Many people these days have to work remotely. Despite the various challenges, this change has at least one significant advantage: saving time by eliminating waste. Still, we seem to be running out of time! The tips in this article will help you about time management strategies to manage your telecommuting time.
Read more: Time Management for Programmers
Most of us hoped to do the things we always wanted in these days of the epidemic when we had more free time: baking bread, meditating, or writing a literary masterpiece. But a review of data collected from 12,000 American and European citizens says otherwise.
This extra time is often spent doing activities and hobbies that are neither productive nor satisfying. Having more time does not necessarily mean using it efficiently.
In the following, we will tell you how to prevent this from happening via time management strategies.
Strategy one: Do not combine work and life
Without an office, it becomes difficult to define the boundary between work and home. Although commuting to work and home is stressful for many, getting rid of them can be frustrating. Moving from home to work and vice versa helps to change people’s mental state. Without it, it becomes difficult to separate work from personal life. Instead of turning off the computer and going to the bus and subway station, people work harder than usual. This overtime is not always productive.
According to research, telecommuting spends a lot of time in various policy meetings without practical cooperation and productive work. According to Parkinson’s Law, people continue to work as long as they have time. As a result, extra time spent on eliminating traffic is spent on more work; Work that is less productive. And less productive work is just the opposite of time management.
Strategy 2: Save time instead of wasting it
People usually do not use their extra time properly. Research has shown that passive leisure, such as watching television, increases sharply during the coronavirus epidemic, while active ones, such as volunteering or socializing with others, decrease. Although a little active leisures is beneficial for your mood, studies show that these activities are less likely to cause happiness and contentment.
Of course, the current pandemic has made it difficult to carry out much active leisure. Still, there are many creative ways to do such activities with social distance: from fun at home to distance sports.
In times of epidemic crisis, it is natural to struggle to increase productivity.
How can we save time instead of wasting it? How can we spend our extra time properly doing things that make us happy and healthy? Follow these six tips to manage your time properly.
- Find a replacement for traveling to your hypothetical workplace.
For many of us, commuting is a way to get into work mode; But this change does not necessarily have to be physical. All you have to do is to find a way that simulates a transition to the work situation.
According to research, most people prefer about 16 minutes to get to and from work. Besides, people who are happy with their travels often spend this time planning for the day ahead. So start traveling to your hypothetical office with a 15-minute schedule. You can do this while walking in the morning. Walking is one of the active leisures that helps reduce stress.
- Have a specific habit of finishing work
To finish, consider a specific activity. It does not matter if you choose to drink coffee, run or hang out with friends. Think of action as a sign of completion.
The activity you choose should motivate you to continue the day: it can be an incentive for things you have done before or anything that makes you happy and satisfied.
Keep in mind that these small tips can do a great favor to you as time management strategies.
- Limit daily workload
Our to-do list is usually endless. Instead of dwelling on the task at hand, focus on one important issue each day. Say to yourself that you must do this under any circumstances.
Things such as emails and incoming messages are constantly distracting; So focusing on priorities is a valuable achievement. So you feel good about doing the right thing as a priority. This is something that research confirms.
- Take time to focus on important tasks consciously.
For good time management, be careful not to waste all your day in online meetings. To do this, take time for critical tasks that are not urgent. According to researches, taking the time to focus on these tasks while eliminating distractions will make you feel more effective and less tired. This increases productivity and reduces stress by avoiding focusing on constraints and low-value tasks.
- Do not neglect socializing to manage your time
With the above tricks, you can prevent wasting some of your time; But gaining time alone is not so important. What matters is what you do with your time. Do you spend time with friends and acquaintances, or exercise? Do you volunteer?
After work, it is best to spend time on active leisure activities. It does not have to be laborious. According to research, short social interaction (face to face or virtual) effectively promotes health. You are not going to spend 2 hours a day socializing with others. A 20-minute walk or chat with friends is enough.
Try to make social relationships your daily routine. Studies have shown that connecting with others on the go (even with strangers) leads to greater satisfaction. Therefore, it is better to spend part of your daily time chatting with friends and acquaintances.
- Try new time management strategies
These days we are all looking to make the most of our time. However, it is good to try new time management strategies under normal circumstances and after the current restrictions. Regardless of the limitations caused by the coronavirus epidemic, try various daily and weekly schedules to see which method works best for you.
Strategy 3: Solve telecommuting challenges
Telework challenges are not usually technical; in most parts of the world, communication technologies have advanced tremendously. These advances have made it easier for two- or more-way communication and interaction in cyberspace. What is troubling is the complexities of human communication. To better understand this, consider the following examples:
- At 10 pm, you receive a message from your co-worker. You think to yourself that he/she should have waited till morning to send messages during the working hours.
- After a busy day, your manager sends you an email asking you to list your expenses. You are aware of a job and that you are offended by his involvement in a minor job.
- You are in a virtual group meeting. One of the members’ microphones is off. Maybe there is a technical problem. Maybe he deliberately turned it off to manage his personal work! So you have to ask him to explain about some issues after working hours.
These are some of the challenges that waste your time, and if you do not control them, you will get stuck in a loop of spending time on low-value issues.
By solving these challenges, you can manage your time more efficiently and avoid fatigue and frustration.
All you have to do is answer calls and messages just during business hours. To do this, you can use a separate phone line, which you turn off after working hours. In this way, your co-workers realize that to use your help, they should reach out during business hours.
You can also separate your Google Accounts, Skype, and other telecommuting software from what you use for your personal relationships. After working hours, all you have to do is log out of your account so that untimely calls do not waste your time.
Strategy 4: Set fixed times as breaks
This time management method is not suitable for all. If you are one of those whose working hours are not fixed, you can benefit from this strategy.
Try to take fixed short breaks between your work hours. For example, you can work one hour and rest for half an hour to do your household duties or other personal chores.
This method is especially ideal for women who have responsibility at the house or should take care of children. This way, You will have free time for every hour you work, and it may be much better than working several hours in a row and then moving on to your personal chores.
Why is it better?
- Frequent breaks between working hours will help you maintain your productivity.
- Your kids will not wait for you for hours. You have half an hour for them after every hour of work, and this time is not short.
- This time management method helps you not to stay away from your personal tasks
However, this method makes you keep working long hours in the day, but it is still a blessing for many people.
In short, the more time we have, the more important it is how we use it. It’s entirely up to us.
How much do you care about the optimal use of time? Do you have a specific way to achieve this goal? If you do telecommuting, what trick do you have to balance work and personal life? In the age of coronavirus, reading your experience can be fascinating and perhaps instructive for many.
Comment to us if you like.
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