What do you do if you're struggling to balance time and projects in creative problem solving?

??How do you eat an elephant? Same is true when you are swamped with projects? Since it is too big (in terms of size or impact), you need to come up with a strategy. You can bucket them per category (URGENT/CRITICAL, IMPORTANT, LOW) as well as the amount of time needed to complete them. Be realistic with your goals. Ask for help when needed.

The struggle with this balance between time and projects is always caused by external influences and they should be silenced as quickly as possible if you haven't reached the end of your sincere capabilities yet. Once in some long time presenting your advancements is not bad though, but interference in your way of thinking in between is out of the question.

Tips?to enhance your creative problem-solving abilities: Understand your target audience by observing them and asking questions.? How you frame a problem influences how you solve it. Use design thinking—an iterative process involving stages like clarification, ideation, development, and implementation.? Align your team around clear goals, hold short daily check-ins, and schedule regular project progress meetings. Divide complex projects into manageable tasks. Prioritize and tackle them one at a time to maintain focus and productivity. Avoid overcommitting. Set achievable deadlines based on the complexity of the task and your available time. Allocate time specifically for creative thinking. Step away from routine tasks.

My best tip would be to declutter anything that isn't serving you, useful nor developing the project. As time is of the essence, you do not want to continue on the same path without some sort of holistic awareness to the ongoing. Assess yourself and what might be hindering your productivity. Analyse the project, what's done, what's lacking, then remember the expectation and end goal set. Now, use all the tools in your arsenal focusing on the functionality as much as possible, before anything else. Little adjustments can be looked over and at times added last minute, though you do not want to deliver a beautiful looking half-functional project, as it will only increase the amount of work and efforts needed to be put in its fixing.

It might seem counterintuitive to work within a timeline while attempting something creative but this structure can be affirming to the process in that it keeps us accountable and even spark the adrenaline some of us need to create outcomes. And most times, creative problem solving needs the extra push especially if it’s long standing issue, is repetitive and/or is tedious. Breaking it down to action items along the timeline can help us move along the process seamlessly.

For effective time management in creative problem solving, setting deadlines is vital. Even if a client hasn't provided a specific due date, create one for yourself. This will help you stay on track and avoid last-minute rushes. Allocate a reasonable amount of time for each task, considering the complexity and effort required. Regularly review and adjust these deadlines as needed to ensure they remain realistic and achievable.

I adopt a gradual approach to project completion by seizing every available opportunity throughout the day to make progress. For instance, during short breaks between meetings, I dedicate even brief intervals, like 10 minutes, to advancing specific aspects of a project. Implementing short time limits or time blocks while working on tasks not only prevents burnout but also accelerates completion, serving as a powerful antidote to procrastination.

All of the options are things that help in dealing with multiple pressing projects. Priorities, Setting Deadlines, Time blocking, delegating, Taking Breaks, and Daily reflection. Frankly all of that has a place when managing tasks. Doing each of those things on a regular basis will reduce the likelihood of facing this problem in the 1st place... My other thing to consider is to simply... Just pick one and get to work... Pick the easiest, Pick the hardest. Or just do a random pick... The best way to get through this is to pick one and focus on it until it is done. I would also communicate with those waiting for you and let them know what happened and when to expect a deliverable. upfront communication works the best.

I utilize multitasking strategies to optimize my productivity. I prioritize tasks based on their attention demands - allocating mundane activities such as sending emails or completing chores to moments when my full focus is not required. This allows me to create space for concentrated effort on high-priority tasks, such as studying for a significant exam.