A jam-packed calendar can leave you over-booked and pressed for time, so it’s important to take control of your schedule.

An efficient calendar lets you avoid common mishaps, like mixing up important dates, or missing a deadline or client meeting, says Rosemary Smyth, founder of Rosemary Smyth and Associates in Victoria.

Here are three ways to make the most of your calendar:

1. Master the art of delegation
Smyth recommends delegating some of your responsibilities to an assistant, which would free up more time to tackle important tasks.

For example, if you’d like to send email reminders to clients about the next RRSP contribution deadline, build the task into your calendar for your assistant to complete.

Just be careful that you’re not assigning too much work to your assistant and vice-versa, Smyth says. Make sure that you’re communicating about what you’re delegating and getting feedback on the scheduling process.

Smyth recommends creating a system that updates you when a task is complete. For instance, you might update the calendar with a checkmark. “Find a system that works so you are delegating and not micromanaging your assistant,” Smyth says.

2. Schedule your personal priorities first
“Take ownership of your calendar,” Smyth says. “A lot of people say, ‘Oh, I just take a look and see what’s there.'” If your assistant is running your schedule, block off chunks of time that you may need for work or personal reasons, so there is no potential for overlap.

For example, if you want to be at the gym for 4:00 pm, schedule a visit to the gym during that timeframe. If you have a client meeting and know that the client will likely need more than the 30 minutes allotted, block off more time for that meeting so you’re not in a rush the rest of the day.

Advisors often lose track of their time and it’s because they haven’t taken control of their calendar, Smyth says.
Prioritize what’s most important to you before the calendar quickly fills up with the rest of your responsibilities.

3. Don’t underestimate time demands
This often comes with practice. Make sure you’re estimating the correct amount of time required for each task on your calendar. This will help being squeezed later in the day.

For example, if you need to call all of your top-tier clients to explain that the maximum annual contribution for tax free savings accounts has changed, make sure that you’re not booking 10 minutes when there’s a chance that such conversations will drag on much longer.

It’s important to think of the pace you enjoy when scheduling your calendar, Smyth says. Assess the type of flexibility you need and schedule your time accordingly.

This is the second part in a three-part series on prioritizing your workload.

Next: Tips on being more efficient.