This post contains affiliate links. The #sosblog is an Amazon Associate and earns from qualifying purchases. I find myself in a new season and I am not just referring to all the “usual” midlife things we think of when a 48 year old woman says “new season”. This new season has nothing to do with hot flashes, or being continuously frozen. Nothing to do with being extra tired or moody. Nothing to do with more around my middle or more wrinkles on my face. This new season has everything to do with actually being the writer I have always dreamed of being, an owner of multiple businesses, momma to my three girls which now includes a new title “Mother of the Bride” ! Talk about time management...this is a whole new level. If you think midlife means you have to slow down and stop dreaming you are wrong! This is the time to get in gear, dream big and go for it. It kind of feels like now or never right? When the "never" shouts too loud I remind myself about these late bloomer success stories and I get fired up as I realize life isn’t over, the best is yet to come!
So it may not be now or never but your dreams won’t ever happen if you never start. Starting anything in life requires time management. Time management revisited – lets talk about it ladies. No matter our age or stage we always wear many hats and that requires juggling tons of tasks and time. This does not require us to live in constant frantic, reactionary mode. There was a time in my life when I thought urgency, and frantic antics meant things were “important”. I have since realized reactionary, frantic, constantly needing to “put out fires” does not indicate importance but a sloppy, unorganized life. It IS possible to accomplish a lot and juggle many tasks with peace and purpose. Although, I admit, I am still working on that balance...after years of frantic I am unlearning and practicing new ways of doing things. I have to have grace for myself, and so do you friend. Here are a few tips I use to help me do all the things (just not at the same time) and still manage to have some peace, purpose and even free time in my life: 1. Journal planner (aka “Bullet Journal”) This type of planning seems counter intuitive to someone who likes to follow directions and have a system. However the beauty of this planning system is the flexibility to change the setup when the old one no longer serves you! If you aren’t familiar with Journal Planning check out Journal with Nikki on Instagram and visit her website for a Bullet Journal Freebie! I have a Pinterest Board dedicated to Bullet Journal Pins you can check out too. A quick internet search will also help you get the idea. Pro-tip: you do not have to be super creative with doodles and fancy lettering to use this type of planning. You can make a basic, simple journal and set it up in a way that serves you best. Although Journal Planners can be beautiful and I love to look at them, mine is more functional I keep it simple. If you are a list maker this is the way to go! I keep all my lists in one place using this method of planning. 2. Task Batching Now that I am running multiple businesses that require similar tasks (social media marketing, emails, writing, videos) this system makes sense. For example, if I need to create some marketing I can use Canva and spend an hour creating marketing for both businesses at the same time. Then I have them ready to post throughout the week. Email is another task that is easy to batch. Check emails from multiple accounts during set times during the day. How do you task batch? Make a list of all your tasks that fall under all your “hats” then see which ones are the same for all your "hats" or similar. Then batch those. 3. A New Approach to Time Management *this is what is really helping me be productive!* I recently listened to a pod cast by Brook Castillo, The Life Coach School Podcast episode 261 called “Throw Away Your To Do List” about scheduling time. I highly recommend this pod cast. I am not throwing away my to-do list however I am approaching it in a brand new way.
Here is the idea in a nut shell but I highly recommend listening to the pod cast to understand the method fully. It is linked here for your convenience.
Schedule your tasks for the week then follow your schedule. Honor yourself by doing the things you need to AND want to at the times (ish) you schedule them. I work on “ish” time but this new system is really helping me with time in general. My “ish” factor is staying in check. This system of scheduling helps with: putting your phone away, decreasing distractions, focusing on one task at a time, actually taking time off etc… My rule of thumb is to learn new systems then tweak them to fit my life and style. That’s what I did here and it is working! Living in frantic, reactionary, busy mode is unhealthy for you and everyone around you. Jillian Bolanz, my life and business coach, always says “You can do all the things, just not at the same time.” I agree. You just have to dig in, figure out your flow and go with that, then you really can do all the things you are meant to do. Do you have any time and task management systems you love? Please share in the comments here! I am always looking for time and task management information, tips and tricks. If you try any of these I would love to hear about it. Comment below!
3 Comments
6/2/2019 05:30:56 pm
Great tips for scheduling your work time!
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7/31/2020 10:10:47 am
Great advice Heidi! You have inspired me to look into more productivity tools. Thank you!
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