Save Time Online
By Tash
Hughes of
Save Time Online
How often do you
go onto the Internet to find something and find that
you’ve been there for ages? Other jobs aren’t done and
you’re not sure you really achieved much.
It is very easy
to spend a lot of time online without intending to, but
most of us don’t have that sort of time to spare.
With a bit of
effort and management, you can use the internet
efficiently and productively.
- Referrals
Whenever
practical and possible, use recommendations to start
your internet search.
By using
recommendations, you save yourself the time of sifting
through many sites that are irrelevant to your needs. It
also increases the likelihood of the information
gathered being accurate and up-to-date.
Referrals to
sites can be made by friends and colleagues in general
talk or upon request. Other referrals can be through
information portals, related sites and off line sources,
such as a magazine review or an advertising flyer.
- Timer
If time is very
limited for the task, either because it isn’t worthy of
much time or because you have other commitments,
consider an egg timer or stopwatch.
Set it for the
time you can afford to spend on this search – or perhaps
five or ten minutes less so you will have time to finish
up the last page you visit. Alternatively, set a timer
for half hour or hourly blocks so you can monitor the
time spent.
Not only will
the timer keep you in touch with how long you have been
online, the knowledge of it may help keep you on
track; subconsciously, you won’t allow yourself to waste
time as each minute has become precious.
- Specific
Each time you
search for some information or an item on the internet,
be clear about what it is you want to find.
Take the time to
clarify things; instead of vaguely searching for facts
about having pets, look for answers to a question such
as ‘which dog breed would be best suited to my
lifestyle?’
The more
specific your quest, the easier it will be to target
your search words and to determine if a site is of any
use to you – a quick scan
will show you that pet site A is only about cats and
goldfish, so you can close it and look elsewhere.
- Focus
When you are
searching for information, it is very easy to get
sidetracked online.
For instance, if
you are researching about asthma you will come across
links to parenting issues, first aid courses,
alternative medicine and allergies. All of these may be
interesting, but if they won’t answer your original
question they are using up your allotted time
unnecessarily.
By all means,
bookmark links to items of interest for later use or
have a notebook handy for ideas that occur to you as you
research, but keep your search focused on your topic
(eg. asthma.)
A narrow
focus means there is much less relevant material on the
net so you can finish quicker.
With some
discipline and management, you can keep your internet
time under control and have more time for things you
like to do.
Tash Hughes is
co-owner of Save Time Online. Found at
www.savetimeonline.com.au, this is an information
portal for busy Australians. There is information, tips
and links in categories such as business, parenting,
health, gift buying and energy conservation. |