Have you ever found yourself tired from a long day at work and just need a few minutes of TV watching or social media scrolling to recenter yourself? Has this “few minutes” ever turned into an hour or two lacking any real productivity? If this has ever happened to you, I am sure you eventually snapped out of it and were shocked by how much time you just wasted. Time-wasting activities like these can significantly reduce your day-to-day productivity!
Unfortunately, time-wasting activities like these are very common. So many things in our world today are constantly vying for attention, but only some are truly worthwhile and productive. Learning how to better manage your time and avoid major time-wasting activities is an important skill to have.
The key is not to necessarily eliminate all time-wasting activities but to do them in moderation so you can always stay focused and on-task. If you do so, you will become a more efficient and productive person!
This post is all about time-wasting activities and how to fix them!
9 Time-Wasting Activities that are Hurting Your Productivity
It is easy to lose track of time and get caught up in activities that only waste your time. The key to recovering is recognizing those activities as negative and figuring out how to fix them. Here are 9 time-wasting activities that we will cover in this post:
1. Social media scrolling
2. TV watching
3. Procrastination
4. Perfectionism
5. Being unclear on your goals
6. Multitasking
7. Overloading yourself
8. Indecision
9. Hitting the snooze button
What Makes an Activity a Time Waster?
Time-wasting activities end up being fairly obvious once you realize what is happening. At first, they can seem like a quick activity or a way to decompress for a little while. As long as you keep them short like this, these activities are no issue. The problem is that oftentimes they can get drawn out and end up taking much more time than expected. When that happens, the activity becomes a time waster.
You’ll notice that all of the activities on this list aren’t really that productive. When the time spent on the activity gets drawn out, your productivity looks even worse. This post will dive into more about each of these time wasters specifically and how to fix them, so continue reading to learn more!
{ Related Post: 5 Impressive Benefits of Rest Days With Guidelines on Best Practices For Rest Days }
How Do You “Solve” Time-Wasting Activities?
There are a few ways to avoid or limit time-wasting activities that can make a big difference in your day-to-day. They are listed below:
- Carry on, but in moderation: It is always best to do things in moderation. Too much of this or that will cause you to burn out quickly. The same goes for time-wasting activities. If you waste a little bit of time for some relaxation and to calm yourself, then it is worthwhile. The problem arises when you indulge a bit too much and start wasting a lot of time. The best strategy is to limit your time using a timer, like the one Instagram has in its app. This will allow you to experience the time-wasting activities that you may enjoy but in moderation!
- Develop a routine: If you are able to start a routine, you will find that your ability to stay on task will be much improved. With a solid routine, your schedule will dictate when you do or do not have time for things. By having a defined routine, you will manage your time more effectively. If you plan well, there will not be enough time for significant time-wasting activities!
- Put your phone out of reach: The last tip for solving time-wasting activities is to keep your phone away from you. Phones today are designed to be attention-grabbing and addictive. Therefore, it is important to try to keep your away from you as you attempt to focus on getting work done. Your phone is a major time sink and can pull your interest away from what is important for large amounts of time. By putting your phone out of reach, you will be eliminating major time-wasting potential!
9 Time-Wasting Activities, and How to Fix Them
It is common to waste time here and there with less productive activities. This is normal, as long as it doesn’t become too common! Check out some of those time-wasting activities below and learn how to fix them!
1. Social media scrolling
This is one of the most common time-wasting activities today. Social media sucks you in and can easily make time feel like it is moving slower than it really is moving. An hour on social media can feel like only 30 minutes or less. Scrolling aimlessly through social media like this is pretty much the definition of a time-wasting activity.
To fix this one, you need to find a way to limit your time. Some phones have the ability to limit screen time for certain applications. This is a function you should utilize if you really want to make a change!
2. TV watching
TV watching is another big time-wasting activity. It is easy to sit on the couch after a long day and watch TV, but it is not productive! Sure, if you have a few shows you regularly watch, that is completely fine. The problem comes in when you don’t know what to watch and just put something on to pass the time. There are much better activities you could be doing!
Fixing a TV-watching habit is a bit more difficult and relies on strong determination. You will have to keep yourself away from the habit, but I know you can do it!
3. Procrastination
Procrastination is a bit more surprising as a time-wasting activity but it definitely is one! When you procrastinate, you are literally wasting time that could be productive by doing anything you can to avoid being productive. By definition, you are wasting some time!
Learning to fix procrastination can be challenging, but one tip is to think about how your future self will feel about wasting time by avoiding getting something done. Usually, this can help motivate you to be more productive and waste less time!
{ Related Post: How to Stop Procrastinating: 7 Simple Tips that Will Improve Your Productivity! }
4. Perfectionism
Perfectionism also can be a big time-wasting activity. Sometimes it takes 80% of the project time to do the last 20% of the work to get something perfect. Time would be better spent by utilizing that time to work on multiple projects instead of focusing on perfecting just one.
Perfectionism definitely has its benefits as well, but overwhelmingly it is a waste of time. If you are a perfectionist, try to work on understanding the real requirements of a project so you know exactly what needs to be done to get by. You do not always need to go above and beyond!
5. Being unclear on your goals
Lacking clarity on what your goals are is another way to waste time. If you do not understand exactly what you are working towards and what it takes to get there, you can end up wasting time along the way. It is important to understand the scope of an undertaking before you spend time on it.
Solving this problem really just requires deeper thinking and evaluation before you get started on something. You must take the time to thoroughly understand something before you commit to it! By having a better understanding, you will waste much less time.
6. Multitasking
Multitasking can sometimes go either way, but typically is a time waster. The point of multitasking is to get multiple things done at once. In theory, this sounds great, but in practice, it usually leads to multiple things being half-baked.
Multitasking only really works when you combine the correct activities and have the right mindset. It is typically better to avoid multitasking if you want to be really productive. Check out the article linked below to learn more!
{ Related Post: Quick Guide: 5 Essential Tips to Learn How to Multitask the Right Way }
7. Overloading yourself
Overloading yourself is another great way to waste time. It may be nice to pick up extra work at the office or to help friends study, but these things can often lead to you overloading yourself. By choosing to do too many activities, you are guaranteed to spread yourself too thin. Once you do this, it can be hard to focus on the task at hand and you will not be as efficient.
To combat this, you need to better understand how to say “no” to people, even if they are friends. It is not smart to take on too much at once, so take it easy!
8. Indecision
Indecision is a major time waster, similar to procrastination. By being indecisive, you are wasting time by not deciding what to do next. In this situation, you cannot move on to the next task. Your productivity will suffer since you will be missing out on potentially productive time.
To avoid indecision, try to write out a list and assign priority and difficulty levels to each thing. This should help you make your decisions in a more efficient manner.
9. Hitting the snooze button
Hitting the snooze button is a major time-wasting activity. Snooze really accomplishes nothing except making you have to rush more in exchange for a few more minutes of light sleep. The tradeoff is almost never worth it and it is better to just get up when your alarm says you should!
To get away from the snooze button, try to place your clock of choice far from your bed so you at least have to get up to turn it off. Give it a try!
I hope you better understand time-wasting activities and have learned some great tips! Be sure to reach out to ourteam@wellroundedyou.com if you have any comments or questions!
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