My Top Biggest Time Wasters! (And How To Avoid Them!)
Do you ever feel like the days are flying by? That, even though we all have the same 24 hour day, you’re getting nothing done?
You ask yourself…
Where did the day go?
Did I get anything done?
What did I do all day?
If you feel like this regularly, I can completely relate! You may be falling into one, or many of the following time wasting habits.
If you want to stop wasting your precious time and take control of it, you don’t have to be a productivity expert! By acknowledging negative use of time, it becomes super easy to avoid it!
To give your productivity a boost, put a stop to these 12 Biggest Time Wasters! I promise you won’t regret it!
Social Media-
Over the past few years, social media has completely exploded, especially for teens like me. Our whole lives revolve around it, some of the main platforms including Instagram, Sapchat, Tik Tok and Facebook. So it can be a real surprise when you decide to check your phone after a few minutes of work, and find yourself still scrolling more than an hour later. I get it. It does happen. But to reduce this, and ensure you are focused on your work, unable to be distracted by notifications or dings, put your phone in another room. For me, I keep my phone in another room while I work, making it so I have to get up and leave if I desperately need it. I can assure you that it works well, too!
Procrastination-
Ah, procrastination. My old friend. One of the biggest time wasters there is. When our own mindset gets in the way of completing our work, it can be a real annoyance! We waste time worrying and putting off work, causing us to be extremely unproductive!
Just remember, stressing about a task doesn't make it disappear! Whatever you are struggling to complete, do it first. The first part is always the hardest! But after that, it’s a breeze!
Here are a couple tips to stop procrastinating: (Don’t forget to check out some of my other blog posts specifically about procrastination strategies!) :
Create a time blocking system to fit each task into the day.
Commit to a simple, achievable task.
Take 5-10 minute breaks every 30-40 minutes.
Complete the hardest parts of the tasks in the earlier hours of the day.
Break large tasks into smaller chunks of work.
Remove any other distractions.
Frequent Breaks-
In my opinion, short 5-10 minute breaks every 30-40 minute interval is ideal when completing long and tedious amounts of work. This is to reestablish your focus and reduce overall stress. Some ideas of this include getting some fresh air, checking your phone or having a snack and drinking water. However, excessive breaks, such as getting up and moving around, or checking your phone every 10-20 or so minutes, is extremely detrimental to your focus and productivity.
Excessive Multi-Tasking-
Multi-tasking may make you feel like you’re accomplishing a lot, but are you really? Multi-tasking may mean that you’re working on 100 things at one single time, spreading yourself too thin by the end of the day. In my opinion, I believe that it’s better to work on, and ideally finish one single project each day, rather than work on so many at once.
Lack Of Prioritisation-
Many of us unknowingly waste time due to a lack of prioritisation, when we waste precious minutes deciding what to do, or completing unnecessary tasks during critical times of the day! If you want to get more work done, I recommend creating an importance and urgency square, a set of boxes that allow you to figure out the importance of a task. Beside that, it is also useful to plan ahead and know about what YOU need to do to get work done!
Decision Fatigue-
The average person makes approximately 35,000 conscious decisions each day. Decision fatigue refers to the natural deterioration of our decision-making abilities as we move throughout the day. By the time we have tired out from making decisions, our mind becomes foggy, and we end up subconsciously wasting time and energy. To reduce the chance of this, avoid making as many decisions as you can during the day, especially if they are miniscule and less impactful than others. Some examples of this is creating a routine for your day the night before, meal planning or writing a to-do list using prioritization.
Saying Yes-
Overbooking myself is one of my biggest specialties. When I feel motivated and available, I sign myself up for more than I can physically tackle in a 24 hour day. Later on, when things become even more hectic, I panic and freeze, causing myself to procrastinate and waste time.
Sometimes we feel pressured to say yes even if we mean to say no. It is SO important to learn to say no to people, and to delegate tasks, rather than suck it up anyway. By saying no, you open up your schedule to focus on your highest priority tasks.
Mess And Clutter-
A messy work environment is a messy headspace. One of the first tips for productive and undistracted work is a clean, distraction-free work space. If your desk area for completing work is messy, I highly recommend dedicating about half an hour to completely cleaning it, as well as a few minutes each day to keep it spick and span!
Lack Of Planning-
Without a routine to follow each and every day, we find ourselves wasting time on decision making and preparing yourself for the day. If you have a routine set for the day, you are able to set priorities and goals in order to achieve them. With a lack of planning, you have less time to do work, or do the things you enjoy. You can plan your day using a prioritization square, a to-do list, a meal plan or an action plan for the day.
Perfectionism-
While I applaud those who strive for the highest quality of their work, perfectionism is yet another massive distraction and time-waster. Rather than striving for perfection in every endeavour, aim for completion. There can always be room for improvement, but the extra time and effort associated with perfecting your work is usually completely unneeded.
Checking Emails-
While, for me, checking emails isn’t a huge distraction, It is definitely a huge time waster. Depending on email newsletters you may sign up to or whether you mainly communicate with others through email, this negative habit is a real time waster. Rather than looking through your emails every few minutes, allocate 2-3 times during the day to check them, making it so you don't become distracted by them too often.
Worrying-
Rather than focusing on things you can’t control, focus on things you can. Unnecessary worrying can unknowingly equate to hours of time-wasting, a lot like procrastination. If you physically don’t have the power to change something, it is not worth your time or thought! Try to let it all go.
The Bottom Line:
As humans, it’s only natural to become distracted every now and then. Sometimes, a short break to refresh our mind and catch a breath of fresh air is necessary. However, when we lack self-discipline and continue to fall for everyday time-wasters, it can have an extremely negative impact on our work ethic and outcome.
Using this list to identify, acknowledge, and actively avoid these common time wasters, you set yourself up for success in school, and later in life. Thank you so much for reading!
DO YOU PARTICIPATE IN ANY OF THESE MAJOR TIME WASTERS?! COMMENT BELOW!
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