10 Ways I'm Using Theme Days for Energy and Time Management

Theme days is a time and energy management approach I've been testing for the last few months.

Rather than forcing many divergent tasks into each day, which breaks up my attention and energy, I separate my work to focus solely on 1-3 things per day and leave the rest for the other days.

Some days it works well for me, and other days not so much. But here's what I've been doing. I'm open to comments. How do you manage your time and energy relative to your work?

1. Divide the high-level work into five categories.

I run an e-commerce store, so right now my high-level work breaks down to accounting, operations, marketing, product, and growth.

2. Break each day's high-level work into NO MORE than three significant tasks.

The key here is to prioritize, prioritize, prioritize. If I feel like I have to do more than three things, then I've not done a great job prioritizing my work. The 80/20 principle works great here.

3. Monday: Accounting.

Accounting, profit/loss analysis, make sure the bills are paid.

4. Tuesday: Operations.

This includes handling technical issues and general store maintenance.

5. Wednesday: Marketing & Campaigns.

Analyze current campaigns and prep for upcoming campaigns.

6. Thursday: Supplier & Product Maintenance.

Manage products and follow up with suppliers.

7. Friday: Reading, Learning, Planning & Creative Thinking.

Weekly retrospective, plan the upcoming week, month, and quarter, conduct industry research, take courses and brainstorm ideas for improvements.

8. There will always be tasks that have to take place every day.

For me, this includes customer support, product fulfillment, and some general admin stuff.

9. Distractions are inevitable but the key is to keep coming back to the 1-3 priorities for the day.

Write down the day's priorities and keep them nearby for those times I get distracted.

10. Conduct a weekly retrospective to help iterate.

I find this step to be critical. If I don't take a step back and analyze how things are going, I get into a rut and keep churning through my routine regardless if it's working or not. When I make changes to my routine, I try to keep them small and test them to see if they work.