This Habit Is the Biggest Time Waster of Your Day
But there’s something you can do about it!
Twenty-four hours. That’s all we get in a day- no more, no less. However, it’s so easy to waste these precious minutes every day. Whether you’re a creative who makes a living off of the art they create (or working toward that), an entrepreneur who is launching a start-up business, or a stay-at-home parent, the reality is that your God-given time is valuable.
Unfortunately, though, for many of us, the norm is that we go day to day, month to month, and year to year in the same dilemma. We look up and see how much time has passed by and wonder where it all went and feel as though we don’t have much to show for it.
As Charlie Gilkey put it in his article “Why You Really Don’t Have a Time Management Problem,” we tend to not manage our priorities very well.
The reality is that where we’ll be in 5–10 years will be largely based on what we did with the time within those 5–10 years. Period. Now, obviously, life circumstances such as sickness and situations outside of our control can throw in a curveball or two. However, how we manage our time today heavily influences where we will end up.
And this is where the topic of this blog comes in. To say it bluntly: the biggest time-waster of your day (and mine) is not having a prepared plan for how you’re going to spend your time each day. Without this, you’ll lack vision for your day, won’t maximize your time, and miss/delay hitting your target.
Zig Ziglar was right when we said, “If you aim at nothing, you will hit it every time.” If your goals are the targets, creating a daily plan (schedule) for yourself is part of the “aiming” process.
With so many responsibilities it can feel like there isn’t enough time in a day. Trust me, I know how that feels. Writing or typing out a schedule, however, allows you to step back and look at all the things you have on your plate and better manage them so they aren’t managing you.
Things that seem so pressing become a bit lighter when you realize you can move them to a later time in the day or week. The problem with keeping everything in our head is that its too easy to mix up priorities. Not to mention it become its easier for important things to “slip our minds.”
But what about when things come up that you didn’t plan for? I can relate to this. I think we all can. Emergencies and last-minute requests are bound to come up. Ironically, that’s when having a schedule becomes even more helpful, because it will aid you in keeping track of the things that you will temporarily have to divert your attention from. It will also help you get back on track much more efficiently.
I’ll admit, there are days when I don’t do this. Sometimes it’s been because I get comfortable with my schedule and feel as though I can go off memory, because of laziness, or a lack of intentionally.
However, one way or another (usually when I get to a point of feeling overwhelmed with everything I have to do), I’m reminded why this is a useful habit to have. Stress levels much I can do in a small amount of time, the more I hate wasting it.
How about you? Do you want to give this a try? There’s nothing to lose. Here is some guidance to get started. Ultimately, you have more time than you think you do. Sometimes it's not until you take some time on the front end to develop your plan in order to see it.