How to manage time and get more of it?

 After the carefree use of time during the summer, I started to think about how to maintain the possibility of using time for other than the obligatory chores. Why do people seem to return to everyday life full of worry and stress about upcoming work and obligations? Why do so many proudly proclaim their own urgency?

I’ve always loved everyday life, so the end of the holidays didn’t really worry me. I still wanted to stop and think about how I could use my time better. Makes sure I have more time for the things and people that really matter. I put the following tricks to the test:

1. I switched to an electronic calendar. The idea of beautiful handwriting and flowers on the pages of the calendar is fascinating, but in reality my own calendar was full of cross-outs and scribbles. A paper calendar is also far too easy to overbook. I decided that now is the time to totally give up on it as a time management tool and move to the 2000s.

2. I also marked free evenings in my calendar and decided not to miss them. I also use color codes and make sure that the tasks I prioritize the most time for are those that genuinely bring me joy and I find them meaningful. Here, too, I notice how important it is that thoughts and actions are in line. The look of the calendar became much more inspiring. When there are all the things I want to do, and not just the obligatory, everyday chores.

3. I removed the social media icons from my home screen and limited their use to the agreed times. I installed the Moment app on my phone and the answer I got was the harsh truth. Contrary to my imagination, I spend twice as much time answering emails and messages as I had imagined. I also removed all alarms and beeps. I feel that this brought much more peace and space to focus better on each moment.

4. I set aside dedicated time each day to read e-mails and marked it clearly in my calendar. This small change has noticeably improved my efficiency—no more constant checking to see which messages are urgent and which can wait. With 15 minutes scheduled each morning for the most pressing emails and a longer session in the afternoon, I now manage my inbox with more focus and calm.This way I can be sure that all messages will be answered.

5. Nowadays, I include something really nice in every day. Something that gives you energy and I mark it in my calendar. This has been perhaps the best change. Now it doesn’t matter even if there are a lot of chores to take care of for some day when I know that there is also that moment for me.

I hope you can enjoy what you are doing and come up with more ways to help relieve negative stress, which sometimes creeps into our everyday life in the form of a rush.