We have set five tasks per week, with one task for each weekday.  You might complete your tasks as they arrive in your inbox, or you might want to carry some tasks over to the weekend and use Saturdays and Sundays to catch up.  That’s absolutely fine.  The Jump is flexible and can work around you.  We just encourage you to think ahead about what will work best for you.

Plan Ahead

If you like structure or routine in your day, you might like to mark off your Jump task time slots in your calendar or diary.  Try to set aside 30 minutes per day, although you won’t always need the full half an hour.  If you prefer to keep yourself on schedule with physical  reminders, mobile phone alerts are quick and easy to set up.

Finding Time in Your Day

Here are six ideas to find, or free up, some time in your day:

1.  Avoid Other Tasks
Housework, admin, paying bills (… sorry, got carried away with that last one ).

Cut out, or cut down on, tasks you would rather avoid anyway – the Jump is a great excuse – and only focus on what is really needed during this time. Be selfish though, and don’t skip anything that makes you feel good (exercise, seeing friends, that overdue trip to the hairdresser/barber, etc).

2.  Rise Earlier
Can you get up a bit earlier to have some quiet time before the rest of your day begins? Frankly, this idea fills me with dread (I’m a night owl) but the Jump is only temporary – just three weeks – which makes an early wake up slightly easier to contemplate, even for me.

3.  Find a Pocket of Time in Your Day
Perhaps you commute or you spend some time waiting in your day (waiting at the school gates, waiting in the office, waiting for the next train), and that time could be used for your tasks?  If you work in a busy office, could you book a brief meeting with yourself to focus on this without interruption? Even a few productive moments can add up across a day, so keep your Jump task and a notebook (or your phone’s Notes) close at hand.

4.  Social Media Detox
Social media needs its own heading because it is such a time drain for most people (including me – ) and many people can salvage at least half an hour a day by simply being more conscious about their browsing.

I featured some great Time Saving apps in this article I recently wrote for Bubele’s National magazine. It included a free app called ‘Rescue Time’, which helps you track and manage your time spent on social media.

5.  Delegate, or Take a Shortcut
At home, and at work, there are usually tasks that could be delegated to free up your time.

What about asking your partner or flatmate to make some meals over the next three weeks? Could shirts be sent to the laundry for washing and ironing? Can grocery shopping be done online and a few more ready meals ordered? I’ve said it before and I will say it again, breakfast cereal can be eaten for dinner occasionally, and it will save you time, money and calories – in fact, it is possibly the ultimate ‘New Year’s resolution’-friendly meal.

And, at work, can you hand over any tasks to a colleague to do, even if only on a temporary basis for January?

6.  Stay Up a Bit Later
While this is my usual answer to everything, I tend to think that it is not the best answer in this case unless you truly do your best thinking late at night. Be honest with yourself and, if you are too tired to do much after dinner, try one of the other options I’ve listed here instead.

I hope you’ve found this exercise useful.  We would love to hear any other ideas you have to find/make extra time in your day.   Please comment below or email us at jump@runnethlondon.com. We hope to share more ideas as we progress over the next couple of weeks and we’d like to include your suggestions.  Thanks!

Coming up in the January Jump…

Stay tuned for free advice, expert tips and easy tasks to help you update your CV and LinkedIn, make your next career move, and much more… We’re doing LinkedIn photos this week too!

Find out more about the Jannuary Jump on the January Jump Homepage.

If you would rather ask your question privately, email us with the word “private” in your email title.  We aim to answer all questions publicly (because someone else will probably be wondering the same thing) but we can do so without using your name.

Sorry we cannot provide legal advice or bespoke career advice as part of the Jump.
Please contact us separately if you would like to enquire about these services.

Already joined the Jump?  We’re delighted to have you on board.  Please ensure you have confirmed your email address (you should have received an email from us, which you need to click).

How about inviting some friends to join you?  Research shows that people who talk about their goals are much more likely to achieve them.  Signing up for the Jump is a fantastic first step.  But what about inviting a friend or two to join you – to nudge you along and help celebrate at the end?  

Want to share the Jump with your workplace or network? Great! Please get in touch and we’ll help you to spread the word.