Applying essentialist principles for better time management

Using essentialist skills can help you better understand tasks, focus on your work, and even learn to say no. CREDIT: UNSPLASH

CHEN CHEN

Essentialism is leading a lifestyle that honours the mindset of “less, but better.” In Leadership and Business Strategist Greg McKeown’s book Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less (2014), he introduces the idea of essentialism, which means focusing on the vital few tasks that are important to us instead of the trivial many. McKeown believes it’s better to commit to a few things and do them really well than commit to a lot of things and perform average on them.

As depicted in the diagram to the bottom right, it’s important to direct our limited energy to the few tasks that really matter to us instead of having our energy pulled in 100 directions.

As a busy university student, I am sure that you can relate to having many tasks on your plate. The essentialist mindset might give you new insight on how to manage your tasks. McKeown’s suggestions might help you to re-examine your task list and focus on the ones that really matter.

1. UNDERSTAND THE TASKS BEFORE COMMITTING TO THEM

what knowledge and skills you can develop from finishing the task. How is the task lining up with your bigger goals? You can also use the following questions to narrow down the tasks that you want to commit to: • What am I good at? • What do I enjoy doing? • What do people need the most?

Try to find the tasks that lie in the intersection of these three questions and channel your energy in that direction.

Another tip is to frequently review your task list. Sometimes we let ourselves run on autopilot and check things off of our to-do list without realizing how they contribute to our goals. There is value in pausing and stepping back to reflect on what we’ve accomplished. Do those tasks line up with your goals? What did you learn from them? Schedule some reflection time in your weekly or monthly calendar and use it to review your task list and prune out the tasks that don’t contribute to your goals. when they no longer benefit us. For example, we hold on to a shirt that doesn’t fit us because it was an expensive purchase, or we agree to do things that we don’t want to do in order to avoid hurting others.

However, your friends and other people may appreciate it more if you are honest with them and say no. For example, politely saying no to a friend who needs a partner for a project and explaining that you don’t have the time to do a good job on the work is better than committing yourself to a task that you are only able to invest in half-heartedly and that takes you away from your own priorities.

Finally, it is important to set boundaries. If you don’t, other people will set them for you. Knowing where your lines are is important because it helps you to make better use of your limited time and resources. Knowing when to say no is just as important as knowing when to say yes, and this keeps you focused on the tasks that serve your longterm goals.

2. DARE TO SAY NO AND DECOMMIT

3. EXECUTE THE TASKS WITH FOCUS

Have you ever continued to work on a task even though it no longer benefited you?

One of the common biases that we have is called the “sunk cost bias.” This refers to the tendency to hold on to things that we have already invested in even

Now that you’ve decided which tasks to work on, the next step is completing them. Here are some strategies that can help you to stay committed and focused on your goals. • Firstly, remember to refocus your attention when you find yourself getting distracted. It’s totally normal to get distracted and lose track of what to focus on. Whenever you find yourself distracted, ask yourself this question:

“What is the most important thing to work on right now?”

This is a powerful question, and you will know the answer intuitively. Then, divide your work on the task into shorter time intervals and focus on the task at hand and things that you have control over. • Secondly, focus on the small wins. Sometimes people believe they need to have big achievements to accomplish big tasks. All tasks, big and small, start with minimal achievements and small wins.

Focusing on the small wins can help you stay motivated and focus on the task at hand. • Finally, consider adopting an essentialist lifestyle. This means that at times you may get derailed by trivial matters, but always take time to review the tasks that you are working on and understand how they contribute to your larger goals. Then, try to direct your focus on tasks that really matter to you.

This exam season, use these essentialist strategies to save yourself time and energy for your most crucial tasks so that you may perform at your best.

Essentialist

Non-Essentialist