3 Steps to Enhance Your Time Management Skills and Make Space for Creativity

“You have the same hours in the day as Beyonce,” a quote that has been often used as a way to motivate (or guilt) people into believing if she can do it, so can you.

But let’s be real. Everyday folks (not mega super stars) don’t have ample help, a hoard of employees or the tools and skills to really understand how to prioritize our creative time.

Between all your personal and professional obligations like taking the kids to school, extracurricular activities, volunteering, or helping your parents and in-laws - it can feel as if there’s never enough time to get everything that you want and need done.

When you’re busy adulting, the thing that gets put on hold most often is your creativity.

Whether for your online content or hobbies or anything that brings you joy, creativity can bring fulfillment and is important for experiencing a rich and purposeful life.

Below are 3 steps you can take to enhance your time management skills and make space for creativity–no matter how busy you are.

#1 Ask yourself: “What does creativity look like for me?” and “How can I prioritize it?”

Think about the things that intrigue you, energize you, and bring you a sense of peace and calm. What comes up? Naturally, we make time and space for things that matter to us.

Being creative can look like a multitude of things! Not only painting, making jewelry, or writing music. Maybe you really enjoy reading cheesy romance novels, entertaining friends or filming TikToks and IG reels.

You might take pleasure in sketching, pulling cards from your Oracle or Tarot deck, or dancing around to your favorite playlist. Creativity is really all about what fills you up and allows you to move through the world in a more balanced and energized way.

If you know that a certain activity like yoga or walking always leads to feelings of rejuvenation and excitement, why not include it on your list of things to prioritize?

Reorganizing your priorities may be daunting at first, but I’m sure there are several things on your “I have to do this” list that can be put in the ‘not so urgent’ category.

So, take the time to write out all your obligations and creative activities, whether that be daily, weekly or monthly and evaluate the importance of what you have written down. Categorize the obligations into “Non-Negotiable,” “Must Complete Soon”, and “Not So Urgent.”

Be sure to schedule everything accordingly to give yourself the energy to do the things that really fulfill you.

#2 Do what you feel called to do. Don’t force ANYTHING.

Many of us have been conditioned to do the “right” thing for the approval of others, even to the detriment of what we really want to do. How much time has this really cost you?

When it comes to creativity, you can choose to do whatever it is that you feel called to and when you want to do it. Just be mindful to take your time and not become overzealous with it. Pushing yourself to the extreme is the worst way to keep yourself motivated and willing to make time for your new endeavor. The same can be said for creating.

When building your time management skills it’s crucial to remember the importance of rest. We all know about adequate sleep but rest during the day is imperative to success! Whether that’s a 20 minute nap, taking 10 minutes to stretch and hydrate every few hours, or taking a day specifically to yourself. Incorporating rest into your routine will allow you to stay motivated.

Once you’ve deduced what your priorities are, be aware of how much time you really have to give to it. This can be as simple as starting with 10 minutes a day of uninterrupted creativity.

From here you can go to 15, 20, and so on. They say it takes 90 days to form a habit so by building up gradually, you have a much better chance of continually making time for creating rather than trying to jump all in.

#3 Personalize your scheduling

The way we’ve learned how to schedule and plan has been passed to us from our parents or caregivers, school, and work. Unfortunately, we’ve been conditioned to view our productivity as a sign of success and our time management and scheduling practices exclude time for self-care and consideration of our own personality types.

If you’re hard on yourself when you don’t check everything off your “to do’ list or if you’re discouraged because you aren’t consistent, it’s time to try something different.

The solution? Find your plan type! This can be as simple as finding a different type of planner to use, incorporating a digital option that may be more suitable, creating your own planner or taking it a step further and hiring a virtual assistant to help you with scheduling.

Your life can be run–and scheduled–any way you want! Adding elements of what you find important and removing what doesn’t work for you is not only possible but encouraged!

Take a good look at all the different types of planners, journals, and lists that you have used in the past (I’m sure there’s plenty lying around unused). Where did you stop using that format? What were you excited to check off or plan? Really analyze what worked and didn’t work for you!

From there, pair the things you liked from that format and plan out the next week with that. Are you able to see what you need to do that week in a clear but manageable way? Does it feel too cluttered or empty? Make adjustments until you’ve built the plan for you!

Here’s a tip: You don’t have to do it perfectly! Start with what you have and make adjustments as you see fit. Before you know it you will have a plan that allows you to check off your personal and business obligations as well as have time for creating!

The power of a good planner shouldn’t be underestimated. The trick is to build one that works especially for you!

In summary:

We can’t all have a lifestyle that matches Beyoncé. The good news? You don’t need millions of dollars and dozens of employees to live a successful and creatively expressed life. If making time for creativity is something that you know you want to add in your life, don’t wait, do it now!

Time management is a skill that takes practice to master for anyone at any level. However, with the right intentions, mindset, and tools, it too can be a thing that you conquer.

Remember to give yourself grace and allow yourself to be human. You will have weeks where everything seems to flow and others when everything feels overwhelming or you’re in more demand than you’re used to. During these times, you may have less time for creativity or it may be a signal for you to be even more intentional with making space for your creative time.

You can infuse creativity into your life, no matter what you have going on as long as you’re clear on why creativity is important to you, have the mindset to only do as much as you feel called to, and you are using the resource of your personalized plan, you can and will succeed in adding creation back to your life!

How are you making room for more creativity in your life right now?

Keasha Lee is a Personal Branding Coach, Copywriter, and is CEO & Founder of Striking Statements. Through her business, she helps conscious and driven entrepreneurs, creatives and brands get NOTICED, REMEMBERED & PAID through the steps of her Embodied Branding Blueprint. You can learn more about her on Instagram and at her website: https://strikingstatements.com