Focus time

Ever find it difficult to manage your own calendar because of the events and meetings that other people fill it with?

A simple tip I’ve used and told people about is to use a repeating event (every day or once a week) in my Outlook calendar that, in theory, preserves that time for me. Just call it something simple like ‘Focus time’ or ‘Consolidation’, and there’s your hour first thing on a Monday morning, or the last thing on a Friday afternoon.

Some use this to keep an afternoon free of meetings so they can catch up on administrative duties, some just to make sure they can always be available for that important 1/2 hour when the kids get home and want to talk to you about their day.

For the same reason, I block out an hour for lunch. I don’t always take it, and rarely take it all, but it does at least stop meetings from being added when I’d rather be making a sandwich or having a break for something else.

Whatever the reason, you owe it to yourself to make sure you have time to do the things you need to, and that this precious time is not taken away from you. Sometimes difficult to do, as the needs of your work can take priority, but if even some of these times are free and yours to use, then it’s been worth it!

• This post is Day 58 of my #100DaysToOffload challenge. Want to get involved? Find out more at 100daystooffload.com

On another tack, this is an interesting read – What Are Meetings Made Of?

Photo by Elena Taranenko on Unsplash