Time blocking and how it can help

I know you can all relate to the feeling of chasing your tail, not being able to complete one job before the next is creeping into the edges of your mind and breaking your concentration. It is one of the biggest causes of procrastination for me and often leaves me feeling overwhelmed and frazzled. When I heard about time blocking it was the answer I had been looking for! Don’t get me wrong, it doesn’t always pan out the way you plan it and sometimes life gets in the way, but mostly I have found it to be one of the best ways to focus my attention and feel productive.

The benefits of working in this way are massive. It will improve your focus and concentration which in turn will make you so much more efficient and eliminate time spent correcting hasty mistakes made when rushing from one thing to another. It also really helps to reduce that anxious feeling of guilt that creeps in when you feel like you should be doing something else. If you have blocked out a morning to work on your emails, then the washing has to wait. Similarly, if you are in a block dedicated to looking after your children then you have permission from yourself to enjoy it, knowing that work will be taken care of in another block. It’s not being put off, it has been scheduled for a better time.

So, how does it work? Time blocking is quite simply identifying blocks of time during which you are going to complete certain tasks and then setting a boundary around this time to protect your focus. It can be done over one day, a week or even a month depending on your work and lifestyle. In order to get the absolute most out of each of the blocks it is also super helpful to group similar tasks together into one block.

Let’s start with grouping

Grouping will help you identify the type of blocks you need. Certain jobs will benefit from being put together in the same block because they need the same equipment, or require you to be in the same place, or even need a similar type of attitude! So, as an example, these are some jobs that are more efficient when grouped together:

·        Responding to emails or clearing your inbox

·        Planning content for the month

·        Working for a particular client

·        Making phone calls

·        Being creative

·        Getting out i.e. trips to the post office/shop/delivering that birthday card

These are some of the ways I group my tasks together but yours will depend on the kind of things you have to get done and how you work best. I find that if I sit down to answer an email, I might as well do them all while I’m there rather than flitting between that and making a call, popping to the shop or coming up with an Instagram post.

Now to block out your time

Once you have roughly grouped your tasks how you think they work most efficiently you can start to block out your time. I find it best to do this on an electronic diary so that blocks can be moved around if life changes and things get in the way (mainly school closures this year!)

First, block out items that need to be done at a certain time such as appointments, work that has to meet a specific regular deadline, times when you know you’ll need to be available for the kids or a regular commitment that you keep. Then you will be able to see the times in between when you can slot in all the other things you have to do including work, house jobs, exercise, and very importantly playtime, space to see friends or read a book.

Now for the MOST important step. Do not skip ahead. You absolutely must… colour code it!! Make it as joyful as possible and pick your favourite colours for the blocks you need the most motivation for!

I block out my time on a weekly basis because that’s how I find it fits the best into my work, but it can be done daily if you don’t have regular weekly tasks. You can even go as far as to do it monthly if you find it fits into your routine. I generally only use this on my working days because a fair amount of spontaneity and free time is nice on days off but if you really love it, it can be used as much as you like.

If you need more help…

If you like the sound of this but you really just don’t know where to start, get in touch! I would be more than happy to take an objective look at your workload and help you to design a regular schedule of blocked out time that will make you feel super productive and in control!

Jodie x