you don’t know what you are doing with your time, then it can go into wasted energy.

It was mentioned earlier in this article how important it is to use your time effectively, which includes giving yourself time to relax.

Be realistic

A lot of people get overwhelmed with all the things they think they have to do, and then nothing gets done. If you feel like you’re never going to get everything done, drop the pressure!

You are allowed to say “I just don’t know where to start.” or “I can’t seem to find the time,” but still, you must begin. Starting is always easier than continuing until you give in and stop because you run out of steam.

Take one small step every day towards your goal and before you know it, you will be there. Don’t overdo it though, sometimes even a little bit makes a big difference.

Another way to avoid having too much work to do is by using an index card method. On each index card, write down something that you need to do, and when you complete it, move onto the next one.

By doing this, you will see how many cards there are and what needs to be done will take care of themselves.

Create a support team

One of the biggest time wasters that most people get involved in is trying to do it all by yourself. You’ll run into a lot of things you will need help with, so why not be proactive about finding those resources?

By having a supportive team around you, your efficiency as a business owner can improve massively!

It’s true – no one ever achieved great success doing everything themselves. If you want to see how successful some people are, check out their portfolios or talk to them, find out what makes them succeed and then try to replicate that.

You don’t have to go down this path completely solo, however. By creating an efficient work environment that is supported, advanced opportunities can be found for you.

Take breaks

A few years ago, I read an interesting article about how to manage your time more efficiently. The author mentioned that one of the biggest things you can do to improve your efficiency is to take regular breaks.

He described it as “taking a break” or “breaking down the task into smaller tasks.” By doing this, you give yourself some time off between projects, which helps you feel relaxed and focused again.

This seems obvious, but many people don't have the room for such breaks in their schedule. If you find yourself with little time at the end of the day, try giving up some of your responsibilities for a bit so that next week you'll have them saved away.

If possible, try to allocate an hour every couple days for something you've been wanting to get done for a while.

Do the next step

The first way to handle time management is to do the next important thing. What we mean by that is, start working on what you need to work on right now.

You can take this one step further by doing only one task at a time. Start with just one project before moving onto another. This helps to ensure that you don’t get distracted or overwhelmed because there’s not as much going on at once.

Once you have completed your top priority, move onto the next thing. Don’t keep thinking about it until later; instead, choose an appropriate amount of time to complete it and then go after your next goal.

Automate tasks

A way to manage your time efficiently is by automating or outsourcing some of your most tedious duties. With technology, you can now do almost anything!

Running an office requires organizing meetings, correspondence, files, and so on. By doing this much of the work for you, you have freed up your time to focus on more important things like working on projects or meeting with people.

Tools such as IFTTT (If This Then That) allow you to create automated routines that help you stay organized. For example, you could set up an automation where every morning you send yourself an email telling you what you need to do for the day.

By doing this, your computer does the hard work for you! There are many apps and tools that offer similar features, so do some research and see which ones fit you best.

Make it a priority

Finding time to do things can be tricky, but making time management a top priority is the best way to go about it. This will keep you motivated as you look for ways to fit in what needs to be done into your schedule.

If something has to get done, then find a way to make time for it! It could be doing some part-time work or setting aside half an hour of each day to accomplish it.

Set goals

A lot of people have a hard time managing their time because they never set goals. They’d wake up every morning and just kind of feel like doing whatever they want to do.

That doesn’t work long term, however.

You need to know what you want so that you can make decisions about how to spend your time towards achieving those goals.

Decide what is important to you, and create milestones for yourself to achieve those things. For example, if you wanted to start yoga then you would want to take some lessons first before starting at the level where most people begin. The same goes with any other activity or career path you are looking into.

Set deadlines for yourself to accomplish these tasks. Make sure you don’t over-commit though, as this could be too much pressure!

Planning ahead and having markers for success helps manage stress and keeps you motivated.