Do You Fall For These Time Management Myths?

Mondays are productivity days at SimpleProductivity blog.

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When I ask people about time management, I get two types of responses. Either people are gung-ho time managers and they struggle with it, or they do no time management at all.

Asking further questions, I was surprised to find that most of the people in these two camps fall for some time management myths.

Here are the common time management myths and what you can do to avoid them.

1. Every Minute Must Be Planned

The people who do no time management told me that they believed that time management meant that they had to plan every minute of their day. Such an approach would be stifling and overwhelming to keep up.

I agree. Planning every minute does put a huge burden on the planner. Plus it leads to no down time and burnout, even if you plan your down time.

How to avoid this: Plan in large chunks of your day. Block out chunks of time, and list what you will focus on during those times. Leave ample time to unwind, such as a few hours at the end of the day, or your lunch time.

2. Every Minute Must Be Productive

The people who tried to do time management tried to cram every last-minute with something to do. While this may feel productive, it actually can lead to more stress. Things inevitably happen to derail plans. While it is good to have something with you to take advantage of unexpected lulls in time (such as waiting for a doctor), it is OK if you choose to relax during these unexpected breaks.

Forcing “productive” tasks into every nook and cranny will take away the time that you use to relax, unwind, and just play around. Recreation is important.

How to avoid this: having things with you that you can do if you are faced with unexpected wait times; but don’t pressure yourself to do them.

3. Time management Is For Work Only

Several people I talked to said that time management is something that only works at work. While time management systems were written with work in mind, it is possible to apply the techniques to home.

Failing to do some sort of time management during non-work hours just leads to large quantities of unstructured time with no purpose. It is one thing to choose to spend time watching television or surfing the web; it is another altogether to lose huge blocks of time to these activities because you had nothing better to do.

How to avoid this: have a general plan of what you want to accomplish during your time at home. It is OK if you choose (or need) to vegetate. Just make sure you’re not doing it because you have no idea of what else you could do.

4. The Schedule Must Be Adhered To

People on both sides of the responses – both planners and non-planners – indicated that if you do time management, you have to stick to the plan.

A rigid plan is a cause of unnecessary stress and inflexibility.

How to avoid this: If you are going to make a plan, realize that life happens. If something has made your plan shift, don’t force yourself to get back on track. Re-think, re-group, and re-plan.

Conclusion

Time management is one of the key things that will make you productive. Don’t fall for the time management myths.

Over To The Readers

What do you think? Are there other myths that you succumb to? Or do you have better ways of getting past the myths above? Share below.

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Photo by Beverly & Pack. Licensed under Creative Commons.