Creative Time Management Tools and Day Planning
The core of day planning time management tools is to take each project that you have and break the project down into pieces that can be accomplished in short, realistic periods of time. Prioritize these tasks and assign due dates to each of them. If you can, delegate responsibilities to others. The key is to note each task, its due date and who is involved on your day planner. All of the sudden, instead of having a bunch of heavy duty projects that threaten to bury you, you have daily lists of tasks that you can prioritize and complete.
This does several things for you. First, you won't have to think about what you may have forgotten because you already have it written down. This can greatly reduce your stress level. In addition, when something unexpected suddenly swallows up a good chunk of your time, you don't have to completely panic because your day planner will come to your rescue. Your day planner, the superhero of time management tools, will tell you where you are in each of your projects and help you decide which tasks can be deferred to take on the new challenge.
Use your day planner to manage all aspects of your life. If, for example, you are a business person and going to school at the same time, prioritize your school and work lives as well as your personal time in the same planner, rather than using separate tome management tools, to help you work with the different aspects of your life more effectively.
In addition to using your day planner for projects at hand, use it to keep track of doctor's appointments, important social engagements and your kids' soccer games. This will ensure that you don't forget to include an important activity that you need to make a priority on a given day.
Don't forget to use your time management tools properly - cross off tasks in your day planner that you have completed. When you look back and see everything that you have done, you will really realize how much that you can accomplish.
