15 Time Wasters To Declutter From Your Life Immediately

Ever wondered what some of the common time wasters in life are? This is the article to read if you do as it goes through 15 of them. Which are you guilty of, and which is the cause of your biggest waste of time?

Everyday we spend hours trying to complete tasks around the house, often finishing the day having not done everything we want, and wondering why.

Usually we put it down to a lack of time, but often it’s about how we use the time we have…

Hard to hear, but so true that a LOT of each of our days consists of wasted time.

We don’t even realise we’re doing it, as a lot of time wasters are habits and things that we do without thinking – so it’s time to change that and be more proactive on how we spend our time.

Here’s a list here of the top 15 time wasters to look at deleting from your life.

Take a few minutes to identify which are affecting your day – and then start to change the habits so that you end up with less on your TO DO list at the end of the day, and more time to do the interesting things instead!

15 Time wasters to declutter from your life

#1 – People Who Bring You Down

Often overlooked are people that make you feel low after talking to them.

Some people in your lives are what I call “fair weather friends”. These are people that are only there in good times.

On the other hand, there are “true friends”, who are always there through the good and the bad.

And it’s fine to have a mix of these in your life – but know the difference so that you use your time well.

You will want to spend more time with true friends, who lift you up and give you energy, and less time on those that sap your energy.

#2 – Tasks That You Do But That Aren’t Necessary

If no-one notices you doing a job, are they always necessary?

Sometimes the answer is yes – like cleaning your house – BUT is it necessary to do it as often as you do?

Try and limit the frequency of jobs – as that will allow you more time each and every week.

#3 – Tasks That You Could Delegate To Others

Whether that be to a professional or a willing helper! – help and budget dependant.

Unless you LOVE ironing or cleaning then why spend your valuable time doing it?

If you haven’t got spare cash to pay for this help, could you swap with a friend and do a job they don’t like in return (if you like it more then chances are that it will take you less time and you’ll be happier in the process!

Worth a Read : D.A.R.E Yourself to Stop Doing Chores

#4 – Lengthy Meetings Or Conversations

In offices there is ALWAYS wasted time on long meetings – and it can be the same in our home life as well.

Arranging to meet someone to talk something through, or offering to wait in for a tradesperson etc… means you may be wasting more time than necessary.

Think about different ways you could achieve the same result.

Could you send the tradesman a picture of the job along with measurements and specifications?

Could you talk on the phone instead of arranging to meet someone in person?

If you really DO need to meet, then make sure you set a specific agenda, say what time you have free – and STICK TO IT.

#5 – Waiting In Queues

Plan your day as much as possible in advance so you do things in quiet times.

For example – do you really have to drive in rush hour? My husband gets up 1/2 an hour earlier and gets to work an hour sooner so can fit in a gym visit every morning which is a great bonus and much more time savvy!

Think about if you can shop late or early rather than at lunch time or after school/work when it’s busier.

#6 – Going To The Bank

A simple but very effective way to waste less time on your finances is to move to online banking.

When you have access to your accounts easily, you are actually more likely to stay on track with things, and you don’t have to spend time queueing or travelling to the bank for everything.

#7 – Paying Bills As They Come In

Look through your bills and try and set up paying them automatically instead.

A bonus of this is that a lot of companies offer a discount to pay by direct debit, and you save time not having to pay each month manually.

#8 – Answering The Phone To Unknown Callers

I have long since stopped answering my phone to unknown numbers – because the majority of them are cold callers that waste my time AND take me away from what I was doing (which can take time to get back into).

If it IS important, then that person will leave a message – and you can get back to them pretty much immediately, but why interrupt your train of thought when it may not be important?

#9 – Checking eMail And Social Media Sites All The Time

A HUGE time suck – and most of us don’t even realise how much time has passed when we start checking these things.

Think about setting a specific time to do this in your day when it’s a good time to do so – and when you can actually reply and do something about emails and messages etc…

You could do this as a ‘treat’ at the end of the day when your own TO DO list has been managed – or in pockets of the day when you’re waiting for other things.

I like to check social media when in queues, and I check my eMail in the last hour of the working day because I have time to answer things, but they don’t run my day (if I were to answer them at the start of the day, there will probably be things in there that will take me off track from the things I needed to do that day…).

#10 – Being Reactive About Errands

Try and not be reactive when it comes to errands – have you ever been to the shops only to find you’ve forgotten something and have to go back?

Or you realise you’ve got a birthday coming up and head to town to get something?

Be proactive instead and try and group errands so you only go to specific places once a week rather than several trips.

Or why not shop online for presents at the start of each month – so they’re all ready and waiting for when you need to post them?

#11 – Food Shopping In Person

Although I love shopping a little bit at a time, I know that food shopping online is much quicker (and saves temptation of buying items you don’t need).

If you find you’re wasting time by food shopping too much, or spending too much time in the shops deciding what to buy etc…, then online would be the way to go.

NOTE – The only thing that I think is better to buy when you see it is fresh food, which you can buy when you go out and do errands.

Related: How To Save Money When Shopping Online

#12 – TV Watching

This is by far most peoples biggest time waster – and we don’t even realise how much we watch it!

Write down for a week how much time you watch TV for – and see how much that is.

You don’t have to watch nothing – but reducing just by one series or soap opera may be enough to give you the time you’re searching for.

#13 – Things You Feel You Should Do

Never do things because you should.

It doesn’t serve you – and you will resent what you do.

Instead, try and fill your schedule with things that you want to do instead.

Hard in practise? Doesn’t have to be. Say NO to a few things and you may be surprised how it feels!

#14 – Procrastinating

Most things can be done much more quickly than you think, and to avoid procrastination you can try and just set a timer for 5 minutes and get started at least.

if you want to do something, or need to do something, get it done – you will save lots of time in the long run as it will gnaw at you until its done.

#15 – Perfectionism

Another time waster.

Usually, everything we do can be done at 80% and that’s enough – but those that want the perfect 100% can waste so much time on that extra 20% that it becomes a problem.

If you can get something done so that it’s good enough, instead of striving for perfect – then this will save SO much time over the months.