Day Five: Review, Catch-Up And Relax

The first step is to review your week. See what you've accomplished on your To-Do list and what's left undone. What do you have to catch up on? What's on that list that just has to be complete before the weekend?

Michael Jackson Relaxing

*Follow up on emails and phone calls - Answer all important messages. Give a final check on Friday and catch up on significant work. Then let it go, don't worry about an emergency someone will call you.

*Saying the word "NO" is easy - Let it roll off the tongue. Don't take on more than necessary. An overworked person will end up doing more harm than good. Enjoy your weekend. It also gives you a chance to wind down before it starts again on Monday.

*Let your weekend be free of work - Leave it in the office even if it may seem difficult. However, guess what it'll still be there for you on Monday.

*Schedule mom time - If you haven't added this to your To-Do list now's the chance. Try relaxing and doing something just for you and/or the family. This can be the most rewarding of all.

This week we just went over the basics. Next week we'll get into more exercises and techniques that'll help you better manage your time.

To Recap:

1. You should have reviewed what you do all day to see where you can make changes to use your time wisely.
2. You should have started a To-Do List.
3. You should have looked over your list to see where you can combine activities to shorten your days.
4. You should have looked over ways to manage time when on vacation and how to use Outlook Tasks to manage your list more effectively.

Day Four - When You're Away

Learning to prioritize when you're away is a challenge. When you go on a vacation you take time out to plan that trip. Do the same with the work you leave behind? Don't panic but prioritize. Make lists or piles and label according to importance.

It can be as easy as printing out your To-Do and breaking it up into smaller segments. Create lists and put the in order of importance, for instance,  Urgent, today, tomorrow, wait to next week and so on. Do only what has to be completed while you're away. The work will still be there when you return. Remember to avoid panicking and stressing yourself out.

You can also use Outlook to prioritize your tasks. A function in their tasks allows for you to color coordinate your schedule, and it helps with grouping your workload. You can update tasks for completion or percent of work finished. The tutorial below will help you get started with Outlook.

Stay on track with Outlook tasks