Do you need to get those all-important corporate gifts and promotional products out on time for every marketing campaign? Is it time you started balancing personal and work-life demands more effectively?

There’s always a way to get your schedule in better shape, and today, we’re going to help you with five best practices for keeping your work calendar organized:

Use One Calendar Only

A lot of people use a work calendar and a personal calendar, which is problematic. It is so easy to double book whilst also making extra work for yourself having to input and edit both calendars. Using one central calendar means you have one main organization system, so you can see how balanced your personal and work life really is.

Eat The (Proverbial) Frog

Mark Twain famously said: “If it's your job to eat a frog, it's best to do it first thing in the morning. And If it's your job to eat two frogs, it's best to eat the biggest one first.”

In time management terms, this means getting the least enjoyable task done first. If your day is full of those tasks, there’s nothing for it but to put the worst of the worst on the top of your list. In other words, eat the biggest frog!

The idea is that those tasks are the ones you are most likely to put off, so once they are done, you will feel like everything that comes after is easy. You’ll also be in a solid position whereby, even if you get nothing else done that day, you’ve achieved something significant.

Put Absolutely Everything Into The Calendar 

Whether you have a video call with a friend, a quick check-in with a client, or a cosmetic tattooing appointment at lunch, it’s essential to put everything into your calendar. Even if you’ve been looking forward to a meeting or appointment for weeks and are certain you won’t miss it, there’s nothing wrong with having a backup.

By inputting tasks into the calendar, you’re giving yourself even more likelihood of remembering what needs doing. No task is too small, and all tasks take time. Once each objective has been completed, tick it off. Ensure your calendar is regularly updated so you have one reliable source of information regarding your schedule.

Value Time Blocks Ahead Of Simple To-Do Lists

Research tells us that 41% of items on to-do lists are never completed. If you want to get more done, switch from a basic tickbox format to scheduled out time blocks.

For example, if you have to write an important email to a client, allocate 30 minutes to do it. Do the same for all your other tasks, and you’ll soon have a visual understanding of how much it’s possible to get done in a day. 

Moving these time blocks into the ideal positions will help you tackle items on your calendar more effectively than if you just had a long list of things to tick off.

Include Down-Time Too! 

Recent media reports tell us that burnout is on the rise, with over 50% of people experiencing it in 2021 (nearly 10% more than before the pandemic). For this reason, it is essential that you put free time into your calendar. Only a healthy, happy you will be able to do amazing things at work, and that means scheduling some time just for you.

You Can Organize Your Calendar For Success

Using the tips above, you can transform your work calendar and give yourself the best chance of having an organized, happy, and productive schedule.