WFH Tips for Busy People: Aggressive Calendaring

Photo by Eric Rothermel on Unsplash

I don’t know about you, but I perform best when I use systems to stay organized. Here's how I've optimized my Calendar to also be my time sheet and my to do list:

Passive Scheduling I use Calendly to schedule meetings. Its a massive time saver! Rather than go back and forth with a client or prospect with times that work, only for them to be outdated by the time the other party responds, I can send a link to my schedule once and the other person can pick whatever time suits them. The link is always up to date so whenever that person looks, they have my latest availability.

Tasks I keep track of my to do list by making them Tasks in my calendar. I set most of them all day so they sit at the top of the calendar where I can see them easily. If I know they will need a block of time to complete I edit them to fill a time block. I move them ahead to the next day if I don't complete them.

Time Blocking I love time blocking. I stay organized by blocking 20, 30, 45 or 60 min increments of time to focus on specific tasks or projects.

Color Coding I keep time for each client a consistent but different color. This allows me to go back at the end of a day or every few days and account for how much time I spent on certain tasks and clients.