Time management is a very important dimension of academic success because you will usually find yourself feeling as though you have too little time in which to complete all that you must do. With good time management, you will be able to complete your assignments with time to spare for other activities.

To be effective in time management, you must have a definite goal and a plan by which to achieve that goal. In other words, you must know what you value most.

With your commitment to achieve a goal, you must be willing to make a daily list of all of your assignments and responsibilities and assign a priority number to each. The number one (#1) priority items should be those which more than any others get you from where you are to where you want to go. The remaining items should be given a secondary priority. Whether difficult, unpleasant, troublesome, or frightening, you must do first things first. You should never be concerned about not completing tasks of secondary priority.

At the end of each day, plan tomorrow’s calendar. From your list of things to do, pick out five of the most important first priority items that you feel you should finish that day. Then pick out the next five and so on. Now, Murphy tells us that nothing can be done as quickly as we think so always plan by assigning extra time to the completion of any task. After each task, assign an estimated time for completion. Keep these time estimates in units not greater than one hour. When necessary, break large tasks into smaller units of work. For example, if your assignment is 40 pages long, break it into four study sessions of 10 pages each. With this approach, the completion of each task will not drag out and with the completion of each smaller task you will be motivated to work on as confidence and self-esteem build and increase.

After your daily calendar is completed and you begin the actual work, work quickly and intently to get the task finished in less time than you assigned. To help you keep a brisk pace, set an alarm clock or timer to notify you of the expiration of time. In this way, you should be able to forget about time that is a common cause of distraction. Once the clock is running, work to measure up to the challenge. Go for it. Concentrate. Block everything out of your mind except your work. Know that probably nothing can happen in that time period that could drastically change your life. So, with that confidence push for the completion of your work.

The accomplishment of your daily calendar priority items is important for your success. You can do this with dependability if you work at those times of each day when you are at the peak of your mental alertness. Determine for yourself when those peak times occur. Then stick with them. At those times, set up barriers to protect yourself from incidental distractions that may interrupt your work. Let people know at what times you wish to be left alone for study and find a private spot that also isolates you from telephone and friends. In this way, you can count on being at your best for that which requires your best. By all means, avoid being lured into doing anything that is not among your priority items. Work in a workmanship-like manner. If at times you should get bogged down, give yourself a break, redirect your thinking, and give it another try.

At the end of each day, review your daily calendar. No matter how insignificant, find something you did about which you can be pleased. Then for a sufficient time, think about that accomplishment. Use your accomplishments to build your confidence and to advance your positive mental attitude. Each day as you work to complete the number one priority items on your calendar, work as quickly as you can. Attempt to cut your estimated time of completion. At first, you may be hard pressed to work quickly with confidence but stick with it. If for some reason you do not finish your work on time, but you did your best, have no regrets. Put in some extra time. Then try again to get your work completed in the estimated time. Stretch yourself. In the long run, it will pay off. Gradually, you will become more efficient and more effective. If on the other hand you finish ahead of the estimated time, you earned a vacation from your work. Take it. Feel good about it. It is luxury of success.

Creation date : 14/11/2005 @ 18:24
Last update : 14/11/2005 @ 18:24
Category : Study Tips
Page read 1447 times

 Print preview      Print the page