Time Management as fine art

No pun intended, but managing time is as complex as learning a fine art…. it takes time, balance, willingness to make mistakes, and above all else a strong desire for discipline.

I have been thinking alot about managing my time, and this is what I have been contemplating lately:

1. Make a plan for your time – if you don;t plan certain thing in they may fly under the wire and not get done. In my case I pencil in specific blocks of time for doing research for expanding the business. I also block out a half day every week for just catching up on correspondance, bookkeeping, and organizing records.

2. Make an allowance for time off – Give yourself permission to take a break from work, and from chores. Without the down time the joy will be zapped from your life. It can be small breaks to talk with a friend, or lunch out, or maybe that evening in with a good movie and the hubby.

3. Know yourself – Learn your capabilities and your limits. With being your own boss you can easily grow stressed from overextending yourself. Know when your body and mind are saying “stop” and listen. Paying careful attention now makes the difference in the long run.

4. Pencil in creative times – Production time is only one component of the business but it is the bread and butter because without product there is no business. Block out times for production and set a schedule for what you need to accomplish. My husband has a soap production schedule for himself to keep on task with inventory of the homemade soaps.

5. Think of your planner as your best friend – keeps you on task, and keeps your tasks organized, efficiently making sure that what needs to get done is not set aside for the “tyrany of the urgent”.

So do i have it completely together? No, far from it. But like the art of learning to paint, I am learning how to manage time and my life in steady progressions.