How to Use Time-Blocking for Stress Management

✅ Here’s something that helps me prioritize my mental health and be more productive during my workday. 🔍 What I do: - Schedule focus blocks the first and last hour of my day. - Inform my team that I’d prefer not to meet or be contacted then. - Use the first hour to set my priorities for the day and start working on my most important task. - Use the last hour to track the current status of in-progress tasks and reflect on my day. The result? I’m not as rushed or stressed out during the day. These quiet moments at the beginning and end of my workday help me avoid burnout. And I actually get more work done this way. 📌 Try this if you want to boost your productivity and mental wellness.

🕒 Here's how I reclaimed my time (and sanity) with one simple strategy... My days used to blur together—endless tasks, constant interruptions, and a nagging feeling of never catching up. It was like running a race with no finish line in sight. Sound familiar? - 🚦 The Turning Point: Discovering Time Blocking One evening, buried under a pile of unfinished work and missed deadlines, I stumbled upon the concept of time blocking. The idea? Dividing your day into calendared (!) blocks of time, each dedicated to a specific task or group of tasks. No multitasking, just focused, uninterrupted work. - 🛠 The Implementation: A Skeptic's Journey Skeptical but desperate, I decided to give it a shot. I started small, blocking off just one hour each day for uninterrupted work on my most daunting project. The rules were simple: no emails, no calls, no social media. Just me and the task at hand (along with some Brain.fm to keep me in the zone). - 🌅 The Transformation: From Chaos to Control The results were nothing short of amazing. Not only did I finish that daunting project, but I also found myself getting through my to-do list more efficiently than ever. Time blocking taught me to respect my own time and set clear boundaries for others to do the same. But the real magic? The newfound sense of control and accomplishment at the end of each day. Time blocking didn’t just change how I worked; it transformed how I felt about my work.

I’m big on time blocking— Especially 2-3 hour sessions (if possible). I start with my calendar... I look at meetings, deadlines, deliverables. Then, I’ll reverse engineer the steps needed to ensure I hit those deadlines. For example, if I know I need 8 hours to do something— I’ll break it into 2-3 hour blocks over 3 days. Then, once I understand how much time I need, I map my days out. I’ll start with morning & evening rituals— First up, deep work: that’s my morning mission, from 8/9 to noon. Afternoons and evenings are for creativity— Planning for the next week's success. But I have to keep myself accountable, or it’ll all fall apart. So I work with my mentor, Jeremy Barr— He’s taught me to quantify everything— Just like I budget money, I budget time to ensure I’m spending it effectively. This applies to my business life and personal life— Constantly identifying (and cutting out) time wasters. Because time? It translates directly to your mission. Your mission translates directly to your actions. Your actions translates directly to your impact. Your impact translates directly to dollars. And your dollars translate to freedom. How do you budget your time?

My lessons in time management from running a 2-person company with >30 corporate clients: It was only when I started my first company that I TRULY understood the importance of time management. I was running sales, product design, customer support, marketing and finance. If I didn’t get things done each day, our company did not move forward. Good time management helped me achieve our goals and stay sane (most of the time). The research supports this too - according to a Stanford University report, good time management makes you more likely to achieve your goals and have lower stress levels. Here is my simple formula for WHAT, WHEN and HOW to get the important things done: First, deciding WHAT to work on… You need a system for prioritizing. You will always have more tasks than you can do.  I like these three frameworks because they are simple: 1/ 80 / 20 Rule 2/ ABCDE Method 3/ Eisenhower Matrix You only need one. Try one for a week, and if it doesn’t work, try another. I do a version of 80/20 where I look at my life and ask myself: “In 1 month’s time, what are the 1-3 things that I will regret not making progress on?” This could be getting a new job or improving relationships with your partner or friends. It means some things will fall by the wayside (e.g., life admin), and your life may be unbalanced for a while. That imbalance is 1) not permanent and 2) the price to pay for achieving your goals. Now, WHEN to work… I recommend doing these 3 things: 1/ Identify and use your most productive hours effectively ↳ This means if you have a 9-5 job and are a morning person and you want to change job, you should get up 1-2 hours earlier and use that time to work on your dream.  ↳ Yes it sucks. But less than doing your current job forever :). 2/ Work in time blocks ↳ 2-hours for each block is ideal. ↳ Context switching kills your concentration and energy. 3/ Batch together similar tasks ↳ Try to do all your calls in one batch and all your small tasks in another, etc. Then finally my take on HOW to work effectively: 1/ Break work into 25-min sprints.  ↳ Leave the timer in front of you to create urgency and pull you back when you get distracted. 2/ Give yourself a goal for each sprint.  ↳ Again helps to create urgency. 3/ Use caffeine  ↳ Matcha for me. Yerba mate tea is also great! Try to avoid within 10 hours of bedtime. 4/ Keep your phone away from you ↳ And use app blockers on your computer. 5/ Get good quality, consistent sleep ↳ Good sleep -> good focus. 6/ Reflect and review ↳ Write down what worked and what didn’t and repeat! If you ask an 80-year-old what they would give for more time, their answer is everything. Don’t let yours fly by. P.S. What is your top tip for mastering your time? --- ♻️ Repost this to help your network become top performers. 📌 Want a high-resolution PDF of this? 1. Just follow me Will McTighe 2. Sign up for my free Level Up Community at lnkd.in/gKzZUq-b

A client of mine is behind on work, but isn’t freaking out and actually feels incredible… He told me this in a recent session we had. I was totally blown away. Near speechless. For some context, this was coming from a high powered attorney at one of the nations largest and busiest firms. He routinely bills 3000+ hours per year. Needless to say, he’s a really busy guy. But, he had a bad habit with his phone. He wasted hours a day on it: - Going down rabbit holes - Watching useless YouTube videos - Falling victim to the negative news media AKA - Doom scrolling and binging. This left him mentally drained, behind on work, feeling guilty, and then needing to rush and play catch up like mad. And the cycle would continued. I said I could help him break the cycle, reclaim his time, and find ways to enjoy what he was doing without being rushed. First, we identified the root cause behind why he was so attached to his phone. It was a means of escape for him. Next, we found the triggers that caused the behavior, for him it was feeling overwhelmed and overworked. We came up with 3 solutions for him: 1. Ditched his smart phone and got an old school flip phone, immediately changed the game. Smart phone on weekends. 2. Relentlessly and ruthlessly started time blocking sessions 2 X per day. 90 mins of uninterrupted focus. 3. Begin stressing the process and enjoyment of his work, not just the end point. These 3 things shifted his way of thinking about his work flow in only 2 weeks, a change 20 years in the making. And so, why’s he feeling incredible being behind on his work and knowing he has so much to do in order to catch up. He knows he has the habits, systems, and routines in place to get caught up, yet not feel rushed or overwhelmed. More importantly, why’s he behind? He took 2 days off last week for his nieces wedding, parents in town, and lots of fun. Enjoying a long weekend with family and friends. Being present and not hurried. Spending more time doing what he loves with the people that he deeply loves. He felt no guilt or shame taking time off because he was fully present and he knew his new habits would help him easily get caught up. We all want more time. We all want more freedom. We all want more experiences. But you have to build a life with intention, purpose, and fulfillment to do just that. You get to decide what that looks like. I can help you craft that better life. So you can stop just surviving. And finally start thriving. PS When’s the last time you were behind and didn’t feel totally hurried or rushed? PPS Getting Harley to smile is as simple as scratching the right spot on her neck. Maybe, it’s treats hidden in my pocket.😂

Two years ago, I embarked on a journey that completely transformed the way I manage my tasks and productivity. I swapped my traditional to-do lists for a method that has been an absolute game changer for me: Time Blocking ⏰🗂️. For those who may not be familiar, time blocking involves scheduling specific blocks of time on your calendar for dedicated tasks or activities. Instead of merely jotting down tasks on a never-ending list, you allocate set periods for each task, creating a structured roadmap for your day. 📅✅ Here's why time blocking has been a game changer for me, especially someone who has battled with ADHD my whole life: 1️⃣ Increased Focus: By assigning specific time slots to tasks, I minimize the chances of drifting off into distractions. It keeps me accountable and on track. 2️⃣ Reduced Decision Fatigue: Time blocking eliminates the need to decide what to do next; it's right there on my calendar. 3️⃣ Improved Time Management: I can better estimate how much time I need for each task, making it easier to manage my day effectively. 4️⃣ Accomplishment and Motivation: Crossing off completed blocks provides a sense of accomplishment and boosts motivation. 5️⃣ Flexibility: While it may seem rigid, time blocking allows for adaptability. I can adjust my schedule as needed, ensuring that my ADHD doesn't feel stifled by a rigid routine. I've found that time blocking not only helps me stay productive but also reduces anxiety and overwhelm. 🌊✨ In this new year, if you are seeking a more structured approach to your daily tasks, I encourage you to give time blocking a try. It might just be the game changer you've been looking for! 💡💼 Have you tried time blocking before, or do you have other strategies that have been effective for task management? Share your thoughts and experiences in the comments below! Let's learn and grow together. 🌱💬 #ADHD #Productivity #TimeBlocking #PersonalGrowth Curious to hear how some of my inspiring CEO/Founder friends tackle personal task management: Josh F. Frank Rogers Tressa LoVasco Sarah Malcolm Oksana Mindyuk Malysheva Carrie Bobb Beth Azor, The Canvassing Queen Nancy H. Mozzachio Sine Qua Non RE Advisors Deena Zimmerman Allison S. Weiss Ada Arevalo Nate Zinsser DeLea Becker Camille Renshaw Erina Malarkey Andrew Flint Matt Giffune Will Trepp Lezlie Tram, CEO Amy Calandrino Veronica Malolos, CCIM Andy Gutman