When you’ve got a lot on your plate, you can tend to get stressed, become inefficient and stagnate instead of moving forward. Stress is of course bad for your health, and for some people (including me), it can also have a “paralysing” effect. So how can we improve our time and task management, knowing that we may have to switch from one subject to another, without any link between the two?

When I became a mother for the first time, I almost immediately wanted to take a productivity course. I was desperate to learn all the secrets of time optimization, so that I could get everything done and stop spreading myself too thin. Over the years, I’ve fine-tuned my techniques, and even though I can sometimes lose track of things and get scattered again, losing my efficiency, I quickly get things back under control.

At first, I was determined to do as much as I could in a day. But then I realized (and accepted, above all) that you can’t do EVERYTHING, and that you have to choose your battles.

1 – SETTLE DOWN BEFORE TAKING THE PLUNGE
I was the first to jump into my “work” slots as soon as my son went down for his nap. I’d jump on my computer, with the best intentions in the world, to get things done “fast, fast”, and yet, by the end of the nap, I felt like I’d done nothing. I’d spread myself too thin, started tasks that I hadn’t had time to finish, because they’d led me on to other, more urgent tasks, etc… Stop everything and settle down.

2 – DEFINE WHAT’S REALLY IMPORTANT
Before embarking on any work, it’s essential to take the time to list your tasks and arrange them in order of priority and urgency. You need to ask yourself what’s important now, what project would you like to see completed (in whole or in part) in the next 3 months? Once you’ve agreed to put aside certain things that are less important/urgent than others, you can list the major tasks that will enable you to move forward, and finally, you can break them down into smaller tasks if that helps. Once we’re clearer and we’ve got the most important things, we can draw up our daily to-do list with the 3 main tasks for the day and breathe.

3 – PREFER PERFORMANCE TO SPEED
It’s better to work less quickly and better than quickly done badly. If a task ends up taking longer than expected, that’s fine… as long as you finish it properly! Other tasks can wait. Quality over quantity!

4 – STAY FOCUSED
We need to know how to silence distractions around us – as far as possible – to be able to devote ourselves effectively to our tasks. Close browser tabs that have nothing to do with the task you’re embarking on, set a timer, turn off or block your phone…. focus. If you feel that your thoughts are running all over the place, you can take 5 minutes to write in a notebook to clear your head, or, even better, take 10 minutes to meditate.

5 – LEARN TO SAY “NO
It’s hard the first few times, but practicing how to decline politely and respectfully is perfectly possible. Whether it’s a customer who tries to take advantage of your kindness, a boss who makes you work much harder than expected (in terms of hours or tasks initially agreed), proposals that you don’t feel are essential at the time they arrive (this could be professional collaborations or outings or events organized by family or acquaintances), learn to listen to yourself, so as not to sink into the accumulation of promised things.

6 – REMAIN FLEXIBLE AND TOLERANT WITH YOURSELF
It’s so easy to blame ourselves because we didn’t manage to complete a project on time, or because we didn’t reach our objectives… However, to remain effective, it’s better to be flexible (adjust your schedule, admit that there are things to change in what you thought you’d achieve, admit that you need to delegate, etc, etc) and tolerant with ourselves (instead of blaming ourselves).

7 – TAKE A BREAK OR A MOMENT FOR YOURSELF
This is something I really need to work on these days! It’s now June, and it’s hard for me to take my foot off the gas before taking the two kids back full-time all summer. And yet, giving yourself a moment to yourself (even 10 minutes a day!!) allows you to be more efficient and less stressed. It’s like taking a step back to take a step forward!

The key to a more serene day lies in good organization, letting go of the idea of doing everything, and remaining kind to yourself.