What do I find most critical these days to stay okay and feeling on “top” of things (or at least almost or well enough on top of things) versus overwhelmingly stressed?
My to-do strategies seem to change day-to-day, but I am definitely finally getting it how important it is (1) to stay calm (by remembering for whom I am living and running after, and who this Great & Loving & All-Powerful God is that has got me in His Hands!), and (2) to manage my mood with interjected boosts of happiness, joy and life-giving connection wherever and whenever possible, and (3) not taking these big AND little interjections for granted.
Below are some great videos that capture 3 of my main to-do tools/strategies:
(1) Basic Time Management (Plan & Prioritize): Big Rocks First
Big Rocks First
This video captures one of the first fundamental lessons of time management — and life management, really–that I first learned back in university. When I’m struggling and feeling off-balance or lost, coming back to this principle of Big Rocks First re-grounds me. Often it’s more like “Big Rocks ONLY today”…but much more often than not, starting at that place leads me to somehow fit in more pebbles, sand and water too than I could otherwise have imagined possible…
Assigned reading as staff at my Church this year helped reinforce and refocus application of this principle in my life in a very practical (and simple!) way… If you enjoy and benefit from reading, this may be a great place to start: The One Thing.
(2) Staying Focused: Double Your Productivity in 1 Day with 5 Simple Tips
Yes this is closely related to Big Rocks First…think of it as always defining your Big Rocks First, but this guy offers some practical strategies of what to do, then, with your Big Rocks, or whatever priorities you are trying to be effective with on any given day or week.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1QIUbLWEXU&feature=youtu.be
Here is a summary of the strategies presented in this video:
- Eliminate Distractions: Dedicate time for a single task and prevent any interruptions.
- Get Organized: Organize your desk, computer file system, organize work environment.
- Plan Your Day In Advance: Make a list of things you’ll do with their priorities.
- Turn off the internet: A source of distraction, turn off mail, facebook etc.
- Stop Multi-tasking on Important Tasks: Multi-tasking decreases productivity.
(3) Consider a Different Focus: Manage Your ENERGY Not Your Time
Finally, this tip helps me keep my heart and sense of identity and confidence in check, keeps me from striving in a strife-filled, anxiety-provoking, harsh punishing type of way… keeps me running the race rightly… Don’t approach productivity as a “I better do this or I’m a failure” or “I better get this right or I’m worthless”… needs to come from a place of peace, of self-care, of “I know I am loved and valuable, but I have untapped potential I would like to learn how to tap into and live out of more effectively.”
https://hbr.org/2007/10/manage-your-energy-not-your-time
Here is my favorite quote from this video, and a summary of what aspects of “energy” to keep in mind as we learn and grow in managing ourselves as human “beings”:
“The core problem with working longer hours is that time is a finite resource. Energy is a different story. Defined in physics as the capacity to work, energy comes from four main wellsprings in human beings: the body, emotions, mind, and spirit. In each, energy can be systematically expanded and regularly renewed by establishing specific rituals—behaviors that are intentionally practiced and precisely scheduled, with the goal of making them unconscious and automatic as quickly as possible.”
- The Body: Physical Energy
- The Emotions: Quality of Energy
- The Mind: Focus of Energy
- The Human Spirit: Energy of Meaning and Purpose
(Note: this point reminds me of — and expands upon with practical steps — this classic time management principle I learned long ago: Sharpen the Saw)
Hope some of this is helpful and life-, energy-, and “time”/productivity- giving to you…
When you’ve got the extra “time” on your hands, I would love to hear your thoughts and any other tested & true time-management tips in your life toolkits below! 😉