The question is, do we don’t have enough time or are we emphasizing doing unimportant tasks.
We can categorize our tasks into four types:
Important and urgent.
Important but not urgent.
Not important but urgent.
Not important and not urgent.
We often mistook urgent tasks as important, and neglect important but not so urgent tasks.
To manage our time efficiently and be more productive, we have to focus on the type 2 tasks. These tasks give us opportunities.
Let me take an example of a lazy engineer who is in her final year.
Important and urgent – Final year project.
Important but not urgent – any course that will help her to build a better professional career.
Not important but urgent – Interruptions, like mail or phone calls or some popular activities.
Not important and not urgent – Social media.
More or less maximum of adults can relate to this habit loop.
How to be more productive?
Plan your day the night before. Going to a place with the help of maps is easier than going blindly with no idea in which direction to go. Prioritize your tasks according to importance. That’s why you don’t end up doing unimportant tasks, which will have no contribution in your future.
Do the most difficult job first. Our most difficult task is either time-consuming or doesn’t interest us, but have a great impact on our future.
Break your task and built a habit of doing that daily. Concentrating on a task that doesn’t interest you for a long time, is hectic. If you break down a task and do a little bit every day, it becomes a habit. It’s easier to take little bites than a big one.
Stick to the job until finished: Take a job and continue doing it until finished.
We all can plan our day. We all can categorize our tasks. A productive person will maintain their routine instead of scrolling news feed. Social media has become a habit, and it’s difficult to break habits. I can share a tip that I’ve used to save my time from social media. I started by saving less. When you start saving less, you won’t understand the difference, and gradually it’ll become a habit.
I can only give you suggestions, but it’s you who can change your life.
Reference “7 Habits of Highly Effective People”.