4 Time Management Techniques To Use at Work and in Life

Everyone appreciates good time management. Whether it's to manage the work on your desk or to get your life organised in a more meaningful way, everyone can use some advice about how to get things done. Time management is a skill that can be applied almost anywhere in life.

So here are some techniques for managing your time more effectively so that your productivity doesn't get lost in a sea of distractions:


Pomodoro Technique - The Pomodoro Technique is a time management strategy where you utilise a timer to break down your work into different intervals, traditionally 25 minutes long, separated by short breaks. Once you achieve 100 minutes of work, you can extend the break to 15 or 20 minutes. Stick with this strategy, and you'll hone your sense of urgency and goal-setting.


Time Blocking - Time blocking is another time management method. It involves blocking off a chunk of time, say 30 minutes, on your calendar for a specific task or project. You then work on that task only during the allotted time and then move on to something else once the period has expired. This lets you stay focused on one task at a time without getting distracted by other distractions.


Pareto Analysis (or the 80/20 rule) - Pareto analysis, or the 80/20 rule, is a technique that involves identifying the vital few tasks (20% of your effort) that account for most of your results (80% of the results) and focus on them. The idea behind it is that focusing on these tasks can dramatically boost your productivity.


Eisenhower Matrix - The Eisenhower matrix is a task prioritisation scheme that helps you prioritise tasks based on their importance, urgency and ability to complete them. You assign each task to one of four quadrants in the matrix: 1) Important and urgent tasks, 2) Important but not urgent, 3) Not important but urgent, 4) Not important and not urgent. You then focus on the tasks in quadrant 1, but ensure you don't neglect the other three quadrants. By prioritising important and urgent tasks, you can stay on top of your to-do list and get more done.


Choosing the right time-management technique for you is crucial. Some people find that they work best in a set routine, while others do better when they have the freedom to work on whatever tasks they choose. What's important is that your time-management techniques fit into your lifestyle so you can stick with them over time!