Time ManagementChapter 7

Eight Strategies for Success

• Focus first on high priority items• Group related tasks and do them together• Get organized• Break it into double chunks• Develop and use timetables• Focus on one thing at a time• Finish it fully• Do it when you think of it

Pareto Principle (80/20 Rule)

• 80% of the benefit comes from doing 20% of the work.

• Therefore, find the most important and beneficial 20% and make that your priority to tackle.

• How close is the activity related to your life goals?

Organization• Prepare a “Things to Do” list

– Place the list in a prominent area– Check items off your list as you accomplish them

• Create a Realistic Schedule• Get rid of unnecessary papers• Break it into double chunks

– Subdivide the project into steps– List the steps– Put them in order

• Develop and use timetables

Common Time-wasters

• Slow decision making• Worrying• Attempting to do things perfectly• Working against your body rhythms• Failing to Recharge Your Batteries (take a power

nap to feel better)• Feeling that you are responsible for everything• Getting Stuck waiting

When you Start your Morning:• Create a fantasy of your ideal morning• How many of your morning tasks can be done at night?• Suggest to yourself what a relaxed, enjoyable morning is

like before you drift off into sleep• Build flexibility into your morning routine• Come up with a workable schedule for your daily tasks

(eg. water plants on Mondays, clean refrigerator on Tuesdays, etc.)

• Know what it is you need in order to start your morning off on the right foot.

Four Generations of Time Management• The first three are focused on the skillful

management of time:– Notes and checklists– Use of tools such as appointment books,

agendas, planners– Prioritization, goal setting and planning to

guide your schedule

The Fourth Generation…..• Managing yourself in time more effectively.• Organize your schedule around priorities rather

than prioritize your schedule– Start by preparing your personal mission statement

• Focuses on the kind of person you want to be, what you want to contribute and accomplish, along with the values and principles upon which you desire to base and guide your life. It also reflects your uniqueness

• Consider all the major roles you play in your life• Use your 100th birthday as a strategy. A reporter comes and

asks you “What are you most important accomplishments/contributions in life?” How would you answer?

Urgency vs. Importance

Quadrant 1Crises

Pressing problems

Projects with deadlines

Some meetings

Some preparations

Quadrant 2Proactive activities

Long-range planning

Networking

Relationship Building

Prevention/Maintenance

Quadrant 3Interruptions

Some phone calls

Some meetings

Some reports/some mail

Many pressing matters

Quadrant 4Busywork, trivia

Some phone calls

Some mail/junk mail

Pleasant activities

Effective Time Management

• Is spent on Quadrant 2

Procrastination

• “Never do today, what you can put off until tomorrow”

• Main and direct cause of procrastination:– Low frustration tolerance

• False belief that what ever discomfort felt now is too hard to bear

– Can not defer gratification

Remember….

• Attitude change •Creates a behavioral change.

Six Steps to Overcome Procrastination• The bits and pieces approach• Getting Organized

– Things to do lists– Create realistic schedules– Do it when you think of it– Modify your work environment– Block off escape routes

• The five minute method• Don’t wait for inspiration “Genius is 1% inspiration and

99% perspiration” Thomas Edison• Reward Yourself• View Mistakes as Feedback

Reward Yourself

• Profit Penalty system– Punishment does not inspire change– Reward yourself when you have completed

task

• Premack Principle– Use the least liked task first, then reward

yourself with a task you enjoy

The Effective Student

• Improves memory retention by:– Paying attention– Learning the material well– Organizing the material– Using rehearsal– Minimizing rote memorization– Writing it down– Using memory aids when appropriate (mnemonics)– Reducing interference and distractions

continued,…..

• Sleeping on it

• Distributing learning sessions

• Exercising

• Testing yourself

• Being aware of the influence of learning contexts

The SQ3R Method

• Survey

• Question

• Read

• Recite

• Review

Mastering Test Anxiety

• Practice active relaxation

• Use cognitive restructuring

• Visualize success

• Develop testwiseness

Testwiseness Does Not Replace Studying……..• Information from earlier questions may reveal the right

answers• Highly implausible items are incorrect• Two equivalent answers? Choose neither• Correct answers are more detailed, longer• Beware of all-inclusive words• Look for greatest similarity in terminology• Look for grammatical inconsistencies• With numbered answers avoid lowest and highest• If nothing else, select choice “C”• Don’t be afraid to change your answer