Inside: Discover ten small habits that can save you 10 minutes every day. It all adds up!
A guest post by Cora Gold
Ten minutes may not sound like much, but small wins add up if you’re trying to streamline your life, reduce mental clutter, and reclaim just a few minutes for yourself.
These habits don’t require a major life overhaul — just consistency. Over time, they can save hours from your week for the things you never get to, without you even realizing how much you are saving.
Here’s how to start saving energy and minutes with micro habits you’ll love without sacrificing your sanity.
10 Small Habits That Can Save You 10 Minutes Every Day
Check out these ten small habits that can save you 10 minutes every day.
1. Plan Your Day the Night Before
Waking up and wondering what to tackle first wastes precious mental energy. A quick end-of-day habit of writing down tomorrow’s top tasks can help you start your day faster and with more focus.
Keep it realistic — aim for three priority items, from most important to least. This habit can be applied to work and your personal life.
A priority list at work will ensure you start your tasks first thing in the morning and have plenty of time to finish them, without working over time.
At home, the list will help you stay motivated and avoid major time-wasters, like scrolling or watching TV.
As a bonus, you’ll sleep better without the constant procrastination and fears about what tomorrow brings, so you can wake feeling refreshed.
2. Store Essentials in a Single Exit Spot
Designate one spot near your door for keys, wallet, sunglasses, and anything else you grab on your way out. Searching for lost items — even just five minutes at a time — can spiral quickly into lateness and stress.
Hooks, trays, or a dedicated desk drawer work wonders. Make sure to put everything in this designated spot every time you get home so you know it’ll always be there.
3. Check the Weather While You’re Brushing Your Teeth
It sounds small, but knowing the weather first thing can prevent last-minute outfit changes or having to double back for an umbrella.
Pull up your weather app or ask your smartphone while going through your morning routine. If you’ve ever gotten caught in the rain without a coat, you’ll know how much of a lifesaver this can be.
4. Eat the Same Breakfast on Autopilot
People waste time when faced with too many choices. A “default” breakfast — a smoothie, oatmeal, or egg and toast — makes mornings just a bit easier.
You can always treat yourself to more variety weekends, but making Monday through Friday predictable saves time. It’s one less decision to make when you’re trying to get ready for work.
5. Keep a Grab-and-Go Lunch System
Like breakfast, lunch can also be a hassle. Many people avoid the trouble by buying lunch each day or surviving on snacks.
You may think this saves you time at home, as it’s one less thing you have to do before you leave the house. However, think about the time (and money) spent figuring out what to eat every day.
You might be taking several trips to the office vending machine in a day, as empty calories from snacks don’t keep you full or nourished. Maybe you’re spending 10 minutes scrolling through Uber Eats to decide what to order, or waiting in a long line at a food truck.
Instead, prep your meals at the beginning of the week and keep them in containers that you can grab on your way out the door. Find some one-pan recipes with ingredients you love and get all of your lunches planned for the week on Sunday.
6. Sort Your Mail Over the Recycling Bin
Mail creates paper clutter quickly. Instead of tossing everything on a counter or desk to “deal with later,” open it over the recycling bin.
Junk mail gets tossed instantly, while bills and action items can be sorted into a tray or filing system. This habit keeps your surfaces clean, and you’ll be less likely to lose something important in a pile of trash.
7. Pre-Sort Your Laundry as You Go
Instead of letting clothes pile into a single hamper, place two baskets in your laundry area for lights and darks. You’ll save time by not sorting a mountain of mixed laundry later, and you’ll avoid any mishaps, such as a red sock dyeing your whites pink.
Laundry takes some investment from your schedule, but sorting doesn’t have to.
8. Use Voice-to-Text for Quick Notes and Reminders
Do you ever think of something you need to do later while you’re driving or washing dishes, but you can’t write it down in the moment?
Avoid forgetting important ideas by using your phone’s voice features. Say, “Remind me to call the plumber at 2 p.m.,” and smart technology will ensure it’s done. This works for grocery lists, appointment times, and any idea you’ll forget if you don’t capture it right now.
Using voice memos will save you the time of dropping everything to find a pen and paper, as well as the time it takes to reschedule a forgotten appointment or return to the grocery store for a missed ingredient.
9. Keep Your Phone Out of Reach When in Bed
Scrolling TikTok or emails in bed can waste time before your day has even started. Blue light exposure from screen time is also linked to poor sleep and waking up feeling tired.
Try charging your phone outside the bedroom or across the room. This forces you to get moving and helps break the autopilot scroll habit.
You’ll reclaim daily minutes, create healthy boundaries with technology, and improve your mood by dodging that morning social media drama binge.
10. Plan Your Outfits Weekly
Few things waste more time in the morning than figuring out what to wear. Instead of finding an outfit every day, plan what you’re going to wear at the beginning of the week.
You can hang up outfits in the order that you’ll wear them, so every day you can just take the next item off the rack and be ready to go.
You can make these decisions even easier by having a minimalist wardrobe. This method ensures that each top you own will match each bottom, so you have fewer clothes with endless combinations.
How Habits That Can Save You 10 Minutes Add Up
Ten minutes per habit may not seem like much, but saving even just five minutes each hour can stack up to an hour of saved time each day. That’s five extra hours a week, which you can use for all those things you never get around to.
Embracing time-saving systems, especially around food and home routines, can significantly reduce overwhelm and burnout, particularly for working parents and remote workers. Small tweaks lead to big wins.
Here are some other simple habits you can try to save time:
- Review your daily calendar while you make coffee.
- Sort your laundry while listening to a podcast.
- Shop and prep food over weekends, saving loads during the week.
- Select your next day’s wardrobe while you brush your teeth before bed.
- Pack your leftovers and tomorrow’s lunch while you tidy the kitchen at night.
- Write your daily priorities list in a notebook to avoid the temptation of scrolling on your phone.
Small Changes Make a Big Impact
Minimalism isn’t only about decluttering your home — it’s about optimizing your time.
These habits help you streamline your routines and reduce friction so you can spend your minutes more intentionally, even if that means reclaiming a few minutes to stare out the window with guilt-free pleasure and a cup of tea at the end of the day.
Cora Gold is the Editor-in-Chief of Revivalist magazine. She loves writing about family and living life to the fullest. Follow Cora on Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest.
Which small habits that can save you 10 minutes every day will you implement? Let us know in the comments section below.
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One thing that nelped me was learning a few dinners that ‘cook themselves’. Pork chops with saurkraut (cover the bottom of a skillet with saurkraut, spread out the chops over the kraut, cover tightly, and leave it to simmer) is a favorite with my family.–Anne
You’re spot on about breakfast and mail. I live in an apartment. Mail boxes are on the first floor. I open mail in the elevator on the way u., By the time the elevator door opens on my floor, I have in my left hand the pile of trash to throw down the garbage chute directly across from the elevator. Trash mail never makes it to my apartment. As for breakfast, coffee, nonfat Greek yogurt, fresh berries, and homemade granola every single morning for the rest of my life.