11 Time Management Tips That Work

Do you feel the need to be more organized and/or more productive? Do you spend your day in a frenzy of activity and then wonder why you haven't accomplished much? Then these time management tips are for you — they'll help you increase your productivity and stay cool and collected.

frenzy

(an example of) uncontrolled and excited behaviour or emotion that is sometimes violent

疯狂，狂热，狂暴

In a frenzy of rage she hit him.

她盛怒之下打了他。

the media frenzy over the celebrity wedding

媒体对公众人物婚礼表现出的极大兴趣

There was a frenzy of activity in the financial markets yesterday.

昨天金融市场极度活跃。

collected

showing control over your feelings

镇定的，冷静的，泰然自若的

She appeared calm and collected.

她显得沉着镇定。

1. Realize That Time Management Is a Myth

This is the first thing you have to understand about time management, that no matter how organized we are, there are always only 24 hours in a day. Time doesn't change. All we can actually manage is ourselves and what we do with the time that we have. Appreciate this. Internalize it. And move on as soon as possible to the next tip.

internalize

to accept or absorb an idea, opinion, belief, etc. so that it becomes part of your character

使（想法、态度、信仰等）成为性格的一部分，使内化

例句：

He had not expected the people so readily to internalize the values of democracy.

他没有料到人民这么快就接纳了民主的价值观。

2. Find out Where You're Wasting Time

Many of us are prey to time-wasters that steal time we could be using much more productively. What are your time bandits? Do you spend too much time Internet surfing, reading email, Facebook posting, texting, or making personal calls?

be/fall prey to

to be hurt or deceived by someone or something bad

成为…的牺牲品，被…欺骗；深受…之害

例句：

Small children are prey to all sorts of fears.

幼童深受各种恐惧的折磨。

bandit

a thief with a weapon, especially one belonging to a group that attacks people travelling through the countryside

土匪；盗贼；暴徒

In a survey by salary.com, 89 percent of respondents admitted to wasting time every day at work:

• 31 percent waste roughly 30 minutes daily
• 31 percent waste roughly one hour daily
• 16 percent waste roughly two hours daily
• 6 percent waste roughly three hours daily
• 2 percent waste roughly four hours daily
• 2 percent waste five or more hours daily

Are you a time-waster? Tracking daily activities helps to form an accurate picture of how much time you spend on various activities, which is the first step to effective time management.

3. Create Time Management Goals

Remember, the focus of time management is actually changing your behaviors, not changing time. A good place to start is by eliminating your personal time-wasters. For one week, for example, set a goal that you're not going to take personal phone calls or respond to non-work related text messages while you're working.

4. Implement a Time Management Plan

Think of this as an extension of the third time management tip. The objective is to change your behaviors over time to achieve whatever general goal you've set for yourself, such as increasing your productivity or decreasing your stress. So you need to not only set your specific goals but track them over time to see whether or not you're accomplishing them.

5. Use Time Management Tools

Whether it's a Day-Timer, a software program, or a phone app, the first step to physically managing your time is to know where it's going now and planning how you're going to spend your time in the future. A software program such as Outlook, for instance, lets you schedule events easily and can be set to remind you of events in advance, making your time management easier.

6. Prioritize Ruthlessly

You should start each day with a session prioritizing the tasks for that day and setting your performance benchmark. If you have 20 tasks for a given day, how many of them do you truly need to accomplish?

7. Learn to Delegate And/Or Outsource

Delegation is one of the hardest things to learn how to do for many business owners, but no matter how small your business is, there's no need for you to be a one-person show — you need to let other people carry some of the load. Delegation shares the tasks you'd be better off leaving to someone else, so you can make the most of the time that you have.

delegate

to give a particular job, duty, right, etc. to someone else so that they do it for you

（把…）委派（给…），（把…）委托（给…）；授权（给…）

例句：

As a boss you have to delegate (responsibilities to your staff).

你作为老板必须要分派工作。

outsource

If a company outsources, it pays to have part of its work done by another company.

外包；（将…）交外办理

例句：

Unions are fighting a plan by the university to outsource all non-academic services.

工会反对大学外包所有非学术服务工作的计划。

Some companies outsource to cheaper locations to cut costs.

为了降低成本，有的公司把工作外包给劳动力廉价的地区。

8. Establish Routines and Stick to Them as Much as Possible

While crises will arise, you'll be much more productive if you can follow routines most of the time. For most people, creating and following a routine lets them get right down to the tasks of the day rather than frittering away time getting started.

9. Get in the Habit of Setting Time Limits for Tasks

For instance, reading and answering email can consume your whole day if you let it. Instead, set a limit of one hour a day for this task and stick to it. (The easiest way to do this is to assign a solid block of time to this task rather than answering email on demand.)

10. Be Sure Your Systems Are Organized

Are you wasting a lot of time looking for files on your computer? Take the time to organize a file management system. Is your filing system slowing you down? Redo it, so it's organized to the point that you can quickly lay your hands on what you need.

get/lay/put your hands on sb

to catch someone

抓住（某人）

例句：

I'll kill him if I ever get my hands on him.

如果我抓住他，就会杀了他。

11. Don't Waste Time Waiting

From client meetings to dentist appointments, it's impossible to avoid waiting for someone or something. But you don't need to just sit there and twiddle your thumbs. Technology makes it easy to work wherever you are; your tablet or smartphone will help you stay connected. You can be reading a report, checking a spreadsheet, or planning your next marketing campaign.

twiddle your thumbs

to do nothing for a period of time, usually while you are waiting for something to happen

（等待之际）闲着无聊

例句：

I arrived early for the meeting so I was twiddling my thumbs for half an hour.

我开会来早了，百无聊赖地等了半小时。

tablet

(also tablet computer)a small, flat computer that is controlled by touching the screen or by using a special pen

掌上电脑

亚马逊Tablets分类下销量第一名，就是Ipad

spreadsheet

a computer program, used especially in business, that allows you to do financial calculations and plans

（尤用于商务的）电子表格程序

A Bonus Tip: Your Time Belongs to You

And here's the most important time management tip of all. You can be in control and accomplish what you want to accomplish — once you've come to grips with the time management myth and taken control of your time.