Are you a seriously organised person? or are you always looking to improve your time management skills? By managing your time well, you can conquer a demanding schedule, prevent overbooking your days, and the eternal struggle with work/life balance.

Time management becomes critically important if you are self-employed or in a management position, as it is up to you to create structure where it does not exist.

Here are three time management tips to help you along:

~ It’s ok to say ‘no’ sometimes – If you commit to too many things at the same time, the quality of your work suffers, which in some cases, is as bad as not doing it in the first place. Prioritizing and deciding which jobs and commitments are the best way to spend your time and maximise your profit. You can accomplish much more if you are to delegate well.

~ Schedule appointments with yourself – You always find time for appointments with others, but do you ever have time to plan or brainstorm for your own business? Make an appointment with yourself to do just this. When you do get to this appointment time, turn off your phone, don’t look at emails, don’t open mail – give yourself that time 100% distraction free. Be truly unreachable. The world will not end if you can’t be contacted for one hour!

~ Overestimate and prepare for interruptions – You know they will happen, so anticipate how they will slow you down, and pencil them in.
When planning time for tasks to be completed, put aside more time than you need to allow for distractions, interruptions, technical problems, coffee/toilet breaks, etc.

As a precious resource, your time is right up there with gold, oil and diamonds. You need to train yourself to value it and guard it when necessary. When you manage your time well, you become more productive and as a direct result, more valuable.