Although
technology frees up a lot of time and resources for people, it seems that we
are getting busier and busier every year. Bryn Carden, a full-time university student, young entrepreneur,
founder of two organizations, volunteer, and Delta Gamma sorority member, is
more than familiar with a busy schedule.
While she is working towards her major in Finance with a Real Estate
Concentration, running Styles for Smiles and BF Hats, and spending her free
time participating in the Neeley Mentorship Program and Riff Ram Reading
Program, Carden utilizes time management. For the modern-day woman, it is
typical to have a swamped schedule that continuously demands more.
Here, Bryn Carden provides these helpful tips to assist any laboring lady
balancing a plateful in her version of “A Busy Woman’s Guide to Time
Management.”
Tip #1: Start Each Week Listing Weekly and Daily Goals
Before the week starts, such as on Sunday night, ladies who make a list of their goals for the week and what they plan to accomplish each day that week find this process as the roadmap for successful and productive days ahead.
To avoid feelings of defeat that can dampen focus on progress, it is a good idea to make two types of lists: a realistic list and an overachiever list. A realistic list sticks to naming three larger goals for the week and three priority tasks to accomplish each day. This list considers the reality that unpredictable things happen during the day. An overachiever list is an additional list made to a realistic list of the extra tasks that would be great to strike off the list if time prevails.
Tip #2: Find the Best Flow
Time management is all about what works for a unique individual. Rather than trying to fit the mold of someone else’s time management strategy, testing out multiple ways to approach time management and using the one that allows a personal-best flow will reward the most proactive long-term.
Tip #3: Avoid a Breaking Point
Author of Do Less, entrepreneur, and mother Kate Northrup says it is crucial to approach stress, anxiety, and mental health issues with awareness rather than busyness. For women, she specifically points out how vital it is to leave behind the stigma that productivity generates personal value. Rather than cramming to-do lists and attempting to time-manage more, avoid feeling exhausted and reaching a breaking point by finding the beauty and productivity in doing less while prioritizing more.
Tip #4: Learn the Power of No
Many women have a hard time using the word “no” for various reasons. The moment any lady realizes that she does not have to say “yes” to everything, the power of no starts to boost needs towards self-care, prioritizing time, and so much more. Gracefully and authentically bowing out of things that call for one’s time and energy decreases stress, instills honesty to others and the self, and allows women to take back their precious hours to use it in the way they want.
Tip #5: Use Automation
Women can easily save time by automating tasks such as paying bills with autopay, skipping vacuuming with robot vacuums, or avoiding the supermarket with set-delivery meals through Blue Apron or groceries delivered to the front door through Instacart.
About Bryn Carden
Bryn Carden is a multi-talented young entrepreneur with a strong sense of compassion and a desire to improve the world. She launched Styles for Smiles in 2017, a firm that sells bracelets to raise money for the Smile Train Organization. Bryn’s designs have already been used to assist pay cleft palate surgeries for 16 youngsters in impoverished countries. Bryn’s second design company, BF Hats, donates a portion of every sale to Ronald McDonald House of Dallas, combining his love of fashion and philanthropy.
