Try These 4 ways to Organize Your Work Week

Not only can organizing your work week lead to less stress at the office, but it can increase your productivity levels. Organizing your work week can be anything from cleaning out your desk, rearranging your files, or planning your time so you can get the most out of every minute at work. Below are four helpful ways you can begin to organize your work week so you can have more free time and be more productive at the office.

1. Plan Out Your Week Ahead of Time

Laying out a long term schedule for yourself at the beginning of each work week can help you visually see what tasks lay ahead of you. In this schedule include goals for what you want to accomplish that week. You should also take the time to look at any deadlines or big projects that are due that week so you can schedule your workload around them.

Mapping out your week can give you a helpful overview of the tasks you have so you know what you’re working with ahead of time. Planning out your tasks beforehand can help you see if you’re over-scheduling yourself or if you have free time to work on other things.

2. Schedule Tomorrow Today

After you’ve planned out your week, the next step to organizing your workload is to map out tomorrow the night before. This doesn’t mean that you have to draw out every minute of the day, but it can help you get more done if you have an outline for how your day is going to look.

Consider taking breaks every half an hour or so to keep your productivity levels high, and include any doctors appointments, phone calls, or meetings in your schedule. By scheduling out your day in detail, you will never have to worry about what you should be working on or when you should be working on it, which can reduce stress and make your day that much easier.

3. Consider the Times of Day You Work Best

When scheduling out your work week or day, try to keep in mind the times of the day you work best on certain types of tasks. Instead of trying to get all of the important tasks done at the beginning of the day so you can “get them out of the way,” consider the times of the day your productivity levels are at their peak.

If you’re not a morning person, schedule easier tasks like answering emails or filing for the early hours of the day. Leave heavier projects for the later part of the day or vice versa depending on how your energy levels change as the day goes on.

4. Find Tools That Work for You

The last thing you can do to organize your work week and make your life a whole lot easier is to find the right scheduling or list making tool to meet your needs. There are a lot of free scheduling and task management tools available online that can help you organize your workload and relieve the stress of having too much to do.

Some options, including Evernote and Wunderlust, can help you create to do lists and easily manage your time so you can organize your week and focus on the things that matter.

For more ways you can be organized and productive at the office, check out our blog post “Tips for Staying Focused When All Else Fails.”