How to Prioritize for Better Time Management

Having more to do than you’ll ever get done in a day can be challenging. When your list is really long you may feel overwhelmed and unsure of where to start first.

It may even put you at a standstill if the pressure becomes too much. But luckily there are ways to deal with it when you have a ton of things to do.

Here are some ideas on how to prioritize for better time management so you can get more accomplished.

Start with a Task List

Having a big list of tasks isn’t necessarily a bad thing but it can make you feel stressed about your day. Rather than spending time worrying you can prioritize your list for better time management instead.

To do this, start with a task list. If it’s possible, keep it in a document accessible by either phone or computer. This way you can add to it either from work or home at any time.

Order Your List

One of the next things to do to prioritize for better time management is to order your list. Assign numbers to each item listed starting with the most pressing duties first. Conversely, the bottom of your list should include items that are less pressing or could be done another day.

Everything is Not a Crisis

After you have your list created and ordered you should know what to do first. But even if everything on it is equally important that doesn’t mean you can do all of the tasks at once.

You must decide what jobs, if any, need doing before others to prevent a potential crisis. Do those duties first, then move on to the rest of your list.

Use a Calendar App

A calendar app is a great tool to help you prioritize for better time management. It can help you increase productivity and get more projects eliminated from your task list.

In fact, you could use it to schedule all the work on your list. An advantage of using calendar apps is that reminders can be set so you don’t forget anything you must do.

If you have meetings or events scheduled that are required, you can blend them in with your task list. This gives you one place to look for your daily schedule and task list rather than two or more.

Don’t Take on the Priorities of Other’s

From time to time other people may come to you for help or advice on their work. Or, they may just want to talk about something personal. Help them if you can, but don’t put their priorities above your own.

You get the same 24 hours in a day that everyone else does. If you put the needs and goals of other people above your own you aren’t managing your own time effectively.

Repeat and Evaluate

Now that you have a system for prioritizing what you do, repeat your actions every day. You will probably still have days that don’t turn out the way you planned.  However, the more you prioritize the easier and faster it will get.

On days in which your whole schedule goes out the window, evaluate to find out what went wrong. Could you have done anything to change the situation? If so, determine what that is so you can avoid it in the future.

Stress, pressure, and really big task lists will probably not go away for you anytime soon. But you can change how you deal with them to prioritize for better time management.