In this article, you will learn some practical time management tips. This guide is written for software developers who aspire to get more shit done. One of the biggest secrets of great time management is learning to swap non-productive time for productive time. This simple change will allow you to get a lot more stuff done. It is honestly amazing if you can learn how to master this simple trick. In this article, I will show you a process to master this.

The process is to find the wasted time. Create a good habit and swap it for good times. Recently I had a conversation where someone asked how I fit so much in?  So you are aware, I raise a son, I run about 100K a week, I go to the gym 5times, I write a book,s, I publish two blogs posts per week, one youtube video, I publish a newsletter, I also learn new tech and do things.  I also hold down a job where I manage a number of people.  This may sound dislike a lot, however, for me, it doesn't feel too bad.  I still have times to spend time with the wife and kids, I go to the pub and drinks, see friends, go on holidays. I also watch a lot of TV and movies just like everyone else. So how do I do it?  In this video, I will walk you through my process.  

Understand Where You Are Spending Your Time

Before you can improve anything you need to measure it. Measuring your time online is simple using tools. From my experience the best tools that I have found include:

After having visibility on where you are spending your time, commit to swapping 30 minutes to one hour of non-productive time for a productive time. This does not mean you have to be productive 24/7. All you need is to find 30mins to 1 hour to focus on valuable learnings.

Write Down Your Big Goals - 12 Week Year

Now we have some free time, the next thing is to figure out how to productively use that time. There are many different ways, and tools to write your goals now (I listed a number of them in this post).

When learning to manage your time better, you need to learn how to focus your time on the correct things. The system that I am currently using to define my goals is the 12 Week Year. I have previously written about the 12 week year at the start of this year and outlined my experiences using it. You can see these posts here:

The premise of the 12 week year is simple. Instead of doing an annual goal-setting session at the start of the year, you treat a year as a 12 week period. Every 12 weeks is treated as a brand new year. Sit down and create your new year's goals. Having shorter time spans will create more urgency and make you do it.

Daily Todo List - Journal Daily

With your big goals defined, you need to make sure that your daily actions are working towards those steps. This is done by doing a morning to-do list.  Organize it. Look at your 12 week year and make sure you are making one close step towards it. I am currently using the million-moment journey available here. I probably recommend looking at the 6 Minute Jpurnal

Learn when you are most productive - Make use Of Insomnia

Ever wake up at 3 am in the morning ruminating? Instead of tossing and turning all night, what happened if you forced yourself to get up and did an hour of productive work, like write a long post?  After an hour you will be tired and you will fall back to sleep.  I use this a lot and instead of wasting hours tossing a turning

You may sleep like a baby at night, however, the point is finding deadtime and make it valuable.