Time Management

FYA101Fall 2012

There are 168 hours in every week.How are you spending yours?

SleepingGoing to the GymGetting ready for classWorking on campusShopping for groceriesCaring for family membersGoing out with friendsCultivating a relationshipMeeting new peopleGoing to office hoursVolunteeringGoing to classStudying for testsDoing library research

Taking a napExercisingCatching up!CommutingGetting around campusPlaying an instrumentTrying to unwindAttending events on campusHelping a friendChecking emailRevising your essayGetting coffeeChatting with friendsKeeping in touch with family

How Does Everything Get Done ???

Time management is nothing but common sense. I do well in school, so I must be managing my time

effectively.

Time management? I

work better under pressure.

It takes all the fun out of life!!!

No matter what I do, I won’t have

enough time!

Yes!

As college students, you are very busy people, and to make those 168 hours effective, you have to do some planning.

The Benefits of Time ManagementYou are more productive.You reduce your stress.You improve your self-esteem.You achieve balance in your life.You avoid meltdowns.You feel more confident in your ability to get things done.You reach your goals.

Why is Time Management Important???

“The Time Famine

Bad Time Management = Stress

This is life advice

People waste about 2 hours per day. Signs of time wasting:Messy desk and cluttered (or no) filesCan’t find thingsMiss appointments, need to reschedule them, late and/or unprepared for meetingsVolunteer to do things other people should doTired/unable to concentrate

The Problem is Severe

Being successful doesn’t make you manage your time well.

Managing your time well makes you successful.

Hear me Now, Believe me Later

Steps to Managing Your Time

Set goals

Make a schedule

Revisit and revise your plan

Goal Setting

Academic Goals: goals related to your role as a student Example: What grades do you want/need?

Social Goals: goals related to you as a social being Example: How will you connect to the university community?

Career/Work Goals: goals related to your ambitions in the world of work

Example: Where do you want to be (job-wise) in 10 years?

Goal Setting

Make your goals specific and concrete. Don’t be vague.

Set long-term and short-term goals.

Set a deadline for your goals.

Integrate your goals: academic, social, and career.

Realize goals change and know which goals to stick to!

Go for the

goal!

From your goals, set priorities.

Goal Setting

What’s important and what isn’t? What order do things need to be done in? Once you know what your priorities are, you

need to plan out a schedule for the semester, the week and the day.

Planning may seem hard at first, but the more you do it, the easier and more natural it gets.

Make a Schedule Schedules help us organize and plan our

time.

Schedules also keep us on track by reminding us where we need to be or what we planned to do at a particular time.

Schedules help us plan our work and they help us work our plan!

Schedules help us reduce the amount of procrastination we engage in!

Make a Schedule

Planning

Failing to plan is planning to fail

Plan Each Day, Each Week, Each Semester

You can always change your plan, but only once you have one!

Make a ScheduleThere will never be enough time to

get everything done.

But there will always be enough time to get the most important things done.

Make a Schedule

School is a Full Time Job!

Full time student spends 15 hours in class per week

Full time student spends a minimum of 30 hours per week studying

15 plus 30 equals 45 hours per week

Make a Schedule

The Two to One Thumb Rule

For every hour you are in class, you should study at least two hours

=

Make a Schedule

Look at the syllabus for the class schedule. Begin with blocking all class and lab times. Block all other set time obligations:

Work, church, meetings, athlete’s schedule, etc. Highlight all exams and project due dates. Identify routine homework days. Work backwards from exams and papers and

map out study/writing time. Don’t forget to take a break once in a while.

Set Up Your Semester Calendar

All W

ork a

nd

No P

lay W

ill Driv

e Y

ou

N

uts!

Make a Schedule

Remember to Expect the UnexpectedSpend 30 minutes or so mapping out the week.Ask yourself these questions about the week:

What do I expect to accomplish?What will I have to do to reach these goals?What tasks are more important than others?How much time will each activity take?When will I do each activity?How flexible do I have to be to allow for unexpected

things?

Set Up Your Weekly Plan

Where does the time

go?

Make a Schedule

With everything that I’m juggling, I need to use

some major time management skills!

Make a Schedule

“Work smarter, not harder.”- Alan Lakein

Set realistic goals, there are only 24 hours in a day.

Use spare time to review. Study at the same time each day: make it a habit Divide study time into 50-minute blocks. Don’t forget to reward yourself when you do

something right!

Take it One Day at a Time

Make a Schedule

Break things down into small steps

Like a child cleaning his/her room

Do the ugliest thing first

To-Do List

Make a Schedule

The Four-Quadrant To-Do List

1 2

3 4

Important

Not Important

Due Soon Not Due Soon

Make a Schedule

Complete a term assignment preview. Use a “week at a glance” organizer. Enter in due dates and social events as soon as

you can. Review your calendar daily for the current week

and upcoming week. It just takes a moment to review your calendar

and it relieves stress to know you are on top of things.

Use a Daily Planner

Make a Schedule

Be Tough With Your Time!Now that you’ve been paying attention to your schedule, how are you actually using your time?Which tasks were you able to do? What didn’t get done? Was your energy level appropriate? Your stress level? What changes need to be made to your weekly schedule? What are persistent time wasters? Could better communication have helped you stick to your plan?Was procrastination an issue?

Review and Revisit Your Plan

Procrastination

Forms of ProcrastinationIgnoring the task, hoping it will go awayUnderestimating how long it will takeOverestimating your abilities and resourcesTelling yourself that poor performance is okayDoing something else that isn’t very importantBelieving that repeated “minor” delays won’t hurt youTalking about a hard job rather than doing itPutting all your work on only one part of the taskBecoming paralyzed when having to make choices

“Never do today what you can put off ‘till tomorrow!”

Procrastination

Doing things at the last minute is much more expensive than just before the last minute!

Deadlines are really important: establish them yourself!

Avoiding Procrastination

Use lotsof

Sticky Notes

Procrastination

Win the mental battle by committing to being on time.

Set and keep deadlines. Organize, schedule & plan. Divide a big job into smaller ones. Find a way to make a game of your work or make

it fun. Reward yourself when you’re done. Tell your friends and room mates to remind you of priorities and deadlines. Learn to say “no” to time wasters.

How to Overcome Procrastination?

ProcrastinationAre you working your “A’s” Off?

Do You Have C-Fever?“A” LIST

1 Midterm test that counts for 50% of grade.

2 Write a eight page essay for English.

“B” LIST

3 Prepare for a quiz in Biology.

4 Schedule an appointment with a Professor.

5 Complete a journal entry.

“C” LIST

6 Buy laundry detergent.

7 Dust the videos on the bookcase.

8 Email a high school friend on another campus.

9 Shop for a new pair of athletic shoes.

10 “Armor-al” the dashboard of the car.

Procrastination

Divide and Conquer Procrastination

A father gave his son a bundle of sticks and asked him to break it. After the boy struggled, the father took the bundle, untied it and broke one stick at a time.

Procrastination

We procrastinate because the “A” tasks seem too lengthy or too difficult

We procrastinate because we fear FAILURE.It is easier to accept that we failed because we didn’t even attempt a project than to fail at doing the project.

We procrastinate because we fear SUCCESS.If I get all “A’s” this semester, everyone will expect the same next semester.If I do an outstanding job on this project, my boss will just pile on more work.

Fear of Success and Failure

Effective Study Habits

Find a place to study that is best for you. Have everything you need to study, nearby while

you study. Reward yourself for hard work. Create a checklist of all the tasks you need to do

before you begin to study.. Keep a “worry pad” while you study.

Study Time

Effective Study Habits

Break Assignments such as essays and research papers into smaller tasks

Study least difficult subjects first Take Breaks Join Study Groups

Use a Study System

Be Wary of Distractions!

Questions?

Thank You