Have you heard of Parkinson’s Law? It’s the idea that work expands to fill the time available for its completion.

So for example, if you know you have three hours to write a press release it will probably take you three hours to write it. Whereas if you only have 40 minutes—you’ll find a way to get it done in those 40 minutes available. Parkinson’s Law fits with lots of other things in life too; whatever you’re earning is probably what you’re going to spend. 

This was a really big lesson for me when it came to time management. If I’m going to be conscious of the time I’ve got to spend, I want to be setting accurate limitations to how much time I’m going to spend on a task. This required me to be incredibly disciplined in order to STICK to those times.

Have a think about what your goals are when it comes to getting work done. Are you happy to be answering emails at 10 o’clock at night or are you the person that wants to switch off when you leave the “office” and then not do anything else until you get to work the next day? 

And more broadly, what are your goals of what you’d like to achieve in your ideal week? If  you want to make sure that you’re seeing your mother once a week or that you’re reaching out to a girlfriend that doesn’t live locally, but you’re not intentionally making time for that in your ideal week, put bluntly—it’s just not going to happen.

It’s all about creating habits. 

For me, always on my list was I wanted to see my nan once a week. My nana only lives 20 minutes away from me, but I found that until I actually put it in my schedule and made it a priority I would get to the end of the week and go, “Oh, I didn’t see nana again this week. Oh, I better give her a call.” And I wondered why it never actually happened. 

But when you find time to put those goals into your ideal week, then those goals will end up happening. 

We can always find more time when we acknowledge what it is that we are spending too much time on! Remember: Parkinson’s Law.

So, I want you to have a think, not just about your work life, but about your entire life.

Are there things that you want to put into your ideal week that will need their own little bit of allocated time? And if so, where can you find efficiencies to ensure those things can and WILL happen.

A great place to start is with a simple time tracking exercise. You can catch up on how to do that HERE.

Next month I’m hosting a 4-week Mini Program stepping you through the exact process I’ve used to get in control of my weekly schedule. This process has enabled me to find more productive time in my days, get organised, and ultimately remove the feelings of stress, chaos and guilt I was constantly experiencing.

The whole time management process for me has been life changing, and I want the same for you.

I’m limiting the number of registrations to ensure the program is as personalised as possible, so if you want in on the early-bird registration, send me an email or a DM on Instagram @simplystaceymorgan. I’d love to have you join me.