The Power of Ten - 10 tips on how to improve your online calendar game

Here are ten tips on how to effectively use your online calendar:

1. Centralize and sync your calendars: Consolidate all your appointments and commitments from various sources (work, personal, family) into a single online calendar. Sync it across your devices to ensure you have access and visibility everywhere.

2. Schedule and block time for tasks: Use your calendar to allocate specific time slots for important tasks and projects. Treat these time blocks as dedicated work periods to increase productivity and prevent scheduling conflicts.

3. Set reminders and notifications: Take advantage of reminders and notifications within your calendar app to receive alerts before important events or deadlines. This ensures you stay on top of your commitments and helps prevent missed appointments.

4. Colour code and categorize: Assign different colours or categories to your events and appointments. This visual distinction allows for quick identification and helps you better understand the composition of your schedule at a glance.

5. Use recurring events: If you have regular, repeating commitments such as weekly meetings or monthly reminders, utilize the recurring event feature in your calendar to automate their creation. This saves time and reduces the chance of forgetting to schedule them.

6. Share and collaborate: Share your calendar with colleagues, family, or team members when appropriate. This allows for better coordination, avoids conflicts, and facilitates collaboration by providing visibility into each other's schedules.

7. Attach relevant documents: If an event or appointment requires specific documents or materials, consider attaching them to the corresponding calendar entry. This ensures all necessary information is easily accessible when you need it.

8. Block off personal time: It's important to schedule personal time and self-care activities in your calendar. Blocking off time for relaxation, exercise, or hobbies helps maintain work-life balance and prevents overcommitment.

9. Review and adjust regularly: Set aside regular intervals to review and update your calendar. This allows you to reassess priorities, make any necessary adjustments, and ensure your calendar accurately reflects your current schedule.

10. Integrate with other tools: Explore integrations between your online calendar and other productivity tools you use, such as task management apps or email clients. Seamless integration can streamline your workflow and help you stay organized.

By following these tips, you can maximise the effectiveness of your online calendar, stay organized, and manage your time more efficiently.

Note about the author: Andrew Hulbert is a multi-award winning entrepreneur, non-exec director, speaker, author, platelet donor and philanthropist. The ‘Power of Ten’ summarises Andrew’s learnings across the last decade and looks to share some of the valuable mistakes, lessons and learnings during that time. For a succinct summary of Andrew’s career you can visit: https://www.iwfmawards.org/previous-winners/winner-outstanding-contribution-to-workplace-and-facilities-management-2022/. If you’d like to start a conversation, please direct message on LinkedIn.