Time Management: Do The Difficult Stuff First

There is no underestimating the importance of time management. How we spend our time at the office defines us as professionals, and those who are not efficient time managers create frustration for themselves and others. However, time management issues can be rectified, and most of them are surprisingly easy to fix with a little discipline. The trick is to do the difficult things first.

Yes, it’s that simple. Most of us begin our workday by settling in—by doing the easy tasks that don’t cause us too much stress. However, sooner or later we have to do those things that we’ve been avoiding like calling that condescending client, diving into that pile of paperwork or scheduling that conference in Denver. While this may be human nature at work, it’s not the best way to begin a workday.

Begin your workday by doing the difficult tasks first. Not only does this make the rest of the day easier, but it focuses your energy—which you have plenty of at the beginning of the day—on being productive instead of worrying about the unwanted responsibilities you are pushing off until later.

This article explains, “The study also found that willpower falls over the course of the day. As John Tierney and Roy Baumeister observe in their recent book Willpower: Rediscovering the Greatest Human Strength, willpower is like a muscle. It requires exercise to get strong, but it also gets tired from overuse. When you’ve spent all day resisting a desire, you’re likelier to just give in at the end of the day.”

So make an effort to accomplish your most undesirable tasks first thing in the morning. It’ll make the rest of the day, and your job in general, that much better.

Photo courtesy of twid.