20 Quick Tips for Better Time Management and More Free Time

20 Quick Tips for Better Time Management and More Free Time You’re banging your head against the desk trying to multitask, but you just don’t feel like it’s working. Here are 20 life hacks that can actually help drive up your productivity and help you get your incredibly efficient bottom out of the office and onto the beach where you belong. 1. Automate your life when possibleThe Internet is your friend. For almost any daily task or errand you can think of, there is probably an app or automated option that will not only save you time, but save you the hassle of having to do things you don’t enjoy (and save you dragging your feet). Set up autopay  on your accounts to pay your bills. Grocery shop online. Streamline your wardrobe to eliminate guess work. Spend the time you have doing things that excite you or that help you keep advancing.2. Cross tasks off your listIf you can complete a task in two minutes or less, do it immediately. Blast through these as soon as you notice them on your list. Remember: the longer y ou wait, the longer it will take.3. Don’t tax your brainYour ability to make clear decisions is not something you should take for granted. You can’t always rely on your clarity and willpower. It is possible for you to get exhausted and to overwhelm your faculties. Try making big decisions in the morning when you’re freshest. And if you aren’t feeling sharp, save your next decision for the following day when you’re back in your groove.4. Streamline your morning routineIf you listen to music when you’re getting ready in the morning, limit yourself to four songs max. Brush teeth, shower, dress, and do your finishing touches. One task per song. Then get out the door and get to work.5. Hide your temptationsOut of sight, out of mind. If you clear your worst distractions from your desk, it will be much easier for you not to get sidetracked by them.6. Don’t be â€Å"on call† all the timeTurn your phone on silent and return your calls w hen it’s convenient for you and fits into your workday- rather than immediately after getting each call. You can even save up a few to make all at one time, rather than bleeding out little bits of your day for each one.7. Follow the waitress ruleNever go anywhere empty handed. Something can always be tidied or sorted. Complete half of your smaller tasks just by spreading them out over the course of the normal back and forth of your day.8. Limit your personal email checkingThis can derail even the most concentrated concentrators in the work world. Try to limit yourself to checking your personal email just three times a day, rather than every three minutes.9. Schedule sleepYou don’t want your sleep schedule to be random. Set yourself a schedule and stick to it and this will help you keep your work hours from being random too.10. Use Self ControlNot just the lower case kind we’re all supposed to have, the productivity app. Limit your access to the websites that are the most distracting for you. You can set time limits for yourself to be your most productive.11. Practice what you preachIf you want to excel at something †¦ you have to work at it. Every day.12. Say noIf you don’t actually want to do something or to accept an invitation. You might piss off an acquaintance or two, but you’ll have a lot more time on your hands to work on things that matter.13. Keep a to-do listWrite tasks down and enjoy the thrill of crossing them off when completed. This way you’ll never forget a task and you’ll keep yourself honest about just how long you put certain things off.14. Go PomodoroGive the â€Å"Pomodoro† technique a try. There’s an app for it. 25 minutes on, 5 minutes off. Total dedication to your task in tiny increments. Watch and see what you can accomplish.15. Tackle the big stuffPick the meatiest, most important tasks on your to-do list and tackle those first. You’ll be more driven to work on these things and will free up space on your list for more things to get accomplished!16. MeditateSeriously. Just 10 (to as many as 60) minutes a day can make a huge difference over a period of months in your mental clarity and focus. Clear your mind every day and see what greatness you can manifest.17. MultitaskIf you’re a fan of podcasts or audiobooks, consume them when you’re otherwise occupied, but with tasks that don’t require a great deal of concentration. Exercising, commuting, cooking, etc. Triple what you can accomplish in a span of time.18. Don’t sit without a planEvery time you sit down at your desk or your computer, make sure you have a plan for what you intend to do while your butt is in that chair. Set an intention (even one as simple as â€Å"ten minutes on Facebook†). But make sure you stick to it. That way, when you sit down to do real work, you’ll honor your goal.19. Fold over tapeThis is a good and practical thing to do, an d perhaps also a metaphor for leaving projects in the middle. If you’re using a roll of tape, fold over the loose end before putting it away. It will save you time and energy when you need to use it again without having to find the seam.20. Plus oneWhenever you sit down to cross a task off your to-do list, add one. If every time you set out to accomplish one thing, you actually knock through two things, imagine what you can get done throughout your whole career.

Present Perfect Tense in Spanish

Present Perfect Tense in Spanish Despite its name, the present perfect tense in Spanish (and English as well) is used to refer to events that happened in the past. Its use in Spanish can be tricky, however, because its usage varies with region and it sometimes is used in slightly different ways than it is in English. In Spanish, the present perfect tense is formed by the present tense of haber followed by the past participle. (In English its the present tense of to have followed by the past participle.) It generally indicates that an action has been completed that has some bearing on the present. Forms of Present Perfect Tense Here are the forms in which the present perfect would be stated. Pronouns are included here for clarity but often arent necessary: yo he past participle (I have ...)tà º has past participle (you have ...)usted/à ©l/ella ha past participle (you have, he/she has ...)nosotros/nosotras hemos past participle (we have ...)vosotros/vosotras habà ©is past participle (you have ...)ustedes/ellos/ellas han past participle (you have, they have ...) Note that while in English, as in some of the examples above, it is possible to separate the have from the past participle, in Spanish you normally dont separate  haber  from participles. However, if haber applies to two participles, the second haber can be omitted, as in the second sample sentence below. Sample Sentences Here are some examples of sentences using the present perfect tense along with the way theyd most commonly be translated: Me he comprado una esponja rosa. (I have bought a pink sponge.) ¡Es lo mejor que he visto y escuchado en mi vida! (Its the best thing I have seen and heard in my life!) ¿Alguna vez has hablado con las ranas a medianoche? (Have you talked with the frogs at midnight?)Todos lo hemos pensado. (All of us have thought it.)Minerva ha conocido ya a los padres de su novio. (Minerva has already met her boyfriends parents.)Siempre he anhelado tener un metabolismo con el cual pueda comer lo que quiera. (I have always wanted to have a metabolism that would let me eat whatever I want.)Hay videojuegos que han hecho historia. (There are video games that have made history.)He leà ­do y acepto la polà ­tica de privacidad. (I have read and I accept the privacy policy.) Subjunctive Use The subjunctive present perfect functions in much the same way: Mi amiga niega que su madre haya comprado un regalo para el perro. (My friend denies that her mother has bought a gift for the dog.)Titular: 14 piscinas que no se parecen a nada que hayas visto antes. (Headline: 14 swimming pools that dont seem like anything you have seen before.)Es probable que hayan escondido micrà ³fonos en la casa y està ©n escuchando nuestras conversaciones. (It is likely that they have hidden microphones in the house and are listening to our conversations.)El la eleccià ³n ms sucia que hayamos conocido en los à ºltimos tiempos. (It is the dirtiest election that we have known in recent times.) Present Perfect With Meaning of the Preterite You should be aware, however, that the Spanish present perfect tense should not always be thought of as the equivalent of the English present perfect tense. In many regions, it can be used as the equivalent of the English simple past tense. Sometimes the context will make this clear: Ha llegado hace un rato. (She arrived a little bit ago.)Cuando lo he visto no he podido creerlo. (When I saw it I couldnt believe it.)Leo la carta que me han escrito esta maà ±ana. (I am reading the letter they wrote to me this morning.)Esta maà ±ana he estado en Madrid. (This morning I was in Madrid.) But even where the context doesnt dictate so, the present perfect can be the equivalent of the English preterite, also known as the simple past. This is especially true for events that occurred very recently. Youre also more likely to hear the present perfect used in this way in Spain than in most of Latin America, where the preterite may be preferred (e.g., llegà ³ hace un rato). Key Takeaways The present perfect tense is formed by following the present tense of haber with a past participle.No words should intervene between haber and the participle.The Spanish present perfect sometimes is used to indicate than an action recently took place rather than merely that it has occurred.