Do you feel like you get very little done most days and spend a lot of time just puttering around accomplishing little? If so, you are not alone. There are lots of people with that problem, and the solution may be simple. Today I am sharing six tips on how to stop wasting time so you can change your habits, be more focused, and accomplish much more.
1. Begin with a Bang
It is very important what you do when you first wake up. Do you tend to hit the snooze button? That means your day is off to a lazy, unproductive start. Do you look at your phone for a while first thing? That means you waste time right off the bat.
Instead, start strong by accomplishing something first thing. You could do one of several activities (or all of them). You can try starting the day by making your bed, brushing your teeth, exercising, studying a few words in a new language, or reading a couple of pages of a nonfiction book. All of these things will help you to start off strong and spend less time wasting your time in the morning.
2. Eat Complex Carbs Instead of Simple Carbs
What does eating healthy have to do with being more focused and accomplishing more in your day? Well, simple carbs break down in your body fast, first giving you energy and then causing an energy crash. Complex carbs, like those found in grains, will give you longer periods of energy and make it less likely that you will crash, so it is easier to stay focused and to have the energy you need throughout the day.
Try to avoid sodas, sugary foods (desserts, snacks), and anything that is very sweet. Focus on eating whole grain breads, pastas, and starches (like potatoes). These give you more energy spread out throughout your day so that you don’t feel as tired.
3. Penalize Lack of Focus
We all know that there are activities that derail our plans and make us lose focus. These can be taking phone calls, playing around on the internet, chatting with friends, listening to music, and similar diversions. We know that we shouldn’t do those things that hinder our focus, but what can we do when we lose focus to make sure it doesn’t happen again?
The solution is simple- you penalize yourself whenever you lose focus and end up doing an activity you know you shouldn’t be doing. Say, for example, you play around on Facebook for 30 minutes. You can discipline yourself by staying off social media for the rest of the day.
If you waste time in some other way, just think of an appropriate punishment that will help you stay focused next time. You could punish yourself by not having coffee for the day, by limiting screen time, or by giving yourself an extra chore to do.
4. Give Yourself a Deadline
Another way to learn how to stop wasting time is by setting a deadline for yourself to complete specific tasks or chores. Have you ever noticed that you get more done if you are limited on time? When you have to hurry to accomplish something, you probably don’t lose focus at all.
Most people are able to stay focused on a single task when they are given a deadline that isn’t very far away. If you give yourself arbitrary deadlines, that can help you to accomplish more. You can feel like there is a need to stay focused and to stay on target. That will help you to reach the milestone you set for yourself without losing your way as easily.
If you notice that you do okay early on in the day with your work and then lose focus later, you should set yourself short deadlines throughout the day. Give yourself an hour to finish one task and then another hour to finish the next task. If you move from deadline to deadline, you won’t have much time for goofing off.
5. Set Priorities
What are your priorities when it comes to work? Do you make time for all the things you need to get done or do you goof off and relax and then later stress over getting things done? Or do you get distracted by different priorities that are not as important as the things you ought to be doing? For example, do you find yourself cleaning the house when you should be getting your paid work done? Learn how to set priorities. For instance, you may want to use professional cleaners in Seattle rather than focusing your attention on something that someone else could do just as well or better.
It is important to set priorities when you work. That way, you know what is important to you and you can focus your energies there. This also helps you to figure out other solutions for getting to the things that are not as important or just leaving them undone.
6. Forgive Yourself for Mistakes and Failures
One important part of learning how to stop wasting time is to forgive yourself when you make mistakes or fail. When you have lapses in your focus and you make mistakes, it is important not to let that get you down and keep you feeling down.
You should be ready to forgive yourself, recognize that you made a mistake, and move on. If you don’t, you are liable to wallow in the failure and then end up losing your focus even more. That can be dangerous.
You need to forgive yourself quickly and get on with your work, or you will end up losing focus as you experience feelings of doubt, self-pity, and unforgiveness. If you punish yourself too hard and take your failure very seriously, then you may not be able to accomplish much, and that self-flagellation is going to be self-defeating.
Final Thoughts on How to Stop Wasting Time
These are a few things you can do to keep your focus where it should be and avoid getting distracted for too long. Hopefully, some of them will be helpful for you and address specific issues that you might have in your own life that keep you from success and from being accomplished and focused every day.