Top Time Management Problems and Solutions for These Issues

Good time management skills are invaluable in modern society where there are so many distractions that can get in the way of completing your to-do list.

If you don’t have good time management skills, your productivity levels will quickly become affected, and high-priority tasks will get delayed. Poor time management won’t just affect your work performance, though, it can also affect the way colleagues and employees view you, decrease your sense of accomplishment, and you even start to feel very stressed as work keeps piling up.

In this guide, we’ll explore some of the most common time management problems and solutions for these issues that so many struggle with daily.

Time Management Problems and Solutions

Personal and physical problems can affect how you manage your time or your ability to get projects done. Let’s take a look at the most common things that can affect time management at work and the best solutions for these issues.

Procrastination

Procrastination is one of the biggest productivity killers. The term refers to putting off or delaying tasks for as long as possible. As you can imagine, productivity levels are greatly affected because postponing important tasks will eventually affect your entire day and make it difficult to effectively complete all of the tasks, including those you initially delayed or avoided.

Procrastination won’t just affect your time management but can also increase stress and anxiety levels. The more a project is delayed, the more your overall stress levels will increase.

Main Reasons for Procrastination

There are a few things that can trigger procrastination, including the following:

The task feels overwhelming.
You lack motivation to get started.
You strive for perfection and delay the project until you feel that you have the necessary skill and proper focus to achieve this level of perfection.
You do not enjoy the task or find it dull.
There could be a couple of low-priority tasks that require your attention. It’s common to avoid large and important tasks by keeping busy with smaller tasks that are not as important.

Solutions for Overcoming Procrastination

No amount of planning or scheduling is going to ease the project you are dealing with or make it more appealing. But the right strategy can get these types of unpleasant tasks completed faster so you can move on to more appealing tasks.

Here are some strategies for overcoming procrastination:

Set clear goals for the project.
Be clear with your deadline. This will force you to get to work.
Keep track of your progress.
Eliminate distractions by putting your phone away, closing your office door, and removing other items that might interest you.
Force yourself to get started. Sometimes the hardest part is getting started. Once you get to work, the project is often simpler than you initially thought.

Constant Distractions

Frequent distractions are another common time management problem. Our modern lives are filled with distractions. Notifications on your phone can cause you to “peek” at the device. This doesn’t just break your concentration but you can easily get lost in other unimportant distractions while you glance at your phone.

Colleagues talking around you can also capture your attention and will make you lose focus on the task at hand. You can get pulled into the gossip and before you know it, an entire hour is lost and urgent tasks are delayed.

Street noises might capture your attention and cause you to lose focus, head over to the window and start gazing longingly at the bright and sunny day outside of your building.

Main Causes of Distractions

There could be several reasons that you become easily distracted by your surroundings, including the following:

Disinterest in the project at hand.
Feeling overwhelmed by the task.
Mobile and entertainment devices are placed too close to your work environment.
Your office space is not private enough allowing anyone to enter at any time.
A lack of respect from colleagues or family members causes them to constantly intervene while you work.
Mixing personal life with work.

Solutions for Eliminating Distractions

It’s important to understand that it’s nearly impossible to eliminate all distractions. For example, there is little that can be done about street noises or a busy and noisy work environment. There are, however, numerous ways to eliminate some of the distractions so you can stay focused for longer, including:

Place your mobile device in another room so you won’t hear all of those unimportant notifications.
Close your office door to create a more peaceful work environment.
Set clear rules for family or colleagues regarding your working hours so they won’t intervene.
Keep personal life and work life apart.
Redesign or organize your office so there are fewer visual distractions in the form of pictures or other time wasters.
Create a time limit for each project. This will force you to ignore distractions and continue working.
Install apps that block out distractions from social media pages and other unimportant sources.

Prioritizing Social Status

Building strong relationships with colleagues can boost your confidence levels and can create a much more pleasant working environment. While a good social status among colleagues can be good for your sense of accomplishment, don’t let your social status become more important than work.

Popularity can be a time management mistake. While trying to please others, you could start neglecting important tasks.

Common Causes for Prioritizing Social Status Over Work

There are quite a few reasons why you may prioritize friends and family above important work tasks. Here are some common reasons:

Low self-esteem can make you feel inferior unless you have plenty of friends.
The desire to please impressive colleagues can overshadow the desire to perform well at work.
Challenging tasks may trigger procrastination and cause you to focus more on social interaction.
A people-pleaser attitude or the desire to make others happy and like you.
A lack of motivation to get working.

Solutions for Prioritizing Social Status Over Work

While having a social life is important, it’s crucial not to let it get the better of you. Here are some helpful ways to avoid these types of time-wasters:

Schedule your day properly and make room for quality time with friends and family or colleagues outside of the workplace.
Start a day planner and schedule time for social interaction during breaks.
Keep mobile phones with social applications away from your work environment.
Adopt a more professional work habit and stay focused during work hours.
Use apps to block out social media during working hours.

Low Energy Levels

Low energy levels can be a huge productivity killer. Without sufficient energy, you may have a hard time staying awake or focusing while working on products that don’t excite you. It can be difficult to work quickly and effectively if your focus and concentration is scattered all over.

While low energy levels are a health issue, they can have a huge impact on effective time management. Projects will become delayed and a lot of mistakes can creep in when you are physically worn out.

Common Causes for Low Energy Levels

Some health issues, like diseases or medications, can affect your energy levels. Lifestyle choices or bad habits are, however, also likely to cause a lack of drive and constant fatigue. Here are some of the most common causes for these time management challenges:

Bad habits like getting to bed too late or spending time on your phone before going to bed can cause a lack of sleep.
Drinking coffee all day and night will build a tolerance and affect your sleeping patterns.
High sugar intake can cause blood sugar drops making you feel exhausted.
Unhealthy eating habits.
Working for extended periods without any breaks or interventions.
Too little physical exercise or movement throughout the day.
Disinterest in current work projects.

Solutions for This Common Time Management Challenge

It may take some time to fully restore your energy levels, but here are some positive changes you can start making right away:

Adopt a consistent sleep schedule and get enough rest at night.
Switch over to a healthy diet and exclude foods like potatoes, bread, and peanuts that typically make you feel calm and sleepy.
Start using a sleeping tracker and monitor the amount of rest you get.
Cut back on sugar intake.
Reserve coffee for working hours and avoid drinking caffeinated beverages at night.
Find ways to make work more interesting.
Take regular breaks from work throughout the day.
Try to move more instead of sitting in one place all day. (Movement trackers on a smartwatch can be very helpful)
Reduce screen time since it tends to tire out the mind.
Start working out every day.

Failure to Prioritize Important Tasks

Every employee faces high and low-priority tasks during the day. Without good time management techniques, it can be hard to identify the most important tasks or to focus on these tasks first. In the end, all of the small and unimportant tasks may be completed but those crucial projects could end up being delayed.

Why You Might Fail To Prioritize Important Tasks

The task might feel overwhelming and you postpone it because it seems too daunting.
A lack of interest in a specific task or project can make you avoid these types of tasks.
The inability to identify high-priority tasks from low-priority tasks.
Failing to create a to-do list and work schedule.
Spending too much time on certain projects.

Solutions to Help You Prioritize Important Tasks

Start your day by creating a to-do list and placing the most important tasks first.
Use a time tracker and set dedicated time slots for each project.
Ask for help from colleagues when certain projects seem too overwhelming.
Work closely with management and ask more about tasks that are more important or that might cause productivity delays if they are postponed.
Leverage smart apps that can help you list and schedule important tasks.

Failing to Break Down Large Projects

A large project can be intimidating and using the wrong strategy while working on these types of projects can cause you to waste valuable time.

It’s important to break down a large project into smaller sections and to prioritize sections so the most critical foundational steps for each project can be completed first.

If large projects are not broken down, you can end up feeling discouraged before you even start. It’s also more common to procrastinate when you are feeling overwhelmed with a certain project.

Common Reasons to Fail to Break Down a Large Project

Fellow employees don’t know how to break down a large project into smaller sections.
You have a tough time identifying the first steps that are required for getting started on a complex project.
Procrastination has you focusing on tasks that seem easier.
You don’t have sufficient time to plan out the project before you get started.

Solutions For Breaking Down Large Projects

Ask for help from a more experienced colleague.
List all of the important tasks that are due.
Schedule these tasks by priority.
Set a specific time for tasks that are due.
Delegate tasks to other employees or subordinates.
Use communication apps to outsource projects and keep track of each outsourced project.

Taking On More Than You Can Handle

If your workload is too large, you’ll end up neglecting simple tasks that could be done within minutes. An overwhelming workload affects your productivity levels because you can’t effectively check off projects on your to-do list. It can also make you feel depressed and overwhelmed.

Why You Might Be Taking On Too Much

There could be several reasons for your project count to start skyrocketing, including the following:

You want to impress other colleagues or employees by showing off your work skills.
Management doesn’t realize that they are overloading your work schedule.
Failure to communicate your physical abilities or limitations.
The inability to effectively plan out your day can cause you to take on more than you can handle.

Solutions for Reducing Your Workload

Keep your day-to-day workload and daily tasks within your limitations so you don’t end up with overdue projects or work that isn’t completed to a high standard. Here are some tips that can help to reduce your workload:

Communicate your daily schedule with your manager so they won’t overwhelm you with projects.
Set a clear to-do list with time on tasks for each project so management can see when your day is booked full.
Ask for help with projects that are too difficult or too much work.
Prioritize important tasks and focus on these first.

Using Out-of-Date Methods and Software

With an ineffective strategy or a software that doesn’t perform well or suit your project type, it can be difficult to effectively complete projects on your to-do list.

Good software systems or productivity apps can make it easier to break down your project into smaller tasks, outsource these tasks to other employees, and keep track of small tasks that are being worked on.

Some apps also make it easier to effectively communicate with the entire team, ensuring that the project will run smoothly and be completed as swiftly as possible.

Reasons You Might be Clinging to Out-of-Date Methods and Software

If new and refreshing software can make such a difference then why are you clinging to old habits? There might be quite a few possible reasons:

You don’t know which applications or methods to incorporate.
A fear of the unknown causes you to cling to old methods.
Your soft skills are out of date and you have a hard time using modern technology.
Electronic equipment or systems are too out of date to accommodate the new systems.

Solutions for Finding the Right Methods and Software

There are various ways to identify tools that can positively impact your productivity levels. Here are some tips:

Find apps that suit your business type or project type.
Get training to increase your skill level and modernize your methods.
Upgrade your office equipment regularly.
Ask what competitor companies use to track projects or communicate.

Conclusion

There are many things that can intervene with your daily work life and decrease productivity. We hope that the time management problems and solutions we shared on our list will make it easier for you to avoid bad time management habits and increase your overall productivity.

At Top Productivity Apps, we are constantly sharing new guides on the latest and best apps that can help you make the most out of your valuable time. Have a peek at the guides so you can find a good time tracker or time management tool. With the right tools, it’s much easier to plan out your day and you are bound to get much more done.