12 Ways to Make More Free Time during the Day ...

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Take an hour with absolutely no interruptions, longer if you can. Use it to analyze your life. Take a look at all the elements of your life. Are you where you want to be? Do you have time to do the things you love? What takes up most of your time? Consider what is important to you, and prepare for change!

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Instead of making a to do list, make a list of the things you want to have time for or dedicate more time too. Don’t forget the things you already do, unless you want to cut them out. This is your list of things you really have to find time for.

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See what really takes up most of your time. Is it facebook, reading the jobs page, your trip to the gym or tidying up every morning? Make a list of your biggest time consumers. This will give you a better idea of what changes you need to make.

Take your essentials list, and schedule them in with a block of time every week. Don’t underestimate how long things will take or you will over run. Include everything you want and need to do.

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Look at the things which take up a lot of time, and see if you can consolidate them. How about doing all the housework on one day and trying to keep it tidy, rather then spending hours every day repairing the damage of living messily? Or running all your errands on one day, in one car trip?

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Routines are tricky, as we are used to doing things one way. Look at yours, and see if it still suits your life. If you are short of time in the day, could you shower at night? Would waking up five minutes earlier give you more time to relax with a coffee before the stress of the day? See if your days need a revamp!

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Learn to say no to things you don’t want to do, don’t have to do or just can’t do. Saying yes to everything will always take up absolutely all your spare time, and completely stress you out. Be protective of your free time!

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Make a to do list for every day, but put only the three most important things on it. Make sure you have the time to do them, and don’t plan anything else. There is nothing more demotivating then a huge list of things to do!

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Pick the biggest task, and start with that first. Most people make the mistake of starting with the smallest and saving the biggest till the end, but you’ll be tired and getting restless by the end of the day, so it’s much easier to complete smaller tasks.

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Utilize your workforce! Get the children to help with exercising (dancing to the radio or running round the garden), housework (hoover races and washing up!) and anything else they could do. Even tidying is much faster with two...

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Turn off the internet and unplug the phone when you are busy. Between reading forums, checking the news, looking at blogs, reading your emails and searching for information, it’s no wonder everything takes you twice as long.

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Grab some lunch, and evaluate how well your day is going. Have another look at your schedule for the day, and take a few minutes to enjoy your food. Then fit in whatever you can.. .a quick exercise session, a walk, some me time? See what you can do to maximize your time.

Once you start using these tips every day, you’ll soon have much more free time, and find yourself getting much more done, too! I feel a lot more relaxed and content, and don’t struggle with huge to do lists anymore. Have you got a tip for maximizing your time? Please share it with me!

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