Time management tips to reduce stress
How you spend your time can play a big part in how stressed you feel. That’s why I thought I’d share some time management tips to help you.
There are many things in our lives that can cause stress, and time is one of the most common ones.
Do you ever feel like you have too much to do and too little time?
This is one of my biggest stressors – When I feel like I have too much to do, and I don’t have enough time to do it. I get stressed out, anxious, my mind spins out, and because I feel overwhelmed, it leads to a lack of focus and procrastination because I don’t know where to even start. This wastes time, which leads to more stress because… the clock is ticking
Do you get stressed about not having enough time to do it all?
The good news is that Time Stress is one of the easier stressors to manage because it is tangible.
Time still ticks on, but we can manage our lifestyle and habits in a way that reduces time stress.
However, to do this you need to be realistic and be willing to make changes.
It’s not always easy to manage time, but it’s worth it. Read through the time management tips below, and let me know in the comments which one you’re going to work on.
Make time for relaxation. Seriously.
If there was one single tip I would share it would be to make time for relaxation.
Oftentimes, people who are stressed out spend too much time on the go and too little time relaxing. Relaxation often feels like a waste of time. This is a really tough habit to break, but trust me, over time you can create a healthier balance,
After all, simply put, stress is tension in the body and mind. And to counteract it, we need to promote relaxation – in our body, mind, and in our life.
Be aware of how you spend your time
A great place to start is to look at how you spend your time.
Often we think we have no time for the things we want to do, but at the same time, we are spending quite a bit of time on things that aren’t really important.
EXERCISE: For the next week, take notes of how much time you’re spending on specific activities. You can write in a notebook, or you could take it a step further and get an app like Clockify and actually track your time for a week. It’s an easy tool to use and it’s amazing to see at the end of the week. However you do it, make the effort to track your time for 7 days.
At the end of the week, look at how you spent your time.
How much time did you spend in each area of your life?
Do you notice any time-wasters?
Where are you spending your time on things that really aren’t healthy or necessary?
Did you spend some time on what is most important to you?
Does your life, from a time perspective, look balanced?
This is a great exercise because the first step to making any change is building awareness.
Streamline your to-do list with your values in mind
Now that you’re more aware of how you spend your time, it’s time to streamline.
List out your personal values – what is truly important to you?
If you haven’t worked them out before, here is an article to help you define your personal values.
Look at all the ways you spend your time, and see if they align with your values.
You might find that you’re spending time on things that really don’t matter to you, leaving very little time for what truly matters. This can cause a lot of internal frustration.
Of course, there are some things we need to do that we don’t necessarily want to do, but they should still align in some way with what’s important. For example, we don’t feel like paying the bills right? But it is important because it enables us to have a nice home to live in.
However, we may spend an excessive amount of time watching movies. And while it may be relaxing, by watching less movies during the week, we may have more time to do something else that is deeply important – like getting more sleep, exercising, writing or connecting with a friend.
Do you see where this is going?
We can’t be perfect, but it’s just about looking at your values and looking at how you spend your time. And making sure that you are spending time on what’s deeply important, instead of wasting precious time on what isn’t.
It is a great exercise to regularly look at your to-do list with your values in mind. Whenever you’re about to say YES to something or add something else to your to-do list, stop for a moment and check in – Does this align with what is truly important to me?
By spending more time on what you truly value, you’ll add more joy to your life that will help reduce stress.
Don’t let things become urgent
There are always things we need to do that we don’t necessarily want to do, like admin tasks.
It’s good to not let these tasks pile up and become urgent, as this just creates stress.
You can regularly look at your list and divide your items into urgent, important, and not important. You can then get the urgent items off your list, which often creates stress. Then focus on what is important – this includes the items that are important and meaningful, from getting work done to spending time with your family. You want to get to a place where you aren’t letting important items (like paying the bills) become urgent which creates more stress.
I try to set aside regular time to do admin – even just 30 minutes a day or every other day. This really helps me stay on track and avoid things piling up
Set a timer to help you battle procrastination
Often we procrastinate when we don’t want to face a task – We end up pushing papers around and wasting time, precious time.
Instead, be aware of what you’re avoiding doing, and commit to facing it!
List out the one or more activities you are avoiding. Then list all the small steps you need to take and start with the 1st one without thinking about anything else. Set a timer for 30min or 60min and go for it. At first, you will feel resistance, but after a while, you will progress and it’ll feel good.
When I have something I’m avoiding doing, I do the exact steps listed above and it works wonders! The most important step is to set a timer – I’ve tried this multiple times – at first, I feel resistance and it may take me 10 minutes to get started, but eventually, I start and I get going. It feels so good to make progress on the task, that sometimes I continue on even after the timer stops, and I’m inspired to continue working on it in the following days.
By facing your procrastination, you will use your time better and get those tasks off the list and out of your head.
Learn to say NO sometimes.
Learning how to set healthier boundaries and say NO sometimes is important.
Saying YES all the time is not sustainable. You may do this because you’re a people-pleaser and you feel bad saying no.
Whatever your reasons are, it is a healthy and empowering exercise to practice – when asked to do something, take your time to think about whether it aligns with you or not. Be realistic. Does the thought of doing this activity feel good? Or does it just add stress, pressure, or dread?
Instead of saying yes to everything, stop for a moment and see if it aligns with your values, and say no if it doesn’t. Don’t be afraid to be selective with your time.
Yes, it’s great to help people out and be generous, but just be aware of when you’re stretching yourself thin and trying to please everyone.
Practice asking for help.
This goes hand in hand with the above point.
Often people who suffer from stress like to control everything and end up doing it all.
Do you think you may be a bit of a control freak?
It can feel better to just do it all because you know exactly what is going on and can avoid mistakes. But, this is unsustainable.
You can’t do it all, because you are only human and need a break too.
Practice letting go a bit more.
If you’re under pressure, don’t be afraid to ask for help – from your friends, family, or colleagues.
Practice delegating and giving others some responsibility. Sure, you let go of some control, but at the end of the day, it will start to feel quite liberating. You start to trust others and the universe more. Because we never truly have control and we don’t know what’s around the corner or how things will turn out.
Be brave and do less
Most of us are guilty of adding way too much to our to-do lists.
It has become a common habit to do more, work more, be more. It can even become a badge of honour to say oh yes, I’m so busy.
This has been one of the biggest challenges for me – to do less. I’ve always pushed myself to do more, achieve more, be more. And it is a constant work in progress to create space in my life and feel good about doing less.
It is important to notice if you are doing more so that you feel better about yourself.
Do you deep down feel like you are not enough just as you are? Does being busy make you feel like you are worthy? Does doing more make you feel like you’re enough?
It is really important to realize that doing more doesn’t make you more. And it’s not sustainable.
When you take on too much at the time, you end up rushing through things and you’re not as present. You’re just getting through the list, and thinking about what’s next.
Instead, if you focus on less, you create more space to take your time and be more present in what you do. And this way you live with more intention and increase your quality of life.
One of the best ways to destress is to take some items off your to-do list. This can be difficult, but it is necessary.
Consider that life is long, and instead focus on less.
I love the ‘parking lot’ concept – When you have important or exciting things you want to do, but you don’t have the time to do right now, put them in the parking lot. I even have a ‘parking lot list’ in my notes, where I add any ideas that I want to save for another time. This is a great way to take things off your current to-do list and create space in your head, without feeling like you’re forgetting anything. Then, when you do have more time to start a new project, you can return to your ‘parking lot list’ and pick something off it.
EXERCISE: Take an objective look at your to-do list. What can you remove from your list so that you have more space to focus on what’s most important?
Work hard at creating a work-life balance
This goes hand in hand with making time for relaxation.
For those of you who suffer from stress, you likely do not have a healthy work-life balance. This can be tough to do, but it has to be done.
In my experience, as a recovering workaholic, creating this balance is a constant work in progress.
But, you need to make time for relaxation and joy.
This is so important. Work is important, but relaxation and joy are just as important.
Taking the time to relax and have fun is not a waste of time. It’s what allows your body and mind to relax and restore; what fills your life up with joy; and what gives you a boost of inspiration to inspire your work.
Even if you find it hard to relax, do it. You don’t need to just lie around. If you feel better doing something, do something relaxing – gardening, going for a walk, cooking something wonderful in the kitchen, listening to music while you reorganize your cupboard.
EXERCISE: Every single week, make time to relax and to do something fun. Start with a little time here and there and simple activities such as taking a long candlelit bath or getting some extra sleep. Or meeting a dear friend for a long catchup, going for a date with your partner, or making time for a hobby you love. Keep doing this every week, and you’ll start to notice and benefits as you create a healthier balance.
How are you going to manage your time better to reduce stress in your life?
I hope that you found this article helpful.
I’d love to know, which one of the above are you going to try?
Let me know in the comments!
Keep shining
xoxo Sian
Would you like some one-on-one help to reduce the stress in your life and to create a calmer, more balanced and joyful life? Book a free session with me. In this 60-minute session we can talk about the challenges you face and how you can create more calm and joy in your life.
