A lot of the stress we encounter in our workday comes from a feeling that “there just aren’t enough hours in a day.” Learning new time management techniques

is one effective way to reduce this stress. There are some misconceptions, however, about what time management is and does that often prevent people from trying some of the very effective strategies available. Here are three common time management myths:

1. Time management won’t help me – I simply have too much work

This is often not the case. A quick analysis of your current time usage patterns will show you that you can recover as much as 40% of your workday by simply using your time more effectively. Not convinced? Record your activities, just for two days, in 5 minute time blocks. Make sure you write down everything from the time you spend responding to joke emails to the time you spend on every telephone call. You might be very surprised to learn where your time is really being spent.

2. All you have to do is organize your time better

While understanding and better organizing your time usage will help, the truth is that sometimes we are just trying to do too much. When this is indeed the case, like it or not, something’s got to give. Just make sure it’s not your sanity. Prioritize so that you’re looking after the most urgent and important things first, and delegate as much as you are able. Keep an eye out for time saving opportunities, but don’t lose sleep over the things you can’t control.

3. Time management means loss of flexibility

While one effective management strategy can be to pre-plan, schedule and create greater structure to your life, it’s not the only method; nor is it the best one for everyone. Structure of some sort is important to managing your time, certainly, but it does not have to be inflexible to be effective. There are a great many effective systems out there. Chances are there’s at least one to fit your personality type and work style. Do your research!

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