Are you one of roughly 100 million Americans who wish you had more time during the day to finish all of your work? Recently, the trend of working late and generally spending more time at work has become a common and accepted practice across America. Doing this may allow you to accomplish a few more tasks, but this will also result in less time for your personal life. Instead of sacrificing the proper balance between work and play, try some of these time saving tips:

• First, you have to set specific time-management goals. Doing so will help you learn to keep better track of your time. Allotting specific amounts of time for each task during your day will reveal to you how your time is best spent--and how it is often wasted.

• Try dividing your day into quarters, like a game. For example, if you work an eight-hour day, each quarter will be 2 hours long. Determine which tasks you need to accomplish during the first quarter of your day, during the second, etc. Thinking of your day in a segmented, goal-oriented way will help you create a strong sense of accountability when time is wasted during work.

• If you take longer to help a client because the client was being difficult, the only way to get back on pace might be to skip a break that you normally take. This is OK every now and then, but falling into this habit may be a bad choice in the long-run. Remember: it is proven that taking a short, 10-minute break during each “quarter” of your day will rejuvenate you and allow you to accomplish more than if you never took any breaks.

• If you feel like you are falling behind, be careful which tasks you choose to rush through. Tasks such as folding towels or making empty beds should be done as quickly as possible. As a nursing assistant, you know that tasks involving client care should be done carefully, and with your full attention.

• If you are clearly falling behind schedule, do not be afraid to ask if any of your co-workers can lend a hand. Be sure to keep the difficult tasks for yourself, and see if they can help you with the mundane stuff. If everyone else is too busy, do your important tasks first, and then turn your attention to the daily-maintenance tasks such as laundry and bed-making.

• There are going to be days where it seems like Murphy’s Law is in full effect (whatever can go wrong, will). If you are not able to finish some of your non-client-care tasks, make them a priority for the next day. Do not stay more than 15-20 minutes late to complete such tasks. You’d be surprised how much staying an hour late every day for a week can affect your attitude, your relationships at home, your sleep patterns, and your free time…your entire life!

Remember, break your day into shorter segments and create a set of goals for each segment. This is guaranteed to improve your time-management!

If you've got some great time-saving tips for your fellow CNAs, we'd love to hear them.  Simply add your comments to this blog...or email me at evanleekley@knowingmore.com

Take care,

Evan

Evan Leekley