Happy New Year! PromoPro Daily is back with focused insights on sales, marketing, productivity and more to help you build a standout year.

January has a way of ushering in big goals and even bigger to-do lists. It’s the perfect time of year to reset and get intentional with your time. When you rethink how you work and what you prioritize, you can start the year feeling focused instead of frantic.

John Hall, the co-founder of Calendar, put together a blog post of some of the best ways to maximize your January and set the tone for the year ahead. We share his insights in this issue of PromoPro Daily.

  1. Embrace a “stop doing” list. Rather than focusing on what you must do, consider what you should stop doing. For example, you might stop saying yes to every request or you might avoid multitasking when working on high-focus projects.

  2. Adopt the 80/20 rule. Hall points out the Pareto Principle, which says that 80% of results come from 20% of efforts. Make January the month when you identify the 20% of tasks that significantly impact your life or work. Then, allocate your energy to these high-value activities while delegating or minimizing the rest.

  3. Designate theme days. Hall says this can be a great way to streamline your focus. You could, for example, dedicate Monday to strategic planning, Tuesday to creative tasks and Friday to getting caught up on administrative tasks.

  4. Time block with flexibility. Time blocking is effective, but don’t be too rigid with it. The idea, according to Hall, is to allocate blocks of time for certain activities and adjust as needed.

  5. Schedule “white space.” This indicates unscheduled time on your calendar. It’s necessary for creativity and problem-solving, Hall says. It also promotes relaxation and productivity.

  6. Experiment with micro-goals. You may feel tempted to procrastinate if you’re looking at a big, daunting goal. That’s why Hall recommends setting micro-goals you can achieve in just 15-30 minutes. It might not seem like much, he says, but over time, these small wins build momentum.

There are all kinds of ways you can manage your time more thoughtfully, from setting theme days to following the 80/20 rule. When you align your daily habits with your biggest priorities, you can set a tone for a productive and sustainable year.

Compiled by Audrey Sellers
Source: John Hall is the co-founder of Calendar, a scheduling and time management app. He’s also a keynote speaker.