We’re all busy, but some handle it better than others. There’s also a big difference between having a packed schedule and feeling completely overwhelmed day in and day out. If you feel like you don’t have any free time in your day don’t get frustrated.

The best way to remedy this is to assess your current calendar and routine to find ways where you can save time and still be efficient. Check out these 7 ways to free up a busy schedule to help you get started.

Set Goals

Setting goals is so important no matter what stage of life you’re in because it helps you stay focused. If you aim for nothing, you’ll hit it every time. Take some time to really meditate on your values and ambitions so you can narrow down goals.

Start with a 5-year goal plan then break that down to 3 years and a 12-month plan so you know exactly what to focus on. Sometimes we get so busy being busy that we forget we actually aren’t working toward any goals.

Track a Typical Day

Another easy way to free up a busy schedule is to start tracking your regular activities throughout the day. Just like someone’s who’s trying to clean up their eating habits would keep a food diary, track your activities in order to clean up your schedule so you can stop being so busy.

Be completely honest with yourself and don’t make any judgments until you’ve tracked the entire day or week. Once you have everything written out, you can start to pinpoint where you may not be so productive and can free up time.

Realize that no one is productive 24/7, but you can try to replace some bad habits and fill in your schedule with more meaningful tasks so you can check off your to-do list more often.

Plan the Night Before

The key to having a successful day is planning out the night before. My evening routine is probably more important than my morning routine. Sometimes my mornings seem chaotic and that’s because I don’t plan well the night before.

Take time in the evenings to map out the following day, resolve any messages in your email inbox for the day, plan out your meals along with what you’ll wear, help the kids pack their bags for school, and so on.

I call it ‘power hour’ where I basically do all these things and organize my home in just a short amount of time. This can help anyone free up a busy schedule because you’ll have fewer things to do in the morning.

Say No to Free Up a Busy Schedule

It can be hard to say no to people in the beginning but realize that every time you say no to someone else, you’re saying yes to yourself. Say no to commitments that don’t align with your goals.

Be honest when you don’t have time to jump on a call with someone or have an unnecessary meeting. The more you say no, the more you’ll get crystal clear on what your priorities are. That way, you can focus all your attention on what gets you results.

Time Block

Time blocking allows you to shift your focus from a running busy to-do list for the day, to actually scheduling your day based on the time you have alotted. As the popular saying goes, work expands to fill the time allotted. This means a 1-hour task can take 3 hours if you allow it.

If you give yourself a 90-minute time block to work with, you’ll be surprised at how much you can get done. Time blocking your schedule can be life-changing if you are super busy all the time. Start being honest about how much time you have for certain tasks and set strict deadlines with your time blocks you can get a lot accomplished.

Delegate

There’s only so much you can do on your own. Eventually, you’ll have to delegate if you want to free up a busy schedule. You can start small by outsourcing a few tasks or hire a full-on assistant. It just depends on the needs of your business and the daily schedule you desire.

Consider outsourcing tedious tasks that you’d rather not do, along with administrative tasks. You can hire someone to check and respond to your emails, schedule meetings, send invoices, perform research, etc.

Schedule in Downtime

Downtime is an important part of everyone’s day. Whether you’re taking a nap, reading a book, catching up with your spouse or doing any other leisure task, you need that time to relax and recover your mind and energy.

For busy people who never seem to stop, scheduling in downtime is crucial. If you put it on the calendar, you’ll be more likely to respect the commitment and actually take a break. Plus, you can assess your calendar and choose when to have downtime so you won’t feel guilty for taking the time off.

Summary

Being busy shouldn’t be a badge of honor. You can still be successful and efficient without having a jam-packed schedule. Start to turn things around by tracking what you do throughout the day. Find areas that you can eliminate, consolidate or outsource. Also, don’t be shy about scheduling in downtime.

Adding anything to your Calendar may sound like a strange way to increase productivity. However, productivity is not all about cranking out task after task without interruption. A productive life is typically based on a balanced lifestyle. Extra random tasks on your Calendar will not increase your productivity, but making time for specific tasks can improve your overall productivity. Here are ten things Gen Z should put on their Calendar for productivity.

What tasks will increase your productivity?

Before making time for anything on your Calendar, you should carefully assess the possible benefits. If you aren’t entirely sure about trying something on your Calendar — then consider testing it out for a couple of weeks. Some things may not help you, but other listed items could have a life-changing impact. Everyone is different, so make time for the things that are most useful for you.

Our Gen Z — the true digital natives — have always had business savvy.

Gen Z was practically born with business-savvy. Now, take a look at a Gen Z Calendar. The Gen Zers seem to put everything in their Calendar, and this may be why they are finding a better work-life balance than the rest of us. I asked about a few of the items listed on the Calendar of our Gen Zers on the team. Below are the answers:

1. Sleep.

Although sleeping seems like the exact opposite of productivity, a healthy sleep pattern can significantly increase your productivity. Instead of getting the bare minimum amount of sleep that you need to function, consider making time to get enough sleep to feel well-rested.

Sleeping replenishes your energy reserves and allows you to function at a much higher level. We all know that sleep makes us feel good, but it can lead to an increase in productivity. If you get a healthy amount of sleep, your body will reward you with enough energy to be more productive.

Make time for a regular sleep schedule that maximizes your energy levels for higher productivity throughout the day.

2. Eat health foods — and health food.

Eating healthy can seem like a chore to many of us. It can take time and energy to prepare a healthy meal that you will enjoy. It seems more natural to grab a quick bite from a fast food place or heat yet another unhealthy frozen meal. It takes time to make a healthy choice meal, and it takes time even to eat it. Gen Z puts in the blocks of time to do each action. Fueling your body with healthy food can make a difference in your productivity.

A few ways to make healthy eating less painful includes choosing healthy restaurants to order from — meal prep in advance and stocking your pantry with healthy options.

3. Downtime.

Making time to unwind is an effective way to increase your productivity. Without scheduled downtime, it can be tempting to keep plugging away at your ever-present to-do list. Not only is this an exhausting way to live, but it’s also unproductive.

When you choose to never really stop working, it will drain your productivity because you are never able just to start fresh. Downtime could be a short break in the afternoon, a weeklong vacation, or just enough time to enjoy the evening before bed.

4. Exercise.

Building a healthy body will also help to create a healthy mind. When you make a healthy mind and body, you’ll be more resilient to changes in your workload and prepared to tackle the inevitable challenges.

Exercise leads to the release of endorphins in your body, which are linked to a happier state of mind. Getting through your daily responsibilities while working towards your long-term goals is usually not easy. There will be good days, bad days, and “bad-bads.” Our Gen Z plan for the bad-bads better than the rest of us. A healthy boost from exercise can help make the bad-bads more bearable.

5. Learn something new.

It can seem impossible to dedicate time to anything new in the middle of your busy Calendar. However, learning new things can help you reach your overall goals. It also stimulates your brain and can help you accomplish more with the new information. I’ve put more learning into my Calendar than ever before.

Reading a book, taking a course, or flipping through an article may seem like a luxury you don’t have time for. It can be challenging but make time to learn something new. Even dedicating just a few minutes a day can really help to boost your long-term productivity.

6. Set clear goals.

Instead of vaguely setting goals and throwing tasks on your Calendar, make time to set clear and attainable goals for your future. Think about both your long-term and short-term goals. Decide on the steps that will help you achieve these goals. Finally, schedule the tasks necessary in a reasonable way.

If you don’t set clear goals, then some of your time will be wasted on tasks that do not help you achieve your goals. A clear vision will allow you to plan out your Calendar for maximum productivity.

7. Get outside.

Nature has a fantastic way of making us feel more at ease. When you are tied to your desk for days in a row, sometimes you need a little bit of inspiration to get yourself motivated. Without the right motivation, it can be hard to achieve a high productivity level.

Whether you can take a walk, plan a beach day, or escape to a National Park, a little bit of time outside can help to give perspective to your daily workload.

8. Track wasted time.

Many of us waste time in small amounts throughout the day. Scrolling through your phone or mindlessly checking emails can seriously affect our productivity levels. The worst part is that most of us don’t even realize that we are wasting this much time!

Install an app that tracks your phone usage and let it track you for a few days. It will take a few minutes to set up, but it will be worth it. You may be shocked at how much time you waste on your phone. Try to cut back this time and use it for something more productive.

9. Declutter.

Cleaning out your workspace can seem like a daunting task. You may have months (or years) of clutter piled around you. Clutter can quickly decrease your productivity in a variety of ways.

• First, you may waste time sifting through the clutter to find important things.
• Second, you may feel slightly claustrophobic in your workspace, which can kill your creativity.
• Finally, thoughts that you really should tidy up invade your thoughts daily and distract you from your work.

Make the time to clean up your space. You might be surprised how much your productivity will increase. While you’re here — stick in a plant.

10. Meet with an accountability buddy.

Find someone that you can hold yourself accountable to and make the time to chat regularly. Your buddy should help to keep you on track as you work towards your goals.

An accountable relationship takes time and effort, but it can help you meet your goals efficiently.

The Bottom Line

Your Calendar is already full, but finding the time for some activities could help to increase your overall productivity. It will take some trial and error to find the right balance for your Calendar — but it will be worth the effort.

There are a lot of cool things that you can do with Alexa. For example, you make phone calls, control your smart home, play your favorite tunes, and look-up recipes. You can train Alexa to do pretty much anything you want — including helping you stay organized by syncing with your calendar.

Regardless if you’re using Google Calendar, Office 365 Calendar, iCloud Calendar, or Calendar, here’s how you can connect your calendar to Alexa.

Syncing Your Calendar With Alexa

Connecting your calendar with Alexa isn’t a complicated or time-consuming task. It should only take you a couple of minutes to do if you follow these six steps.

1. Link a Calendar

Your first step is the obviously connect your online calendar with Alexa. To do this, open the Alexa app on your smartphone or tablet — this is in the upper left-hand corner of the screen. If you prefer, you can also do this on your computer on the Alexa website.

Once there, tap on Settings.

2. Calendar Setting

Next, when within the Settings menu, scroll down until you see Calendar. Go ahead on tap on that.

3. Select Your Calendar

Here you can choose from either Google’s Gmail or G Suite, Microsoft’s Outlook.com or Office 365, or Apple’s iCloud.

If you use Google or Microsoft, all you have to do is click the link to your calendar account.

If using iCloud, you’ll first have to enable two-factor authentication. To do this, you’ll need to go into your Apple device and locate the Two-Factor Authentication option within Password & Security to enable two-factor authentication.

4. Sign In

You’ll now be asked to sign on using your login credentials for the specific calendar account you have. So, if you use Google Calendar, then you would enter your Google username and password.

5. Allow Access

Amazon will ask to be allowed to manage your calendars. Just tap on Allow or Accept to move on to the next step.

You should receive a confirmation message informing you that Alexa is ready to use your calendar.

6. Choose Which Calendar to Access

When completed, tap Done, so that you can return to the Alexa app. If you have more than one calendar, then here’s where you can select the specific calendar you want to connect with Alexa. For example, you can choose to connect only your family’s Google Calendar so that everyone in your home is on the same page with schedules and events.

Note that while you can connect to more than one service for your calendar, Alexa only allows you to have one active calendar at a time. You can switch calendars on the Alexa Calendars screen.

If you’re no longer using a calendar, you can remove it by going into the Alexa Calendars screen and tapping on the link to unlink this calendar.

Managing Your Calendar and Schedule With Alexa

Once completed, you can start asking Alexa questions like, “Alexa, what does my week look like?” She’ll then describe your next four appointments. If you want to know more, ask her to share more.

You can also quickly add events by saying a command like, “Alexa, add lunch meeting with Jane for tomorrow at 12 pm.” Alexa will then add the event to your calendar.

Here’s a couple of other useful voice commands you have after linking your calendar with Alexa:

• “What time is my next event?”
• “What’s on my calendar for Tuesday?”
• “What’s on my calendar for tomorrow at 10 am?”
• “Delete team meeting from my calendar.”

You can also grant Alexa access to your contacts to make scheduling events with others a breeze. For example, you could schedule a status meeting with your team for Wednesday at 3 pm. After it’s been created, Alexa will ask if you want to send out an email invitation to the necessary recipients.

To do this, go into the Alexa app and tap on the Conversations button. It’s on the bottom of your screen and is represented by a speech balloon. It’s where you give Alexa permission to access your device’s contacts.

If you have privacy concerns, like anyone in your home or office being able to access your calendar, you can limit access to this information based on your voice. Go into Settings, then Calendar, and select the calendar you want to restrict access to. Then, in Voice Restriction section, tap the CREATE VOICE PROFILE button to set this up.

Alexa’s To-Do-List

What if your online calendar isn’t supported by Alexa?

You can get around this by simply adding an event to Alexa’s to-do-list. For example, “Alexa, add lunch meeting with Jane for tomorrow at 12 pm to my to-do-list.”

You can then ask Alexa what items are on your to-do-list, and she’ll read them to you one-by-one.

Is it laziness, or procrastination? The nice word is procrastination but it’s also very accurate if you’re someone who has a lot on their plate with only so many hours each day to get things done.

Or, you may just be one of those people who push things off until the last minute. Why work on a certain task when you can give yourself 20 minutes of downtime to browse on Facebook or watch a YouTube? Procrastination is common among American workers. In fact, at least 1 in 5 people are chronic procrastinators.

You may feel that you work best when you’re procrastinating and trying to push a deadline, but it can be a very stressful and uncertain way to live 24/7. If you’re tired of dealing with the drawback of pushing important tasks off for later, here are 10 ways to overcome procrastination when it comes to your next project.

7 Ways to Overcome Procrastination

1. Put it on the Calendar

I don’t know what it is about putting stuff on the calendar, but it just makes everything feel official – especially when you’re running a business. Putting tasks on the calendar is a great way to stay organized but it also gives you a hard deadline.

I’m the type of person who thrives on deadlines but I’ve also trained myself to work ahead. You can use your calendar to help you get ahead by pushing some of your deadlines up to avoid procrastination.

This may allow you extra time before the real deadline to check things over or prepare for the next project.

2. Knock It Out First

You know yourself better than anyone. If there’s a certain type of work task or project that you always tend to push off, be aware of that. You’ll definitely want to prioritize knocking that task out first.

Even if you’ve been avoiding the task because you feel it’s too difficult, my advice is to just get started and see what happens. Commit to dedicating 20-minutes of your focused attention and you’re bound to get into a groove with your work and possibly finish the task up in one sitting.

3. Break It Up

Sometimes we procrastinate because things seem too daunting. Whenever you’re faced with what seems like a huge task, realize that procrastinating won’t make it go away or get any simpler.

One of my favorite ways to overcome procrastination is to break up the task into smaller parts. For example, I’ve had 3,000-word articles to write before. To avoid procrastination, I might break that task up over the week or two weeks. One day I can spend 30 minutes doing a detailed outline.

Then over the next days, give myself an hour to write pieces of the content. By the end of the week, I’m almost finished and the task didn’t seem as daunting since I started early and broke the work up.

4. Minimize Distractions

Distractions will only cause you to slow down, be less productive, and procrastinate more. You may have gotten so used to distractions that you actually look for these small or large interruptions in your day.

Take the time to identify your key distractions and set yourself up for success by avoiding them. If a friend or family member is always calling or texting you during the workday, put your phone on airplane mode or silence it for a bit. Establish a morning routine that takes care of all your smaller tasks so you can focus clearly when you sit down.

Work in a quiet place and block certain distracting sites and apps (even if temporarily) to help you stay on track.

5. Promise Someone

Yes, you can promise someone you’ll complete a task at a certain time to avoid procrastination. We make promises to ourselves all the time but tend to break them.

When you promise someone else, it opens up a whole new level of accountability. Have someone follow up with you to hold you accountable for tasks that you don’t want to procrastinate on. This can be a partner, friend, or even a mastermind buddy.

6. Tackle Things in the Moment

Know that stuff is going to pop up and it can overwhelm you in the long run. If you don’t want to let things pile up, try to tackle them at the moment. Smaller tasks like making phone calls, sending email follow-ups, or running errands can all be bundled up so you can take care of them one after another.

Set a ‘power hour’ each day where you commit to tackling these short tasks so they don’t pile up and start to overwhelm you. Also, set goals and intentions for each week so you know exactly what you need to do. Having a clear plan and schedule is one of the best ways to overcome procrastination.

7. Reduce Your Workload

Are you one of those people who says yes to everything? If so, you’re probably a frequent procrastinator. When you bite off way more than you can chew, you leave yourself with very little choice but to procrastinate and push things off.

Start saying no to projects and tasks that don’t align with your vision and mission. Ask for help when you feel overwhelmed and pay attention to when your calendar is becoming too full so you can plan accordingly.

Summary

We all may procrastinate a little from time to time, but it’s important not to let it become an unhealthy habit. If you’re looking for real ways to overcome procrastination, start with this list and focus on what applies to you. It’s also best to determine the root cause of your procrastination and what you can do to solve this issue to truly break free in the future.

40 million. That’s how many people age 18 and older are affected by anxiety disorders in the U.S. alone. To put it another way, approximately 18 percent of the population is affected by an anxiety disorder annually, making it the most common mental illness. Anxiety’s impact on time management is significant.

Even though struggling with anxiety is easily treatable and nothing to be ashamed of, only 36.9 percent seek out and receive treatment. Maybe individuals don’t seek help because they believe that it isn’t a big deal. Some people believe that anxious feelings are just temporary and will pass. Others may view anxiety as a sign of weakness. Whatever the reason — anxiety isn’t something that you should ignore.

When left untreated, anxiety can have a significant effect on you psychologically and physically.

Common symptoms include feeling nervous, restlessness, insomnia, hyperventilation, and nausea. Long-term effects include depression, chronic pain, digestive issues, or substance abuse. Some individuals will have an increased risk of high blood pressure and heart disease.

It shouldn’t be surprising then, that anxiety can also negatively impact your productivity and how you effectively manage time. When your tired and not feeling 100 percent, you aren’t going to have the energy to complete tasks promptly.

Anxiety makes it difficult to concentrate — it’s almost impossible to stay focused on what needs your attention right now.

But, those issues are merely scratching the surface of the trouble anxiety, and its destructive friends will cause you. Time management is your most important factor in success. Here’s a closer look at how stress influences time management.

Anxiety Makes Time Management Impossible

There are five major types of anxiety disorders. Each of these conditions can affect time management and productivity differently because of the various symptoms related to each. For example:

• Generalized anxiety disorder is a condition where you worry excessively about relationships, money, health, or current events. These thoughts are unprovoked and preoccupy your mind.
• Social phobia or social anxiety disorder is when you feel uncomfortable or self-conscious in social settings. As a result, you’ll avoid most social settings, turn down assignments, or not ask for help when you need it. Besides social phobias, you could have an irrational fear, such as a fear of heights. This category of stress impairs your thoughts and abilities from focusing or completing assignments.
• Panic disorders are when you have sudden episodes of fear. In turn, this can lead to physical symptoms like dizziness, increased heart rate, and shortness of breath. Understandably, the last thing on your mind is your work when you experience a panic attack.
• Post-traumatic stress disorder develops following a traumatic event. PTSD can cause symptoms like flashbacks, adverse changes in mood or behavior, or being easily startled. At work, PTSD (or small ptsd triggers) can be a problem if a co-worker unintentional frightened you. Getting back on track is sometimes impossible.
• Obsessive-compulsive disorder is when you have “recurrent, unwanted thoughts (obsessions) or repetitive behaviors (compulsions).” Examples include excessive handwashing and cleaning that provide temporary relief. These “rituals” can be distracting and time-consuming. They can also cause more anxiety if not performed.

“In the workplace, these symptoms can translate into difficulty working with colleagues and clients, trouble concentrating, preoccupation over the fear instead of focusing on work, and turning down assignments because of fear of failure, flying, going into the elevator, or public speaking,” writes Dulce Zamora for WedMD.

Time management can also cause anxiety.

Anxiety is a vicious cycle. As a consequence, making, creating, and sticking to a schedule, which is meant to help you with your time management woes, can trigger your anxiety. “You see, laying out a set schedule rather than making decisions as I come to them turns my entire day’s plan into an obligation,” writes Taylor Blumenberg. “I detest obligations, though I am well aware there is no way to completely avoid them.”

“Being obligated to do something takes away my control of a situation — even if I am the person who planned/assigned/volunteered for the task at hand,” explains Blumenberg. “It is ridiculous in a way, but also easy to understand the thinking behind. When given in abstract terms as above, the concept seems logical; in practice, however, it seems somewhat more absurd.”

Take a little time to figure out the best time management process if you have any of these additional stressors.

Additionally, Blumenberg says that another “issue for me with scheduled time management is the anxiety of timing” since she doesn’t have a great sense of time. Because she doesn’t like to keep track of time, Blumenberg is left “with either large gaps of time between tasks where I have overestimated how long something will take, or I end up racing to finish things in the allotted time.”

Consequently, this “causes stress — not only making, but following, a schedule almost more stressful than just doing things at random as I see fit, without losing any of the control that chasing a schedule forces on you.”

Ultimately, studies have found that anxiety disorders are connected with poor job productivity, as well as short- and long-term work disability. Additionally, it influences all aspects of your business.

Anxiety takes a toll on all business operations.

Perhaps the worst effect of being anxious is that you’ll miss deadlines. Because you can’t focus on your priorities, you may end up procrastinating or spend an unnecessary amount of time battling irrational thoughts.

If you’re working with others, you may avoid your team due to social anxiety.

You may have to ask others for help with your work, which is also stress-producing. Needless to say, this can bring the project to a screeching halt as others wait for you to wrap up responsibilities.

More troublesome? Anxiety can cause you to miss important deadlines.

It could also make others perceive your organization for being a non-collaborative work environment; you may damage your reputation. That may not sound terrible, but it can prevent clients, investors, or potential employees from wanting to work with you.

Finally, you may be anxious enough to be absent from work or loss of motivation. Again, that does almost irreversible harm to your productivity and image. Any of these situations will have an impact on your bottom line and potentially put your business in jeopardy.

The Best Ways to Reduce Anxiety

The good news is that there are simple and effective ways to cope with being anxious. As highlighted in a previous article for Calendar, these include:

• Identifying your triggers so that you can find solutions. For example, if you struggle with social anxiety, then consider working with a therapist or practicing deep breathing.
• Take care of yourself by exercising, eating healthy, and meditating.
• Learn how to self-soothe yourself.
• Do the things that you enjoy to eliminate your stress and focus on the positive.
• Take frequent breaks throughout the day and schedule time off.
• Focus on what you can control and only spend time on those responsibilities.
• Reassess your to-do-lists and ditch whatever is causing your stress. If you can’t completely delete them, then delegate or outsource them to someone else.

Still struggling with anxiety, and it’s impacting your time management and productivity?

One of the best ways to kick anxiety is to know what your triggers are. When you feel a trigger or a trigger takes you by surprise — immediately take a walk, raise your desk and stand for a while, hop on the office bike and watch TV, but, stop the anxiety quickly. Don’t allow the stress to fester even for a second.

I’m a firm believer that you have to save yourself — no one else will.

At home, to keep anxiety from coming to work with you — you can exercise, eat right, sleep right, keep your social connections secure, or take a hot bath. You can keep your creative pursuits going — paint, draw, music, or dance. These things can help you keep stress at bay in the first place.

If you still have some anxiety, consider working with a coach or mentor. Most business coaches and mentors seem to understand anxiety and pressure. Make sure that you also establish boundaries, like saying “no” when you already have a full calendar, and track your time so that you can accurately estimate how long it will take to complete a task.

Need more? Then break down projects into smaller and more manageable pieces to stop anxiety.

Set up a more flexible schedule if this will put your mind at ease. Don’t be afraid to speak with a qualified therapist to help you work through this mental health concern.