PEDESTRIAN.TV has partnered with Bond University to help y’all make more time in your day / life. If you ain’t about your current degree, or looking to start one mid-year, then consider applying with ’em in May. Bond’s accelerated degrees will see you entering the workforce quick smart. It’s what you do now that impacts your future, fam – head HERE to learn more.
If there’s one thing that humans will always be short on, it’s time. Time, in and of itself, is an extremely cooked concept – we only get a certain amount of it, and some get a lot more than others. Besides, we spend more than a third of our lives catching up on zZzZzs, so there’s a big chunk of it gone from the get-go.
Then, as we traverse the daily grind, we lose more and more. We have to dedicate most of the hours we’re bestowed Monday to Friday on work / study, meaning that it’s important we’re doing something we’re passionate about so it doesn’t go to waste. Then the weekend is chewed up with catching up with friends and blowing off steam. Before you know it, the week’s over and the time we once had can never be claimed again. It’s not a bleak concept, it’s just reality (so don’t y’all get upset now).
Much like how we – or at least, attempt to – manage our finances via saving ‘n the like, time can be managed too. Sure, we can’t technically make ‘more time’, but we can squeeze the most out of what we have to make it work efficiently. In doing so, we’re freeing up precious minutes and hours that we can spend on the stuff we legit give a damn about.
So, good humans of the internet, here are 7 ways to whip the finite amount of time you’re given daily into shape.
#1. GET MORE ORGANISED THAN LIZ LEMON
Think long and hard about all the time that’s been wasted because your plans haven’t been organised well enough. Even those minutes trying to find your keys in the morning are busting your balls. If you’re game on reclaiming wasted time, then get nek level organised.
Organised humans usually: write everything down, give all their belongings a home (even things like electronic files on computers), declutter their crap often / only keep what they need, and make sure their workspaces are clean / tidy. If you nail all of those, you should be well on your way to living your most organised life. In doing so, you’ll create structure to your existence which will free up precious minutes / hours / days.
#2. EMBRACE THE BRILLIANCE OF AN EFFECTIVE TO-DO LIST
If you don’t see the value of a strong to-do list, then catch ya. In addition to being organised in general, a to-do list will help you focus on what needs to be done – meaning you’re not wasting time on things that aren’t deserving of your attention / wasting time figuring out what you’re physically doing.
To begin with, a strong to-do list should be made the night before. You’ll sleep easier knowing you’re already structuring your life when you wake up, as well as allowing yourself to hop to it as soon as you’re awake. Additionally, some research suggests that physically writing your list by hand improves your ability to remember what you’ve just jotted down. That being said, if a digital option like an app is going to be easier then go for it.
Other advice for creating an efficient to-do list includes: don’t put anything on there that you know you won’t be able to complete (you’ll end up feeling like a failure), keep it relatively short (no more than ten, but aim for five things), be specific (don’t write “complete assignment” – try “compile research for assignment”, “write intro and first paragraph of assignment”), start with easy tasks (ticking off “have a shower” will make you feel hella accomplished, which will motivate you to do more), and include all relevant information (if you’ve gotta book a doctor’s appointment, put the number on the list).
#3. FIGURE OUT WHEN YOU ARE YOUR MOST PRODUCTIVE YOU
We’re all different, and we all perform better at certain times of the day. Say for instance you’re a night owl: you’re going to study really effectively at night, right? It could take you four hours to complete an assignment when you’ve just woken up, as opposed to two hours in the evening. By tackling your tasks at a time where you’re positioned to work smarter, you’ll get it done faster. Stack your bigger tasks to be completed when you’re on the ball, and save your less effective periods to handle menial tasks.
#4. SUSS OUT WHAT’S DISTRACTING YOU & FLIP ‘EM THE BIRD
In 2014, Mary Meeker (an internet analyst at Morgan Stanley gave a country-by-country breakdown of how much time we’re spending looking at screens. Her findings found that the average Aussie spends 125 minutes watching TV, 102 minutes using our computers and 132 minutes using our phones a day. Pretty cooked, right?
It’s a no-brainer: when you’re working, turn off your phone and focus on the task at hand / generally waste less time aimlessly scrolling through Facebook.
When we get a message or email, or concentration is diverted from what we’re doing to that – causing tasks to take longer to complete.
#5. GET AROUND THE IDEA OF ‘POWER PREPPING’
Power prepping is the idea of preparing everything and anything you can ahead of time. Doing this will mean you can essentially wake up, get dressed and get cracking on the important crap. Typical things you can power prepare in advance include: showering at night, charging everything that needs to be charged, lay out the following day’s outfit, pre-make your meals (tip: do it on Sundays), pack your bag and create the aforementioned to-do list.
#6. DITCH SOME CHOICES FROM YOUR LIFE LIKE IT AIN’T NO THANG
Ever wondered why Steve Jobs wore the same outfit everyday? It wasn’t because he loved black turtle necks (like, sure, he could’ve – but it’s not the main reason). He did it so there was at least one thing removed from his day that required a decision to be made.
People are really starting to catch on to the idea of removing (or limiting) certain choices so that they can give the important decisions that arise during their day the attention they deserve. This can be extended to eating the same thing almost everyday, wearing the same thing everyday etc. The time spent scratching your head trying to make those insignificant decisions can be diverted to other, more worthy, tasks.
#7. STOP SAYING “YES” AND START SAYING “NO”
For whatever reason, us humans seem to view “no” as a bad word. We really get off on saying “yes” to things, even if we know we won’t be able to pull through on whatever agreement we’ve made. People usually start to come to grips with employing “no” more often when they enter into the workforce – it’s necessary to reject people calling upon your help sometimes, because if you don’t get it done, you’ll look like the potato who put too much on their plate.
If you’re not a “no” user, then we’re giving you permission to become one ASAP. By not over-stacking your plate, you’ll be able to efficiently attend to what you’ve already got on.
Sure, while we might not be able to magically click our fingers and create more time in our day / life, we sure as hell can use what little time we’ve got more effectively. So, on that note, why waste three years of your life studying a degree when you can get it done in two?
It’s what you do now that impacts your future, so if you’re not feeling your current uni / looking to start at one mid-year, then consider applying with Bond University in May. Their accelerated degrees will see you completing your studies wayyy faster than other institutions, not to mention their small class sizes and A+ student experience offering. Find the degree for you and fast track your career by heading to Bond University’s website HERE.
Photo: Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy.
