Ugh, busy season. 8 hours of sleep? Try 5-6 — on a good day. And, to add insult to injury, we are mocked by the fact that we are losing another precious hour this weekend (daylight savings time starts on Sunday, March 12).
If sleep deprivation makes you want to cry, I tracked down some ways you can save some time in other areas of your life to make room for a nap this weekend.
Skip grocery shopping
Order groceries online (at work, of course) and pick them up on your way home. Genius. That has to save a least a half hour, maybe more. I tracked down a handful of grocery stores who offer online ordering. And these stores will even deliver in certain locations:
If you are lucky enough to live in an Instacart service area, it doesn’t matter if the grocery store offers online ordering. You can order groceries online through the Instacart app and get them delivered in as little as an hour.
For added efficiency, save your shopping cart and just re-order the same grocery cart next week. You’re welcome.
Can food just magically appear?
Hop on GrubHub or use a service like Postmates to have what you crave delivered, whether it be to your house or the office.
Or, if you plan ahead, there are lots of companies that send fully prepared meals (sans the added preservatives) to your door. Two that caught my eye were:
Alternatively, if you want to cook every once in awhile but don’t want to worry about your meal kit spoiling, check out Takeout Meal Kits for pre-measured ingredient kits that are inexpensive and non-perishable.
Disclaimer: This advice only applies if your firm isn’t springing for “working” meals. If they are, disregard these suggestions. You’re good with work sustaining sustenance and probably have a few extra pounds to show for it.
Even so, the meal I always struggled with was breakfast. I never had time to eat breakfast during busy season. My solution — smoothies. Luckily, Green Blender is a service that will deliver ingredients and recipes to whip up superfood smoothies. That’s better (and actually cheaper) than going to Jamba Juice.
Cut the line at Starbucks, et al.
The Starbucks app lets you order and pay ahead of time, and you can just show up and pick up your coffee. It may save only a couple of minutes per day, but it can add up if the line is long.
It’s a trend in fast food to offer this service; even McDonalds will offer a mobile order and pay service in 20,000 restaurants by the end of 2017. Others already embracing mobile ordering include Panera, Chick-fil-A, and Dunkin Donuts.
But, beware, studies are showing it doesn’t always save time and could come back and bite you when you are running late to work.
Order essentials by clicking a button
I mentioned this last week, but it’s neat, so I will mention it again. Click a button and Amazon does the rest. Never fear of running out of toothpaste or contact solution at an inopportune time again.
Have a new wardrobe delivered
You’re sick of wearing the same worn out work clothes that reek of Dryel, but you certainly don’t have time to go shopping for new clothes. Here are a couple of options that can keep you looking presentable:
Or, if you want to rent some fresh items instead:
Do you have any ways to save time and keep sane during busy season I missed? Share in the comments.
Image: Unsplash / Jordan Whitfield
