What’s the best way to do more, save time and feel gratified? What is the best way to be more productive in less time? What’s the ideal technique to manage time? Of course these things sound overrated but in reality, can you increase the number of hours in a day? No, right?

One of the most essential things to be more organized and effective is to understand and value time. Also, understand your energy levels and your routine.

Benjamin Franklin once famously said, “Lost time is never found again.” All of us are a firm believer of this yet, at some point or other, this was an irony for many of us. Every day, we get up with a so-called to-do-list and try our best to finish most of the tasks. We work hard to ensure at least 50% of the tasks are done. But at the end of the day, we know how far we get; because everything comes down to saving time or time management.

If you have been running behind time and struggling to finish tasks despite trying hard (really hard) these simple tips might help.

#1: Break Down Your To-do List – Instead of penning down all the tasks as one nig cohesive list, break it down according to the time each task will consume. For instance, if there are 5 tasks that will roughly take 5 minutes, keep them in one batch. This way you will know the number of small tasks you can finish in a given time.

#2: Prioritize Your Tasks Sensibly – Any task which is on your to-do list, it means it needs to be done. Take a look at all the tasks, and then analyze the urgency of each one of them. And, mark them important, unimportant and urgent, so every time you look at the list, you will know which task to start working on first and which you can procrastinate a bit.

#3: Create A Routine And Stick To It – It doesn’t matter whether the to-do list has more number of small tasks than heavy tasks, before you begin with any; ensure you have a routine in place. For example, if you have certain small tasks that need to be done in the morning before you go off to work, make it a practise of doing it diligently. Even on the days when you are on leave, compromise nothing for your routine.

#4: No Distractions, Whatsoever – When you are investing time on your tasks, it is for a reason – saving time. Also, because you do not want pending tasks or procrastination step in. So, put away your smartphone, Facebook, e-mails, may be people too (if need be). Let no distraction mess your schedule.

#5: Sleep Well, Eat Well And Workout Better – The combination of three is a win-win formula. Adequate sleep keeps your energy levels up, eating healthy and working out keeps you active and motivates you to do more. Do not entertain lack of sleep.

Say hello to a more organized life.