Big time savers: how to avoid wasting your time and being more productive.

By Monica Mastrantonio

September 15, 2015   •   Fact checked by Dumb Little Man

Time savers are a must in modern life. Either because we have plenty of responsibilities to accomplish or because we have so many deadlines to cope with, the fact is we either learn to use time wisely or we will be mostly in trouble from time to time. No matter how much you invest in updated devices to keep track with your routine, if you can´t coordinate your agenda, important projects might be left out.

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There are people who do seem to make best use of their time and indeed are great time savers. I once interviewed a guy from a spaghetti factory who seemed to be capable of being in two places at the same time. He had mastered to coordinate two immense spaghetti machines and meanwhile find some free time to step out for a break. He could get precious minutes in between machine schedules to create moments for pausing. Whenever the factory tried to replace him due to holiday periods or something else, no one was apt to.
There is a quote which says “if you want to get things done, hire a busy mom”. Busy and true. They also usually master the ability to be at more than you place and manage all sorts of skills at one time. “How do they handle that?” you might be thinking, they just don´t have any second to spare, plus work in priority base duties and tight deadlines.
Time killers are everywhere, you might even create your own list. Here we bring few points about how they can affect our lives and how we can be more productive with these big time savers:

1) Don´t gossip

= Don´t waste your time chatting and gossiping about someone´s else lives. First of all, this won´t make yours any easier. Secondly, life is short and we shouldn’t be wasting our time with such negative and non-profitable patterns. They won´t take us further. If we pay attention, there are people who usually waste half an hour each day on this. Try to avoid them, skip subjects or find an excuse to end the conversation and go away. There are also people who live the life of pops stars, celebrities, singers as their own. Try to change habits and focus on your life and your life only. Use this saved time to practice sports, meditate, or enroll for online courses. There is a tendency to swop to other peoples´ lives when ours need mending. If we take good care of our own duties, the world will take good care of itself.

2) Limit time online

= Learn to disconnect. If you want to have things done, got to disconnect, that simple. We do need to be offline while concentrating in different subjects and tasks. We can´t finish any project if we keep texting in Whatsapp every 5 minutes. Set yourself a certain amount of time to check online, for example every other hour. If that works fine, set short breaks for each task accomplished. Make the best use of time online and offline.

3) Get organized

= Trying to find things in an uncontrollable mess might lead to a waste of precious moments. When we don´t find what we are looking for around a messy surrounding, everything can get even harder. It could be the car´s key, or that book we must finish reading right now, or a medical recipe, a driving license and so on. The list can go to infinite. Take one day off to set everything in the right place and get organized. It’s a must do priority to keep life going on smooth as well as good humor always up. The more organized, the less stressed.

4) Don´t postpone

= That´s another problem we usually have: procrastination. Getting things for later. Change the vibe: right here, right now, right through it. The future is today. “Butts off” and move. Got a bill to pay? Just do it. Got a subscription to be made? Go for it. Got an appointment to set? Set it. Need to repair your car? Off. Got to clean up yard? On the way. Set goals for each day, week and month and give up the old addiction. Late never comes.

5) Do something while waiting

= Don´t keep arms crossed staring at the ceiling while waiting. It is such a waste of precious time. There are people who just sit motionless with their arms crossed for hours without doing anything. This can happen everywhere: at the doctor´s, dentist, before a class begins, at the bus stop, before a flight. Try carrying something which needs to be done with you. It could be a book, writing letters, responding emails, handwork, tricot, etc. No matter what or where. You can even drive while listening to audio books. Once you get this habit, it will flow automatically into your routine. We are multi-tasked time-oriented human beings, so it is just a matter of never having to wait again.

6) Get sleep in the right track

= Oversleeping is another waste of time which usually shows that time is being used inappropriately. It means you stayed up until late and then couldn´t keep up with all your assignments. Learn that working until late is not that productive. Try to set timelines and then go relaxing. Waking up early the following day will make you feel recharged and ready to achieve your goals.

7) Set goals for each day, week, month, year

= We all need to plan things ahead and arrange different deadlines and accomplishments. We easily plan how each day will be like, but rarely do this on a monthly or yearly basis. It does help if we plan to achieve long term goals as well as short ones. For example, if you are planning to run a marathon, you need a whole year to be prepared. Split a long-term goal into small actions and you will be able to finish anything. Running 10 kilometers for the first three months; then running 20 kilometers the nest ones; then going 30 kilometers for the next three months and finally 40 at the end of the year. And, you have made it!
The more we become “Big time savers”, the more we will be able to accomplish a productive life. People who get things done are usually the ones who master Time Management and take good advantage of all “Big time savers”. It´s always been a matter of not wasting any second.

Monica Mastrantonio

Monica Mastrantonio is a PhD Social Psychologist who loves writing and sharing new ideas. Mother of three, lecturer and researcher, she finds perfect time to travelling, reading, jogging and cooking.

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