Office Hours – Monsoon Look 3

Working as a blogger/freelancer, one of the toughest things I’ve had to deal with personally, is time management. I severely lack self discipline and I get distracted very easily and jump from task to task, one idea to the next and never quite finish anything in one go. It’s very rare that I sit and work on one thing continuously for hours until it’s done. I’m usually working on 2-3 projects at a time, even when I don’t have to, and this sort of chaotic orderliness is the only way that I can work. In the end I do get everything done, but this jumping from one task to another can sometimes be exhausting. Call it having a creative/artistic personality type. Not trying to generalise here, but most artists are creative, unsystematic, imaginative, original and disorderly. It’s a mix of order and chaos.

Honestly, after so many years, I don’t think that’s going to change so after many attempts at trying to follow a routine, I just gave in and let the ‘flow’ dictate how I should go about my day.

But there are a few things that I do try to stick to, things that help maintain the order a little bit. And if you are someone like me, these will help you too!

• Finishing emails first thing in the morning – It’s the easiest thing to get done and out of the way. Makes you feel like you’ve accomplished something as soon as you wake up. Also, if there’s anything that’s important in there, it gives you time to set up a follow-up call or deal with it on the same day itself.

• Not answer my phone in the morning. Calls are one of the most annoying things for me to do in the morning. It wastes time, disrupts my flow of through and dealing with people at the vey beginning of the day, is not one of the favourite things to do. So I schedule all calls post lunch, since that’s when I’m a little tired and too sleepy to do any ‘creative work’. So calls get done then!

• Planning all the tasks the previous night, and then revising it in the morning. After the morning emails, there’s usually some revision in my to-do list . Things get pushed up to the top, or added/removed. But having a rough idea of what my day is supposed to look like, helps me be better prepared in the morning.

• Having ‘no internet’ days. There are days when I just stay off internet and social media because that’s the only way I can completely switch off and focus on creative work. It needs my entire presence and having notifications pop up with email updates, or social media updates is the biggest distraction ever.

What are some of your methods? Share in the comments below!

Trousers, Blazer: Myntra.com | Shoes: SteveMadden

Photography: @somystyles and @stylemearia