3 Ways To Get Anything Done
If you were to say, “there just isn’t enough time in the day to do all that I want to do,” most people would agree and probably be able to empathize with or relate to that statement (I know I can).
But here’s the thing… for 99% of people, there is enough time in the day.
You just probably aren’t maximizing your time.
Every day you wake up at the same time, probably spend some time on your phone, rush to eat breakfast and get dressed, go to work, take enough of a lunch break to… eat lunch (and probably spend more time on your phone), go back to work, go home, eat dinner, relax after the “long day”, spend some more time on your phone, then go to bed before repeating it all again the next day….
*yawn*
If this sounds like you, you’re likely not doing something that you want to do because you tell yourself that you don’t have enough time.
If that’s true, you’re lying to yourself….
Whether it’s getting to the gym and kicking that dad bod to the curb, learning a new skill that makes you better at your job, finally meal prepping some healthy lunches so you can stop spending $8 every day on lunch, starting a side hustle to escape your 9-5, or just trying to build a new habit (like reading), the problem isn’t having time; it’s making time.
Here are 3 ways to make more time and get more done every single day.
The first way… wake up earlier (or stay up later if that’s your thing). According to an article by Tyler Schmall in New York Post, the average American spends almost 11 hours in bed each day, while only getting around 7 hours of actual sleep. That leaves about 4 hours of excess time spent in bed, not sleeping every day. I know… that’s a lot.
But maybe that doesn’t represent you or your time sleeping or in bed (it doesn’t accurately represent me). But, even if you just take 25% of the excess time claimed by New York Post, you’d have an extra hour that could be used for something productive. An extra hour each day of just the work week would be an extra 5 hours each week, an extra 22 hours each month, and an extra 260 hours each year.
Personally, when I started getting myself up earlier each morning to build the habit of reading, my body started adapting to the change in schedule and it became easier. In fact, I grew to love getting up early. So, if you don’t have time, try setting an alarm, getting up an hour earlier, and getting something done.
Still not doable? Keep reading…
The second way…. take advantage of smaller chunks of time throughout the day. I know this might sound inefficient but I know it works. In fact, I use this method all the time. Push-ups and pull-ups were always weak movements for me. I’d be gassed after 15 push-ups and would be lucky to get 3 decent pull-ups… before I started using random 5-10 minute chunks of time to get some micro-sets in.
Every hour or so I’d stop and do as many push-ups and pull-ups as possible (it usually wasn’t much). But I quickly realized after a few weeks of doing this that my exercises were way stronger and my numbers were increasing like crazy. I went from 15 push-ups to 50+ push-ups and 3 pull-ups to 12+ pull-ups. Not bad progress for a few unused 5-minute slots floating around.
Throw anything in those 5-minute slots and watch the progress stack up.
Still not doable? Fine, I get it… keep reading…
The third way…. upcycle your time (schedule hacking, if you will). If you’re unfamiliar with what this means, that’s okay because I’m pretty sure those aren’t real terms. But this is where you identify time being wasted and switch it out for something useful or productive. I guarantee you there’s time in your day spent doing something unnecessary. For most people, I think their phone is the culprit.
According to statistics from Kommando Tech, Americans spend an average of 5.4 hours on their phones each day. That is staggering… freeing up even a fraction of this time would open up an hour or more in your day. Returning to the calculations above, that’s 260+ hours each year…
For me, I wanted to learn some new copywriting skills but felt I didn’t have the time. After a little schedule hacking, though, I realized that I would spend a decent amount of time every day watching random YouTube videos that I found entertaining. So, all I had to do was switch what I watched. Instead of watching some fitness influencer host a challenge, or baffle at all the crazy ways a 1,000 degree marble destroys anything it touches, I started watching courses and trainings from people who do copywriting.
Boom! Problem solved. No change in schedule.
Let’s wrap up… I know you have things to do (I do too).
If you’re struggling to fit all the things you want to get done in a single day into a single day….
Wake up earlier (or stay up later)
Take advantage of smaller chunks of time throughout the day
Upcycle your time (schedule hacking)
I hope this help. Thanks for reading.
