The key to success does not lie in being a genius or in having a bout of really good luck. It is also not about juggling many balls in the air and being able to do many different tasks perfectly all at once.

Making a success of what you do is often about being able to manage yourself and your time better. It is about being able to plan and organize yourself in a structured fashion and in being more meticulous in the way things are done. Here are some simple ways to make better use of your time.

Plan : You have to have an idea of how your day at work looks. You must plan for the week ahead, and also give yourself more clear, definite tasks that must be concluded in the day. You can draw up this plan either before you go to bed at night, or start by planning your day first thing in the morning. Do what suits you best. Make sure that you have checked off all the things on your list of tasks before you have called it a day.

Prioritize : Make sure you take on the larger, trickier issues first. You are more fresh and energized in the morning, and should be able to get to the bottom of the tougher jobs faster. Getting the difficult issues out of your way will be able to help you finish the smaller, odd jobs faster. If you keep the larger chunks of work for later, you will only end up procrastinating and delaying your job. Make sure that you take fewer breaks and free time until the difficult jobs are finished first. Keeping at work and less distraction is best to get the job done quickly. More delay only means that you will have a tougher time staying focussed and getting back to where you left off.

Reward : There is no greater rewards than seeing all your daily tasks being scored off as finished at the end of the day. It makes you feel efficient, diligent and capable. It also sets the pace and motivates you for the day ahead. Remember that each day brings you new challenges, and to be able to take on a new day, you should leave the last one in a positive frame of mind. Constantly having backlogs and unfinished work only makes you less efficient and feeling inadequate. Indulge yourself in time with your family of friends to celebrate small victories. It will help you refresh yourself and give you a better frame of mind.

Motivate : Keep your immediate and long term goals in mind. While the smaller goals will give you an immediate high and sense of achievement, the long term goals will put your vision and targets in perspective. It is important to balance your time well to be able to achieve both, since it is a balance of both that will keep you going and motivate you to work better.