Time batching is an amazing productivity hack that you can leverage to get SO much more accomplished. In the words of Tim Ferriss, it’s like laundry. When you do laundry, you normally do it in loads. You don’t just toss a shirt in here, a pair of pants there. It all gets done at once in order to be the most efficient with that time.
We have so many tasks throughout the day that can be batched together. Whether it’s phone calls or errands, time batching will totally change the game when it comes to knocking out your tasks in the most productive way possible.
Think about the tasks you do on a regular basis. Which ones are most alike or exactly the same? Do you write for your blog 3 days out of the week? Do you have conference calls spread over all your workdays? These tasks that repeat themselves and show up over and over again are what you want to focus on when you begin time batching.
Once you’ve nailed down the tasks you want to batch, pick a space of time in your calendar. If you’re batching your blog posts, block in time for writing one, two, maybe three posts at the same time in that day. At the end of that block of time, you’ll have knocked out the work that would’ve been spread over a couple days otherwise.
One of the major benefits of time batching is it allows you to get into deep work. You’re completely focused on that task for the next stretch of time, so you can really get your best work done.
It’s so much harder to focus on something if you’re just working to squeeze it into your day. If you know you only have an hour to write that blog, you’re going to feel rushed. You’re going to focus more on getting it done than getting it done well. With time batching, you have an extended period of time, so you can dig in and produce the highest quality work, all while being super efficient with your time.
Another benefit is the disappearance of wasted prep time. If you’re writing, it can be a slow start. Getting in and out of the swing of it is jarring for your process, and you end up wasting much more time than you would have if you stuck with it for a couple more hours.
Speaking of wasted time… When done effectively, time batching eliminates the outside distractions. If you’ve blocked out time for writing, turn the phone off. Don’t open any extra browser tabs. Shut the door to the office, and write. Keep the time that you’ve batched as an appointment with yourself so you can make the most of it and really get things done.
QOTD: What tasks do you batch? Tell us in a comment!
Amy Landino is the Director & Founder of GATLUW House. A bestselling author and the award-winning host of AmyTV, Amy is the World’s #1 Productive Lifestyle & Success Coach.
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