There are dozens of online calendars available, but finding the right one for your needs is only the first part of creating better time management skills. From learning how to highlight the most important parts of your day to learning which calendars allow you to create virtual office backgrounds, using a calendar to better manage your time is essential. This is especially true if you work from home and are required to be a self-starter.
Highlight Important Business Meetings
When you have a busy schedule and multiple appointments or meetings per day, it can be easy for the most important ones to get lost in the shuffle. Nobody likes to rush into a meeting looking disheveled and with their kids hanging off the rafters in the background. Use your calendar to highlight important business meetings in a way that works for you. Sometimes, this will be something as simple as highlighting your meetings in a different color than what the rest of your calendar uses.
Other times, you’ll want to set reminders. Most calendar apps can remind you days, hours, or even minutes before your meeting. Use them all to set periodic reminders that will help to keep your meetings at the forefront of your mind. That way, you’ll have time to create your virtual background with logo to make your meeting look more professional.
Utilize Your System’s Online Scheduling Tools
If you’re like most people who work from home, your various tools each have their own scheduling features. This can get tricky and often leave you forgetting what you scheduled where; that is, unless you learn how to sync all of your calendars. For example, Microsoft has its own calendar system that often pops up for people who use Windows computers. If you use Google Calendar for most of your planning, though, you’ll need to make sure the calendars sync.
Do you use a video chatting service for business meetings? Instead of scheduling in its calendar and then manually syncing it to Google or another scheduling service that you use, see if you can find an app that helps to sync them all. This way, you’ll always know what’s going on no matter what calendar you’re looking at.
Create To-Do Lists
Many scheduling applications also allow you to create to-do lists. If you aren’t using these features, you’re missing out on vital tools. You can use them in a variety of ways. Create one list for personal work goals, such as updating your resume or learning how to use virtual background in teams. Create another for client-specific to-do goals for your job. A third one can be used for personal to-do items, such as grocery shopping or scheduling the kids’ doctors’ appointments. If you find that to-do lists work for you, aim to create weekly and monthly lists as well as daily lists. Be realistic in your goals, though. Two or three prioritized tasks per day is a good starting point.
Remember, like most things in life, finding something that works for you may be a game of trial and error. If one scheduling application doesn’t work for you, try another calendar. If using different colors doesn’t work for you, consider a separate calendar only for work meetings Try different methods until you find what works for you to help you improve your time management skills.
