Time blocking – what is it & why should I do it

Time blocking, do you do it?  The basic principal is to allow yourself to have time for yourself.  If you need to prioritise certain tasks, have focus time to work and write to do lists, or exercise, take a break, eat or even stretch!  These are all additions you can schedule into your diary to make your daily routine that little bit more manageable.

When you block time out of your diary, you improve your focus, you’re more alert which in turn will mean you won’t need to multi task like you have done before. Your life will become more structured. If you are going to try and schedule this into your daily routine, you need to be strict about it. Don’t allow meetings or calls to go in over these blocks. Remember, they are there for a reason!

A good way to start this is to figure out when you are at your most productive. If you’re better in the mornings, then perhaps setting aside focus blocks for to do lists or more important pieces of work are best before you start your day. For me, a good daily focus is my mental health with morning dog walks. It gives me a minimum of an hour to think about what I want to achieve in the day, and resets my mind so I’m starting each day fresh and more alert.

As mentioned in previous blogs, don’t feel the need to implement everything all at once.  Taking these hints and tips bit by bit might make it easier for you to manage.  Implement 2 focus blocks a week for example, and see how that works.  Take 30 minutes for lunch each day and block that time out for not working and see how you feel.  Small steps won’t create an overwhelm! 

At Every Cloud, we implement time management, focus slots for all our clients to help them manage their time better.  For more hints and tips, give us a call.

Take baby steps to incorporate just a couple of things listed above, and see if they work for you, if they don’t then tweak it. At Every Cloud we can help you with your goals and make your working patterns much more effective and productive. We love organising, it’s what we do best!

Are you in need of a virtual business assistant to help finish your To-do list? Look no further than Every Cloud Virtual Business Services. We have got your admin covered, as well as range of other services, which you can explore here. Get in touch to make your next business trip a stress free experience!