Between exhausting work days and private obligations, it’s difficult to find free time… Having time for yourself is essential to our personal development. Whether you dream of accomplishing great things, like running a marathon or writing a book for example, or you simply want to increase your leisure and relaxation time, make it your new priority now! Here are some techniques that will allow you to free up your free time and thus, enjoy life better.
1. Learn to say NO!
More than an exercise in self-affirmation, refusing to grant certain requests will allow you to free up free time. Say “no” to distractions, “no” to chatter and discussions that don’t benefit you, and “no” to all the things and people that waste your time. It will certainly be difficult at first, but learning to say “no” will radically transform your life by allowing you to invest your time in what really matters to you.
2. Define your real priorities
First of all, it is appropriate to take a step back in order to have a clear vision of what you spend the majority of your time doing. To do this, give yourself the time necessary to take stock of your life and question your deepest aspirations. Once this little brainstorming is accomplished, all you have to do is make your main objectives a priority in your schedule. The next step will be to eliminate and suppress all unnecessary activities, which waste your time more than they help you move forward with your projects.
3. Always start with your main obligation
Here’s a little tip that will allow you to have more free time while being more productive :
Always start your day by accomplishing the hardest and most important thing in front of you.
Tackling your biggest constraint of the day first allows you to get rid of it more quickly! Once relieved of the stress and workload associated with this task, you will enjoy the rest of your day even better. You will be more relaxed and you will then be better able to find time for yourself.
4. Write
More than a reality, it is often the “feeling” of being overwhelmed by one’s obligations which prevents you from making time for other things. So write down your feelings on paper in order to reduce this heavy impression.
To declutter your brain and make it fully available, it is also important to note your imperatives. You will be surprised to instantly feel more “free”.
5. Rethink your daily routine
Establishing a schedule and sticking to it remains the best way to optimize your day and create some freedom. Not to mention that it will be an opportunity for you to sort out your schedule a little. Take advantage of this to include a time slot specially dedicated to your personal goals.
6. Give yourself moments of break
Everyone seeks to be as efficient as possible. But it’s impossible to run a sprint all day! Far from being a waste of time, the breaks you give yourself will increase your productivity and, in fact, your free time.
7. Avoid procrastination
Procrastination, that is, constantly putting off your obligations until tomorrow, does not help you have more free time. Often accompanied by a strong feeling of guilt, this time of procrastination is neither productive nor a real source of relaxation for you.
8. Minimize wasted time
Eliminate “TV breaks”, Games, or certain social obligations will free you up valuable time. Furthermore, many of your requirements are actually not that important. Learn to re-evaluate your tasks and declutter your schedule by, for example, reducing the number of your meetings or opting to send grouped emails.
9. Collect your obligations
Instead of doing your shopping several times a week or responding to your emails several times during the day, putting these tasks together and doing them all at once will save you a lot of time.
10. Become a Single-Tasker
Contrary to what you think, you don’t save time or be more efficient when you do several things at the same time.
According to scientists, time fragmentation is one of the main causes of professional and personal burnout. It is also what causes the recurring feeling of being overwhelmed with work. Stick to doing one thing at a time, without interruption, for a certain duration would therefore be the key to optimize your time and be able to extract free time from it.
11. Make completing your tasks automatic
It has been shown that daily tasks, carried out automatically, do not require any particular effort from us. Occasional obligations, on the contrary, involve an increase in willpower that is quite exhausting for our brain. Integrating our imperatives into our routine would allow us to accomplish them in a minimum of time.
12. Remove Distractions
Banishing the various sources of distraction from your work environment allows you to be more productive. To do this, start by declutter your visual environment by tidying up your living and working spaces. Drawing a line under games and TV will also be a good way to stay focused on the essentials. But the most effective is undoubtedly to “disconnect” from the internet and the telephone in order to limit external requests.
13. Optimize your free time
The little breaks that punctuate your days are ideal moments for you to indulge in your favorite activities. So why not transform your early mornings, your evenings or your lunch breaks into “special leisure and relaxation” moments.
14. Don’t hesitate to delegate
Call on those around you to lighten your schedule and reduce the weight of the burden on your shoulders. Delegating is a good solution to avoid certain menial tasks. And if that’s not enough, you can go so far as to outsource to competent professionals.
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And you, do you have any tips for saving time and enjoying more free time? Leave us a little comment!