How often you have tried to make a routine of your daily life. Well, I have done it a lot at various stages of my life starting from when I was in high school till now. Making a daily routine itself has a great pleasure, you will certainly feel as if your life is going to change from tomorrow as your routine is going to change. I enjoyed a lot making those routines in a sheet of paper.
But alas! those so called daily routines or ‘time management’ plans ( more popularly known now-a-days) never went according to the plan, at best it was ok for few days but not more than that. I think it’s not only in my case but happens with lot of people. Of course we always blame ourselves for this. I am such a lazy guy, I am a procrastinator, I can’t manage my time properly are common things I used to say myself. Those were really annoying moments for me when I saw those sheet of paper where time management plan was written flying in a corner of my room.
Later I got to know from a lot my friends that same is the case for them also. The so called ‘Time management’ plan was not working even for them and I guess same is the case for a lot of people. So where is the problem, is the fault lies only in us?
For many years I used to think the fault lies really in us. If we are determined enough ‘time management’ plans will work. But recently, I noticed a important point regarding ‘time management’ which was missing in those time management plans. It’s less about ‘time management’ but more about ‘energy management’. Yeah it does make sense.
One common free advice people always give is ‘focus on your work’. But what nobody tells you is that, your ability to focus is limited in a particular day. Now think about one of your friends who always finish his/her work in time, in other words who is very productive. Of course he/she has great focus in his job but what you need to know is he/she preserve his/her mental energy for doing that job. That’s the precise reason he/she is productive.
Now because you ability to focus or your mental energy is limited (check out this paper) to be productive you must not waste your limited energy on unnecessary things and things which requires most focus should be done first.
Management of your time is not possible without considering your energy (wheather mental or physical). It doesn’t matter how much time you have to complete a task if you don’t have the energy and focus to get it done. Everyone wants to be productive but very few are ready to manage their energy, is it not strange!
So, save your energy, don’t let it drain out. And how do you make sure that your energy level is up to date always, you know it right-
- Don’t underestimate the power of sleep (have proper sleep). Remember not having proper sleep is like slow poison.
- Don’t think exercise is only for your physical energy. It’s equally good for your mental energy.
- Stop taking junk foods. Eat cleaner diets. Just think if you bought your dream car would you use any kind of junk oil for that, No right. It’s your own body which is more valueable than your dream car.
- Avoid consuming too much information in a day. Specially the unnecessary one. Checking e-mails or notifications frequently is like allowing your energy to drain out. Choose carefully what you are reading.
- And don’t think too much about the list of pending works. Instead write them down, it will bring clarty to your mind.
Most people underestimate the importance of energy and overestimate the importance of time. Time management will automatically happen when you focus on having the energy levels required for effective use of time.
And in case you are thinking why I even need to plan my time. Then remember Benjamin Franklin once said-
“If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail”
Have a productive week. Until next time. –Joy
That was great piece of writing.
Thanks a lot for your time.