Mamas… this is for YOU! In a nutshell, time blocking is simply dedicating a specific time for specific tasks.
Time blocking allows you to plan your day in sections and determine what you will do with that window of time. I’ve been using this tool for years, and the greatest benefit is that it frees me from thinking of my entire to do list, and lets me focus on the task at hand.
With this pandemic, more people working from home, kids home all day, school at home, added all the extra housework, things can get a bit overwhelming. Time blocking is a simple tool to help with that.
Here are my best tips to do this at home (in the office it’s a different can of worms 😉 ):
1. Designate blocks and stick to them
If you’re in your workout block, go work out. If you’re in your play/family block, go be with your family. If you’re in your work block, hunker down and get it done. The blocks are for YOU, set what you need and adjust according to your reality.
2. Involve your kids
Make a visual aid for them (a clock, a chart…) that they can see what times are for what. At the moment in my house we have mommy time, meals and family. They will soon recognize these blocks and will understand what happens when. A side benefit is that they start learning to tell time. (check my “daily structure” highlight in my instagram for our system)
3. Make your blocks reasonable
A block is not a 10min interval. Your blocks should be at least 1h long, and you have tasks within that time, but the blocks are simply the designations of time. During that time you have a set of things to be done, but the blocks aren’t there for the details, only the timeframe. A meal block, for instance, is long enough to prepare, eat and clean up. A workout block is enough to work out, shower and be ready for the next block.
4. Be realistic
It’s better to give yourself a cushion than to not have enough time. My meal blocks are 1.5h, that means that when the clock gets to that block, I stop what I’m doing, go to prep the meal, we eat, and then I clean the kitchen. I usually have 10-15min to spare at the end of the block, but sometimes I don’t, and that’s why the cushion is there.
In these hectic times of juggling WAY too much, time blocking has meant that I am not spending the day wondering what I should be doing instead, I take care of my body, I play with my kids intensely, I sit down to get some work done (that time block has dwindled but this is not forever), I get meals on the table and my house is not falling apart.
Multitasking is an illusion (more on that another day), and time blocking allows you to focus on what you need to do, and not be distracted by everything else.
Let me know if you have any questions, and I’d love to help you set up a system of your own! DOWNLOAD my free booklet on Time Blocking – making it as simple as possible!
Keeping it simple,
AK