“It takes time to save time.”
~Joseph Hooton Taylor, Jr
In the first of the two-part time saving tip series, we talked about how nice it would be to create an extra hour (or more) each day. As women we are pulled in many different directions. So often it seems overwhelming and nearly impossible to check off everything on your to-do list daily. It’s even more difficult to reconnect with yourself AND those you love.
Navigate to where you want to go:
We discussed 1-5 of the ten time saving tips that help me to work smarter, not harder in life. Implementing a lifestyle of following these little golden nuggets has allowed me to build a more peaceful, more present life to enjoy myself and my loved ones more. In this post, we’ll continue with simple to implement time saving tips 6-10.
Ten Time Saving Tips For Busy Women
Part II (6-10)
Time Saving Tips -> 6. SHOP ONLINE
With online shopping and home delivery at our fingertips, shopping for food, household & personal items has never been easier. Skipping the drive, hunting isles for your items, and long checkout lines are among the best ways to save time.
This takes a little planning ahead. Consider your next few weeks coming up.
Do you need something to complete an outfit for a special event?
What will you eat or feed your family between all the extracurricular activities?
And what household or personal items are you running low on?
Answer these questions, make a list, and then it’s the easy part – hop online and order the things you need (eventually, you’ll build a favorites list so you don’t need to search through every time – that will save even more time). With this being one of the most practical time saving tips for moms…let it be the one you work on first.
Taking advantage of the ability to get home delivery and have things come to you instead of heading out to get them saves time and overwhelm.
Time Saving Tips -> 7. BECOME A TASK BATCHING MACHINE
One problem with managing everyday life is that too many moving parts need attention each day, week, month, and year. It takes a lot of focus and brain power to keep it all going.
This is one reason I love to task batch. I’m always thinking about how I can batch similar tasks or supportive tasks together.
Task batching is an approach that helps you use your time more efficiently by grouping similar tasks together and doing them all at once rather than dealing with them sporadically.
This allows you to work more focused and efficiently rather than refocusing over and over. The goal is to reach the flow state, where your mind and body know what needs to be done without having to think about it.
Batching works because it minimizes set-up time and task-switching costs and allows you to properly get into the ‘flow’ of an activity. (check out this article from the American Phycological Association on switching costs).
What daily, weekly, monthly & yearly activities can we batch?
Here are a few things that make sense to batch:
- Planning – Consider your whole calendar, not just work or personal.
- Cooking dinner – Prep enough protein to make something quicker later in the week.
- Doing dishes – Why not clean out the fridge too?
- Phone calls – Schedule when you have driving to do.
- Dr appointments – Tack on errand time.
- Housework – Listen to an audiobook.
If you want help in starting with your morning task batching, check out this blog on what I’ve learned about Making Your Day Powerful With This Morning Routine.
Time Saving Tips -> 8. CREATE SYSTEMS, PROCESSES, AND ROUTINES FOR EVERYTHING
Whether you WANT or NEED to do something regularly, create a system around the task that can be automated and streamlined. I am a systems girl! You can bet that if it can be put into a routine that I mindlessly work through, it will be. It’s the number one item, of my time saving tips, that has made a huge difference in my daily life.
Over time this strategy allows you to understand what it takes, time and energy-wise, to get it done
Maybe you will eventually decide something is taking too much of your time. You’ll then quickly find a creative way to take it off your plate or choose to knock it out first thing in the morning because it is a daunting task for you.
Ideas of tasks to systematize –
- Finances – paying bills, tracking spending, etc.
- Meals- planning, shopping, prep.
- Blogging – writing, marketing, launching.
- Housekeeping – laundry, cleaning bathrooms, floors.
- Mornings – self-care, breakfast, prayer, packing bags.
- Evenings – self-care, winding down, preparing for tomorrow.
(check out how I like to systematize my routines here)
Time Saving Tips -> 9. DELEGATE
Don’t become a martyr to your work or family life. Who said you have to do it all yourself?
I know I know, this one might be the toughest one to implement because it takes some work.
That may be the main reason you don’t ask. It’s hard..it’s easier to just do it yourself. 🤔 Is it, though? Whether you get your co-workers and family more involved or hire help (even for just a few hours a week or month) it may be time to recognize how important it is to delegate.
Let's say that again...It may be time to recognize how important it is to delegate.
Often we’re doing many things that others could do. Decide to put the things only you can do on the top of your list and delegate as much as you can of everything else.
Time Saving Tips -> 10. PLAN YOUR DAY
FACT: spending just 15-30 minutes planning each day can save you hours later in your day.
What is the best time to plan your day? Before it happens. 😊 (I love doing this the day before, tbh) Planning ahead helps you to cut through what’s unnecessary and bring the important tasks into focus.
BONUS : You gain a sense of purpose and accomplishment as you check off your list.
When you have a good grasp on your tasks, schedule, and appointments, you can avoid distracting time wasters, interruptions, and last-minute urgencies.
PRO TIP: Developing a journaling, planning and growth routine is the ‘system’ that has propelled my ability to manage my time with wisdom. If you’ve never really used a planner and don’t know where to start…start HERE. I’ll share how creating a journaling, planning and growth foundation was a HUGE game changer for me.
TAKE THE TIME SAVING TIPS YOU NEED AND LEAVE WHAT YOU DON’T
Zig Ziglar, the king of time saving tips says – We all have the same 24 hours. And learning to use them to their best potential is at the core of time management.”
Soooo true! BUT, you want to know what it all comes down to? I believe that it’s how we manage how we feel each day.
Time management is important, and the study of time management will help you begin to realize how many unnecessary tasks we put on ourselves.
Being highly productive and managing your time well will not replace the comforting and peaceful feeling we get when we’re living in alignment with who we were meant to be.
I’ve found that the journey begins with learning to be honest with ourselves and gaining knowledge of who we are and who we want to be.
Your time and energy are valuable, limited resources. And while we can’t control them, we can ensure we get the most out of what we have. Following these time saving tips will put you on a self discovery journey. Don’t forget…it takes time to save time.
Happy GRO-ing!
