Simple is Better – Mastering Time Management: Being Realistic About What You Can Achieve

Ephesians 5:15-17 – Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.

It happens to me. All. The. Time.

I’m not realistic about how much time something will take. Or how much I can get done in a day. What I can achieve. I overestimate what I can get done and underestimate how long something will take.

Day after day after day.

Well into my middle-aged years, you’d think I’d have this figured out by now?

Wrong. Even with the projects or things that I’ve done many, many times, I still underestimate how long something will take. And the bigger projects? Whew. I’m way off. I am not realistic about what I can achieve.

On really full days, sometimes I write down what I will focus on each hour during the day. Two hours into it? I’m totally off track. Something got added. I got distracted. Now, I’m juggling what to leave behind and what absolutely needs to get crossed off the to-do list. Even when many of those things do get crossed off the list, I tend to focus on what I didn’t get done than what I did. And what about those things that I think of throughout the day that get added to the list? I can do a few more things today, right?

Wrong.

Anyone else feel my pain? Even a teeny-tiny bit?

So what really is the challenge?

Most often, my to-do lists are a lot more aspirational than realistic. I’ve tried the “pick the three most important things for the day” method which gets tied to the “do the most important things first” encouragement. Problem? The most important items often take more time. Honestly, I just want to feel like I’ve completed something. So, I do what I think are the “quick” things. The items that shouldn’t take too much time. The quick items I can do and cross something off the list. (Do you see a theme here? I really like to cross things off.) But then, I underestimated how much time they take. A phone call comes in, an email seemingly needs an immediate answer. Suddenly, those three really important things? They are glaring back at me, totally untouched.

This is the story of life. We only have so many hours in a day and so much energy to put towards the really good stuff. Too often, I find myself focusing on the wrong things. I give the easy stuff more attention while the seemingly more important things take a back seat. Get shoved aside. Shelfed for another day.

In an effort to get a better grip on time, I’ve tried various processes to help me. Decades ago, I attended a Franklin-Covey time management class. Yes, it was helpful. For years, I drug around a thick, heavy Franklin planner. In one move, keeping all of them seemed ridiculous so they disappeared. Since then, I’ve tried journals, notebooks and Excel spreadsheets. I’ve coded things, tracked multiple things and made more lists than a human being ever really should. For the most part, I am an organized person. Having an organized house keeps my heart quiet. When my environment around me feels chaotic, then my whole being feels this way.

Well, except my office. Yes, there is structure and organization. But there are always a couple too many piles. Paper and books and projects demanding my time and attention. And this, my friends, is where time seems to disappear into a dark, deep hole. Every few months, I go through the piles. Eliminate those who no longer are deemed “important.” Try to “get organized” once again and commit to staying on track.

Until. Until the unexpected happens. Plans get derailed. Once again, I choose the “easy” over the “bigger, more time consuming project” and find myself barely keeping up once again.

Why do I share all of this? I’m convinced that I’m not the only person who struggles with these challenges. I know I’m not. Regular conversations confirm this. While is helpful to know others have this same struggle, I want more than commiseration. I want things to get better.

So what is a person to do?

·       Focus on progress. This is one of the newer things I’m trying out. Just make progress. Little steps are better than no steps. Maybe I didn’t finish an entire project. Maybe this shouldn’t be the goal. Maybe progress can be enough for today.

·       Break down bigger projects into more manageable smaller steps. I often say, “We can’t eat the whole pie in one setting. It’s one piece at a time.” This correlates to so many other areas of our lives. Our brains get overwhelmed with the “big” project. It’s too big and too daunting. When we pinpoint one small step, it feels manageable. Doable.

·       Personally, I feel like one of the biggest hurdles in all of this is how my brain thinks. When my brain feels something is hard, it does not want to start. Overwhelmed, it looks for distractions. It procrastinates. It comes up with lots of not-so-important things to focus on instead. How do I get my brain to think differently? Give it grace. Encourage it. Focus on what I did well yesterday rather than being critical of what I didn’t accomplish. Too often, I speak rather critically to myself. Sometimes, I have to be honest with myself. Would I speak to another person this way? I sure hope not. So why is it OK to let myself treat myself this way? It’s an honest question.

·       Say, “No” or “Not yet.” Often, there are things we’re hanging onto that are not ours to grip so tightly. There are times when we simply need to let go. Maybe it’s not as important as we think. Then, we get to decide if it’s definitely something we can just let go of or we delay it for now. Our brains can’t hold everything. This is where knowing when to say, “No” or “Not yet” is so important. Save your precious bandwidth for the really important things and let some of the rest go.

·       Another alternative? Delegate. Again, an area that I’m not super good at. It feels a lot easier for me to fill in the gap for someone else than asking and allowing someone else to help me. I’m trying to focus on the things that really are mine to hold onto and let the rest go or invite someone else to help with. I’m not sure that I’ll ever be really good at this. I’m focusing on progress.

·       Keep rooted in Jesus. When Jesus visited sister Mary and Martha’s house, he appreciated how the contemplative Mary sat at his feet and drank in every word he shared. On the contrary, Martha ran around like an overzealous busy bee. Frustrated that her sister wasn’t helping her, she enlisted Jesus’ help. His response to her probably floored her. “Slow down, Martha,” he might have said. “You are focusing on the wrong things. Mary has chosen well and it won’t be taken from her.” Several years ago, I wrote basically a letter to myself about this story and turned it into a book. Writing a book on this topic doesn’t mean I’ve solved the problem. It simply means I’m aware and trying to make different choices. I would say that how I view my daily life has shifted. Do I still struggle. Hmm, yes. When I stay rooted in Jesus, I see how he took time away to simply be with God. He realized that he couldn’t do it all. He gave himself permission to find joy daily and know when his bandwidth was exhausted. Why should I follow his model rather than always expecting more of myself?

Honestly? I’ll probably struggle with time management for the next period of my life just as I have for the first five-plus decades of my life. And this is OK. What I do hope to finetune is my consultation with God about these things. What wisdom am I missing? Where I am depending too much upon myself and not embracing God’s guidance? These are the points that I think are worth pursuing daily and pray I embrace this.

Blessings –

Dianne

Gracious God – Help me be honest with myself and with You. To identify where I struggle. To realize that You love me even when I disappoint myself. Help me sort out these persistent challenges in my life and know You journey with me through them all. Amen.

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