Questions You Need to Ask that will Bless Your Time Management

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I'm asking myself some questions to help me plan my week wisely. I believe they will help you with your time management just as they are helping me.

On a scale of one to ten, I’m about a two when it comes to planning and time management.

I love planners, buying them anyway. Right now, I have two, no three, going.

  1. Electronic
  2. Paper for my blog.
  3. Paper for appointments and important dates.

Something I’m learning is that it’s impossible to be the best steward of my time when every to-do list is in my head and my schedule is all over the place.

I’m determined to make some changes and do a better job of stewarding God’s gift of time.

I’ve prayed about it and asked God for His help and guidance.

And I’m asking myself questions that I believe will help me look at what was good last week and what needs to be better in the week ahead … questions that will help me do a better job of planning and organizing my time.

And I thought you might want to see them too…

Questions You Need to Ask
that will Bless Your Time Management

I'm asking myself some questions to help me plan my week wisely. I believe they will help you with your time management just as they are helping me.

1. What were my greatest blessings last week?

I’m making a list of moments, people, and things God used to bless my life during the past week. I want to keep a written record of the ways I felt God’s love and guidance. 

“Focus on your strengths, not your weaknesses.
Focus on your character, not your reputation.
Focus on your blessings, not your misfortunes.” 
~ Roy T. Bennett

2. Where did I miss the mark?

I’m also listing the things that I regret having done (or failed to do). I’m confessing them and asking God to forgive me.

Don’t you just love that God’s forgiveness cleans the slate for the week ahead?!

Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sin is put out of sight! Psalm 32:!

3. What lessons did I learn last week?

I believe if God allows something in my life, He has a purpose for it. I’m constantly learning life-lessons and I want to pay attention and adjust my life so I don’t have to repeat the hard ones … but I’d like to repeat the good ones often. 

“How much you can learn when you fail determines how far you will go into achieving your goals.”  ~ Roy Bennett

4. Where did I find joy in serving others?

Loving and serving others is so much fun when I’m using my gifts and doing things I enjoy! 

I want to remember that I don’t have to say “yes” to every request. I want to be able to give my “best yes” and love the people around me with joy! 

For you have been called to live in freedom, my brothers, and sisters. But don’t use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love. Galatians 5:13

5. What moments do I want to remember?

I wish I’d done a better job of journaling memories when we were raising our children. I would love to have journal pages and scrapbooks filled with moments that touched my heart. And I’ve decided it’s not too late to start now! 

“A memory is a photograph taken by the heart to make a special moment last forever.” ~ Unknown

Questions You Need to Ask that will Bless Your Time Management by Deb Wolf @ Counting My Blessings

6. Where did I waste time?

It’s okay to rest. In fact, it’s a good thing! That’s not wasting time! But I can so easily get lost on social media and lose precious hours when I should be finishing projects and working toward goals.

I want to start tracking my time, so I can do better. (If you know of any good apps, please leave your recommendation in the comments.) 

7. What am I worried about … what’s my greatest source of stress and what can I do about it?

I spent years living with generalized anxiety disorder. And then I learned that when I identify my worries … I can surrender them to God in prayer.

Identifying a fear can remove some of its power, and it gives you and me the courage to face our fears and move beyond them. If we can do something about it – we should do it! If not – let’s give it to God and leave it alone!

Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Philippians 4:6

8. Where do I need to quit procrastinating?

I am the worst procrastinator about things I don’t really want to do … cleaning and phone calls are my typical “I’ll do that later” items. When I identify my “I don’t wanna” projects … I can mark them as “Eat the frog first” and check them off early!  Woo Hoo! 

“You cannot escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today.” ~Abraham Lincoln

9. What are my goals and what can I do to accomplish them?

I believe you and I are more likely to meet our goals if we know what they are and list steps to do them. 

I believe these three categories will help me be more specific…

a. Professionally
b. Relationally
c. Spiritually

“Focus on your goals, not your fears.” ~ Roy T. Bennett

10. Who needs my encouragement, my thanks, my help?

My spouse, my children, a friend, a teacher, or a ministry I love … I want to write their names in my planner and make intentional efforts to build them up, tell them what I appreciate about them, and take time to help where I can. 

So encourage each other and build each other up, just as you are already doing. 1 Thessalonians 5:11

11. What will I do this week for my health and the health of my family?

I’ll be honest with you. I’m not very good at this. I don’t plan meals, organize shopping lists, or schedule exercise the way I should. I want to make healthy choices a priority. 

Remember that you must give an account to God for everything you do. So refuse to worry, and keep your body healthy.  Ecclesiastes 11:9b–10a

12. What verse of Scripture will I memorize this week?

It would be awesome to memorize 50+ verses in a year and writing that verse once every day will make it easy to memorize it by the end of the week. 

You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in You, all whose thoughts are fixed on You! Isaiah 26:3

13. What’s the best way to organize my schedule to accomplish all I want to do?

This is where I look at my to-do list and my schedule and group things that can be done together. 

“Organizing is what you do before you do something so that when you do it, it is not all mixed up.” ~ A.A. Milne

14. What am I most excited about this week?

I want to plan at least one “I can’t wait” event each week. One each day would be ideal, but I’m content to start with one or two each week. 

Honestly, aren’t you more excited to get out of bed when there is something fun planned?“

“When he worked, he really worked. But when he played, he really PLAYED.” ~ Dr. SeussI'm asking myself some questions to help me plan my week wisely. I believe they will help you with your time management just as they are helping me. 15. What is my purpose?

When I know my purpose and mission and plan my week accordingly, I’m better able to enjoy the rich fullness of life I long for. 

Do you know your purpose? Do you have a Personal Mission Statement? (If not, come back Friday and I’ll help you write one.)

So friends, grab your journals and your planners and put a copy of these questions where you can find them easily and bless your time management.

You have my permission to use and/or share this list as you’d like. (Click on the list of questions for a printable version to  save.)

Time is a precious gift and I want to use it well. I’m sure I won’t do it perfectly but I can do better.

But…

I also want to make sure I allow space in my schedule for God’s interruptions because I want to make the most of every moment God gives me and make things with eternal value my priority.

Time truly is one of our most precious commodities…

Just think of all the things that can happen in a moment, an hour, a day, a week, or longer.

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and stop to pray one or two of the requests listed.

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26 Comments

  1. This has to be the most God-honoring, inspirational post on time management I’ve ever read. Thank you so much, Deb, and may He bless your time today!

    1. Thank you so very much, Cheryl! Your kind encouragement made my day! I’ve taken a Franklin Covey course and read Michael Hyatt for ages and still, time management is a struggle for me. I needed something that would help me focus more carefully on the stewardship side of time rather than the functional side. I’m so glad it bless you!

  2. This is some great advice and questions to ask of ourselves. I’m really wanting to improve in this area. Thank you for sharing!

  3. I love these questions, Deb! Very helpful and encouraging to streamline our focuses. I’ve pinned this! By the way, I think FB is coming out with some kind of app or tool that can reveal how much time you spend there, at least. Don’t know when that will be released, but I’m sure it will be revealing to us all when it is!

    1. Thank you, Beth! I’ll bet most of us would be shocked if we actually tracked our FB time, and in the other social outlets … whew! Many blessings!

  4. Such great advice, Deb. Pinned this twice and sharing on Twitter too. Blessings to you, friend!

    1. Oh thanks, Sarah! I really appreciate your kind encouragement! Blessings and hugs!

  5. I love this Deb. I saw myself throughout this whole thing – start to finish. So often, I feel like everyone is so organized contrary to the chaos I call my scheduling processes. I actually put everything in my phone for that reason (the planners never worked – EVER). These questions are great reminders right up until the very end.

    1. Brittany, I’m so glad to know I’m not alone. I hope that looking at the why and purpose behind the way I do my schedule will motivate me to be more discerning and plan more carefully. It’s my goal! Thanks and blessings!

  6. Time management is something I struggle with. There are time when I think I have a handle on it and then puff, where did the time go. I certainly have great room for improvement. Thanks for this useful and encouragement post.

    1. Thank you, Lureta! I wrote this one because I needed it … I’m so glad to know it blessed you, too! Thanks for letting me know!

  7. Deb this post is AMAZING!!!! I love tips like this and you have sooo much wisdom. I especially love #10 having something to look forward to. And your AA Milne and Dr. Seuss quotes are terrific. I pinned all 3 of these and plan to share on Fb this week!

    1. Oh, thank you, Ruthie! I sure am blessed by you!

  8. This is so amazing!! I need to get better at writing things down! You’ve given me some great places to begin!!! Thank you for sharing with us!!

    1. Thank you, Diane! I’m so glad to know it blessed you!

  9. oh Deb I love this post. Those question really put things in perspective and I can see how that can change one’s scheduled. I am pinning this to our time management board to share with our Living Our Priorities community. Stopping by from By His Grace Bloggers.

    1. Thank you, Timberley! I so appreciate your kind encouragement! You definitely blessed my day!

  10. Deb, I so appreciated ALL of these, esp. this week #3-4. You are a wise woman, thank you for sharing this with us to make the most of our time

    1. Thank you, Christa! I’m so glad you were encouraged. I think I’ve failed to plan my week as I’d like because I find it drudgery, reminding myself of the ways I found joy last week can help me add things for into the week ahead and that’s exciting. Many blessings!

  11. Wow, great list of questions! I never thought of looking at time management this way.

    1. Thank you so much, Kelly! You always bless me with your kind encouragement! Blessings and hugs!

  12. Oh you called me out with every To-do list in my head. I am a huge multitasker and actually thrive on it but the problem with this is it can control me instead of me being in control. Is it ok to admit that I don’t like planners…Lol? Love these questions for really evaluating and getting a handle on how we spend our time.

  13. I’m not so good at planning either, even though I have a nice planner. It’s only partly used. I like you idea of asking these questions. I think they would be very helpful in planning out my time. Blessings to you! I was next to you at the #Grace&Truth linkup!

  14. Lynette Day says:

    Thank you so much Lord for leading me to this blog today.

  15. You have to prioritize what’s the most important to your life or your business and get those things done first. Then get the other things done. You have to put your effort and time into what’s most important.