Managing all the demands on your time

For most people there are always a lot of demands on your time, either it’s work, personal life, or a combination of the two things which can get a little overwhelming sometimes and making sure that you know how to manage the demands can make a big difference. Sometimes it may feel like you don’t have a minute to think because someone is always asking for a bit of your time.

Now that a lot of people are working remotely at least some of the time for work that can also impact how people see your time because you aren’t in the office 5 days a week. I know for someone that works remotely all the time there have been times when family figures that we don’t work, and we could just drop everything and help with an issue. Well working remotely means that you still have deadlines and meetings that you must attend. Sure, there are times when you can shift your work schedule a little bit, but it cannot be all the time.

Having a mobile device also means that both work, family and friends figure you are available to response to their questions no matter what time it is. The one good thing about mobile devices is you an put them on silent when you need the time to focus on something and in the evenings, you can put them on “do not disturb” so you don’t get those messages in the middle of the night from someone that just had a great idea that they wanted to share.

Being able to set priorities and manage them can be a challenge because when you are working remotely people don’t understand or see what you are working on which can sometimes be hard. Something that I have found that works well for us is to put things on our calendar and that shows people that we are busy doing something. Sure, you cannot put everything on your calendar but putting blocks of time when you are busy can help quite a bit.

Knowing how to manage the demands on your time is very important to ensure that you can continue to get everything done that you want to do but not feel overwhelmed. For me I know that I have a planner that I put things in, so I know what I need to do, and I also make sure that important items are on the calendar so that they are not forgotten and that there is time set aside to get those items done.

How do you manage the demands on your time, and does it work for you?

Understanding others

Lately I have been extremely busy trying to get a lot of things off my to-do list.  I have also gone through something that affected me personally, so it did take quite a bit of my time and energy.  The personal thing meant that I haven't been as efficient as I would have liked to be, but things do happen that change what you can do and how quickly you can assist others.

This week I have been trying to get back to normal, but I am finding it rather challenging.  Yesterday was when I think I hit the frustration wall.  People are telling me to take it easy, and I will get things done when I can, but in the next breath they are asking for more and more things to get done now.  I understand that part of this is because things need to be passed onto me so that I am aware of them, but if I have answered the question, please don't keep asking me when it will be solved.  I have told you it has been solved, and it is just going to take a bit of time for the effect to finally calm down.

It is so amazing to look at what I have been able to accomplish even in the last few days.  Sure, it isn't as much as I would have liked but at least I am getting small things done.  Now to see what I can get completed today, and then maybe I can say I am getting back to normal.

Understanding demands and what you say

Over the last little while, I have seen a few people who figure that as soon as they ask for something to be done, they expect it to be done immediately.  What has happened with people understanding that they are not the only one's asking for things.

I know as a business co-owner, we have times that we are extremely busy and things have to wait, and times when we can quickly get something done.  No matter what you do, some people get upset because you didn't do their work fast enough when things aren't instant enough for them.  This is happening more and more, and it does get frustrating.  Understand that if you don't give me all the information that I require to do the work, I can't do the work.  Also remember that you aren't the only one asking for my time, and you don't know my schedule. In some cases, I am working on something else you already sent me, so the next item is going to have to wait until the first thing is completed unless you explicitly communicate the revised priority.

Another issue is how you ask for something to be done.  If it is clear and concise, it makes it a lot easier to complete the work.  If you don't explain what you want, I have to guess at your expectations or I have to ask you questions.  Oh, when I email you, please read it and reply, because I am not writing an email just because I feel like it.  Remember, complete information means the work gets done, incomplete information means the work has to wait, or is not done the way you want.

This post is being written after a burst of where I had to repeatedly ask for information to complete the work instead of it being provided in the first place.  I understand that not all the information is always available at the beginning, but at least let me know that the information is to follow up and actually follow up.

I am organized, and I do my work, so don't say I need to be organized just because some aspect didn't meet your belief of what organized means. 

Juggling the demands of life

Currently, I feel like I am juggling a lot of different things, and I am trying to ensure that they all get accomplished, and nothing is left out.  Yes, this is a challenge that a lot of us face quite often, and knowing that you can handle it can be hard and even stressful. 

I am sitting in my office area at home and realize that sometimes I am just going to have to let a few things go until I can make progress on the things that are most important.  Looking around and seeing the different demands is difficult, but at least now I have a list of things that I need to work on.  Over the last month or so, I started writing down all the different things that need my attention, big or small.  The small things get dealt with right away, and all the other things get written down.  I am the type of person that does make to-do lists and have to admit that most of the time they do work for me because I can see what needs to get done and also what I got done. 

Tomorrow is another day, and I am going to start with my to-do list and see what I can accomplish off of it and know that I wouldn't be able to accomplish everything.  At least making some progress on the different items is going to make me feel quite a bit better about things.  Taking the small steps forward is a lot better than taking no steps forward at all.  My list may be long, but I know that I can accomplish some of the things and the other things will just have to wait another day.

The juggling is through for today, and now it's time to sit back and relax and know that I did what I could do today and I will do what I can do tomorrow.