Do you ever feel like you’re drowning in work? This is how to reduce stress and the baggage.
1.Don’t Take On Too Much
If you’re overworked, is it because you’re not very efficient and waste time (be honest) or is it because you simply have too much work?
All the time management tips in the world won’t give you more than twenty-four hours in a day. When you’re offered an exciting new project to be part of, when a colleague asks for a favor, or when you’re thinking about sticking up your hand and volunteering in a meeting … stop and think about your other priorities. Remember that if your day is currently full and you take on new work, something else is going to have to go.
2.Minimize Meetings-If you’re obliged to be in regular meetings, try cutting the frequency (perhaps a team meeting every fortnight, not every week, would be just as effective) or the duration (it’s surprising how much can be accomplished in half-an-hour).
If you can possibly avoid meetings, do. That goes doubly for meetings which are off-site – there’s a lot of wasted time involved in getting there and back.
3.Set Your Own Deadlines
Wouldn’t it be nice if you could set your own deadlines? Well, you can, of course: just make your deadline before the one that management (or your client) has given you.
4.Make A To-Do List The Day Before
If you normally work on whatever catches your attention, you’re working ineffectively, and you’re likely to end up feeling overwhelmed. Each evening before you stop work for the day, make a “to do” list for the following day. This should cover the crucial things that you want to get done. Make sure that at least one of them is advancing a long-term project.