Declutter Your Schedule
When we think of spring, we may think of clearing the clutter and starting fresh. Getting rid of what we don’t need to allow for new growth. Spring is a good time to put into action what we may have been thinking about doing for a long time - creating some space in our schedules.
This spring may be an especially good time to stop for a minute and reflect on the past year. What things do you really want to spend your time doing (or not doing) as you move forward? What things are most important to you and why? Answering these questions will help you prioritize and plan for what to do next.
This has been a unique year with priorities shifting and schedules changing unpredictably. As we have tried to figure out how to balance new life and work schedules, the lines between the two have gotten far too blurry. Without our familiar old routines, our schedules may have grown disorganized, unbalanced, and just plain cluttered.
Clutter can cause us to feel overwhelmed and stressed, so it is important to take some time to sort through it once in a while. Many people think of physical clutter like overflowing closets with too much stuff and not enough space. Is that any different than an over-committed schedule or the never ending to-do list?
In other words, if you have too much to do and not enough time, why not clear out and organize some of the things you have packed into your weekly schedule? Take this spring as an opportunity to free up some time and to create a schedule that fits what you want into it.
Spring is a good time to clear the clutter from our schedules and start fresh!
How can you start clearing the clutter from your schedule?
Here are a few steps you can follow:
Track Activities & Time - Take at least a week or two to keep track your usual tasks/obligations/activities for each day. Record how much time each takes. You can do this on a calendar or just on a piece of paper. This will give you a good idea about what you really spend time doing each week.
Prioritize - Once you have tracked the things you do during the week, you can prioritize each task/obligation/activity. List things from most to least important to you. Also look at the things that are necessary and not so necessary to do right now.
Drop & Delegate - Decide if there are things you can take off your list or give to someone else. This editing process will help you “create” some more time and flexibility in your schedule.
Build a Balanced Schedule - Now that you have prioritized and know how much time things take, try to build a schedule that looks more balanced to you. Maybe you can spread some tasks out across the week. Maybe you decide that only three out of five activities are really important to you. If you use a calendar, block off some designated times for the tasks/obligations/activities that you know you will have to do and reserve a spot for them in advance.
Just remember that you don’t have to clear all the clutter at once. Take it one step at a time. You will need to assess what works and what doesn’t work for you and your schedule. You can go back and tweak things as you need to.
The idea is to create some space in your schedule, just like you would try to create space in a closet if you were going to re-organize it. Are you ready to declutter your schedule?
If you are looking for someone to walk you through more detailed steps to clear the clutter out of your own personal schedule, feel free to reach out to me!
