In today’s fast-paced environment, time is your most valuable resource, but you’d be surprised at how little we really value it. Did you know that the average American watches TV and uses a phone for six to eight hours every day? That makes a full year almost 120 days! This highlights how easy it is to squander our time.
Your relationships are too crucial and life is too short to spend a third of it staring at a screen. This essay, which is based on my personal experiences, looks at seven time-saving techniques that can lead to a happier life.
- When using social media, exercise caution
Making the bold decision to cease using Facebook and Twitter and to lose nearly 80,000 followers altogether was a significant but liberating move. Upon reviewing my feeds during the initial phases of the pandemic and the 2020 election season, I became aware that my mental and physical well-being was not getting better. I felt a lot less stressed after doing that, and I was able to recover the hours I had lost to useless browsing. When I cut down from four to just two social media platforms (LinkedIn and Instagram), I spent a lot less time on them.
- Give up the culture of binge-watching
You could only be reading by now because my time-saving tips have captivated (or irritated) you. When I used to get home from work, I would love to kick off my shoes, grab the remote, and curl up on the couch to watch TV. How many hours did I watch television? Not sure.
Neilsen’s State of Play study states that between February 2021 and February 2022, Americans watched about 15 million years — yes, you read that correctly — of streaming material. There were 817,000 different TV shows available for selection. That’s only in the past year. Consider the significant life events that were overlooked in the 15 million years that were spent in just 12 months!
- Prioritize your own schedule
I make sure the things that are important to me are done by arranging workouts, reading sessions, time with my wife and kids, and other personal priorities in my phone calendar in advance. Put something in your calendar, and you’re more likely to remember to do it. Don’t let luck decide what’s important.
- Reduce noise by turning off pointless notifications
The constant ping of messages might seriously impair your ability to concentrate and work efficiently. Even mental barriers brought on by switching between tasks can lose an individual up to 40% of their working time, according to a Meyer study. Except necessary phone calls and messages, I discovered that turning off all notifications greatly decreased distractions and allowed me to complete much higher-quality work in a shorter amount of time.
- Avoid going to see every new film that is released
Although it may sound drastic, I made the personal decision to watch only one movie a year, if, which greatly improved my schedule. I understand that you may think I’m strange for this one. However, I made this choice more than ten years ago, and I haven’t regretted it in the slightest.
Yes, I’ve been excluded from all discussions regarding the just-released film. To be honest, I’ve never watched anything on Netflix or ever opened a Netflix account. I concluded that this wasn’t helping me achieve my goals and that my life would be perfectly fine without it after realizing how much time people spend discussing movies and spending hours in front of the TV.
- While reading the news, find a balance
The decision to unsubscribe from the never-ending news feed was chosen consciously in order to avoid the negativity and overload that the constant news cycle may cause. It’s important to find suitable, non-intrusive ways to keep ourselves updated about world events without allowing them to control our lives, but it’s also important to stay informed. It seems that over time, news coverage has changed to focus more on alarmism and spreading fear and anxiety. Observe how much time you spend being sucked into the bad news stories that regularly make you feel down.
- Assign to increase your productivity
Investing in highly skilled team members and helpers and assigning work that doesn’t require your direct involvement can change people’s lives. Even if you’re skilled at whatever you’re doing, you have to be willing to allow other people to assist you.
This method not only makes your workflows more efficient, but it also frees up time for more important personal and professional activities. You are unable to complete the task on your own.
You can reduce the amount of time you waste and develop a more fulfilling and purposeful living by attempting even a few of the aforementioned seven tactics. The key to avoiding regret and achieving success is how to manage your attention and time. Accept the notion of putting some distractions aside in order to reap the rewards of wisely using your most precious resource: your time.
Credit: Allschoolabs, GISTONLINENG
