How I Manage My Time - 10 Time Management Tips

Key Time-Management, Self-Care, and Productivity Strategies (10 Tips)

1. Take ownership of your time

   • Remember you always have some choice in how you use your time.
   • If you’re not doing something, it’s often because it’s not a priority—not because you truly lack time.

2. Use a “Hell yeah or no” decision rule

   • Default to no for commitments that aren’t clearly “worth it.”
   • Say yes only to things that are genuinely exciting/valuable (“hell yeah”).
   • Keep regret down by getting better at declining lower-priority requests.

3. Use a “Daily Highlight” (one main target per day)

   • Each day, choose one “highlight” task—the only must-do item.
   • Focusing on this reduces to-do list overwhelm and improves follow-through.

4. Keep a to-do list outside your brain

   • The brain is for ideas, not memory.
   • Write tasks down (the original idea uses a physical/analog system, but it can be digital too).
   • Cross items off as you go for momentum and satisfaction.

5. Time block your calendar for the most important work

   • Put your Daily Highlight into your calendar as a block by default.
   • Treat it as “scheduled” so it’s more likely to happen.
   • Adjust if needed, but the block is the safeguard.

6. Use artificial deadlines to beat Parkinson’s Law

   • Work expands to fill the time you give it.
   • Add constraints/deadlines (e.g., “I’ll film next weekend”) even for optional projects.
   • Scheduling creates urgency and prevents projects from drifting forever.

7. Create “protected time”

   • Reserve recurring time (especially mornings) that others can’t book.
   • Use it for deep work or personal restoration (they specifically mention writing time, but it can also be reading/relaxation).
   • Protects focus by preventing Zoom/obligations from taking over the day.

8. Delegate by valuing your time

   • Estimate your hourly value.
   • Delegate tasks you don’t enjoy to help that costs less than your time value.
   • Outsource both home tasks (e.g., cleaning) and business tasks (e.g., data entry via freelancers).

9. Automate scheduling

   • Reduce back-and-forth coordination (time zones, “are you free?” messages).
   • Use scheduling tools like Calendly to share availability via a link.

10. Stop ending the day in self-criticism

    • Don’t measure your day only by “what you could’ve done.”
    • Choose satisfaction: if you completed your intended highlight, that’s a win.
    • Avoid beating yourself up—if it only makes you feel worse without changing results, it’s not helpful.

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Presenters / Sources

• Presenter: Not explicitly named in the subtitles (the speaker is the creator of the video and mentions their own books/courses).

Referenced Books / Authors

• Hell Yeah or No — Derek Sivers
• Make Time — Jake Knapp and John Zoratsky
• Parkinson’s Law — attributed generally as a known principle; no specific author mentioned in the subtitles
• Make Time (again referenced as a favorite) — Jake Knapp and John Zoratsky

Mentioned Tools / Services

• Calendly, Upwork, Fiverr, Skillshare, Rome (app)