So much to do, so little time. Who hasn’t experienced that? You’ve heard how important time management is time and time again, but here’s how you can switch from a time management to a task management mindset.

Sure, you could continue to follow the classic time management approach of trying to squeeze your to-do list into your schedule, or you could switch gears and do what your schedule allows.

When you make the mindset shift from time management to task management, you’ll find that you could potentially fit twenty hours of work into an eight-hour work day.

How can you know if you’ve been focusing on time management instead of task management?

Here are five actions to avoid if you want to feel more productive and in control of your day.

5 Task Management Practices to Stop Doing

1.  Stop treating all your to-do items as equally important.

While it can be tempting to justify how answering all of your emails right this moment is just as important as creating content for your membership site, I encourage you to pause, take a breath, and ask yourself which tasks really deserve your attention right now.

DO THIS INSTEAD: Look at your current task list and choose the top three priorities for that day. I know that number might make you panic as your to-do list could have ten times as many as that, but this clarity will help you make meaningful progress on the projects that accelerate your business’s growth.

Once you’re finished with those three tasks, you can absolutely add more tasks to your list, but start with three at first.

By giving a small number of tasks priority, you can end your days knowing that you completed your most important work.

2.  Stop jumping from task to task.

You filed your receipts, responded to emails, answered comments in your membership site, and did a myriad of other different tasks, but there was no common thread between your tasks.

DO THIS INSTEAD: Instead of jumping from task to task, create themes for your days based on your business’s demands and your own rhythms.

For example, if you usually take the weekends off and open up your computer on Monday only to discover that your inbox is full and your team needs questions answered, you may decide to make Monday your “catch-up day” where you have team meetings, answer emails, get organized, and check your finances.

Then you can assign creating content to Tuesday, have your client calls on Wednesdays and so on.

When you create themes for your day instead of flitting between tasks, you’ll feel more focused instead of overwhelmed by all the possibilities available.

  3.  Stop rolling over your tasks from one day to another.

While it may be easy to move your task that was due today to next week in your project management system, it’s not the most effective method if you want to be productive.

DO THIS INSTEAD: You can nip this habit in the bud by doing regular, weekly reviews where you reassess the tasks you accomplished, re-assign due dates that are no longer realistic, break down big tasks, and if necessary, delegate tasks to your team.

If you’re finding yourself moving tasks from one day to another every day, you may want to begin by estimating how much time each task will take given how much time you have in your day.

This simple practice of being more aware of the time available will help you avoid over-scheduling. You’ll make smarter decisions as you create your future to-do lists.

4.  Stop being unrealistic with your time.

When you plan out tasks in advance, it can be easy to think they will take less time than they actually will. After all, being optimistic, especially about what you can accomplish, feels good.

However, that good feeling usually comes to a sharp halt when you’re in the midst of a task, say writing two blog posts, and instead of it taking two hours like you originally planned, it takes six.

DO THIS INSTEAD: To avoid this, add flex time to each task, so when you figure that one task, like writing tweets will take you thirty minutes, allow one hour to be safe.

The habit of consistently adding in flex time will safeguard you from falling behind on your task list.

5.  Stop criticizing yourself for falling behind.

When you get to the end of a day and realize you didn’t accomplish anything you wanted, it can be easy to fall into a shame spiral. You criticize yourself for not being responsible, focused, or (insert some other desired adjective) enough.

But when you criticize yourself, you won’t be motivated to change your behavior in the future.

In fact, it’s quite the opposite.

A study out of Carleton University published in 2010 was one of the first to show that students who forgive themselves after procrastinating are more likely to improve in the future. Students who criticized themselves were more likely to continue procrastinating.

DO THIS INSTEAD: Instead of putting yourself down, forgive yourself for what happened that day, reflect on what you can change right now and then start experimenting.

Try different themes for different days, organize your work day in blocks of 30, 45 or 60 minutes. Or, see what happens when you give your assistant a task that you thought only you could do.

When you forgive yourself, you can recognize where you went wrong and then course correct.

Got big goals? Leave space in your calendar.

As a business expert, Natalie MacNeil, always says, “Goals need space to expand”, so while it can be tempting to fill up your days, weeks and months with all of the things you need to do, add small empty spaces into your schedule.

The truth is that even if you don’t add flex time to your schedule, life will demand it anyway. You’ll have to attend parent-teacher conference meetings, get your car fixed, or deal with your website being hacked.

By leaving space for yourself, you’re prepared to deal with life’s spontaneity with more grace. You can maneuver unexpected opportunities as they present themselves to you.

Back To You

How are you planning on shifting from a time management to a task management mindset?