Time Management Strategies
"We must use time wisely and forever realize that
the time is always ripe to do right."
-Nelson Mendela
Lucy Capuano Brewer, MA
Psy 02 – Personal Growth
and Social Awareness
The Zen of Time Usage
“When You Wash The Dishes,
Wash the Dishes.”
•What does this quote mean?
•How is it related to effective use of time?
•Being in the Here and Now
Living in the moment: Living in the moment is about just
being. Being fully present in every situation, body, mind,
and soul, so that you experience everything you do totally
and absolutely.
In those moments when you engage yourself completely,
nothing in the future exists - and nothing in the past is
holding you back.
Time Management
Time is Finite-You Already have all
the time that will be allotted to you.
Birth--------------------------DEATH
What you do with that time
is up to you!
Time Management
Time is a difficult concept to define
Time management is event control
Planning is the key to control
The only time you can exercise any
control over is right now!
In College you will be asked to do
many jobs, often by different
instructors or supervisors who do
not know the other work that you
are doing.
It is up to you to organize all your
tasks so you can complete them
by the deadlines given to you.
You may also like to have some
time to "have a life."
In College
PLANNING : IS THE KEY TO CONTROL
No one plans to FAIL…
They just fail to PLAN
The Time Management Matrix
Urgent
Not Urgent
Important
Planning/Preparation
Relationship Building
Prevention
Values Clarification
Exercise
True recreation/relaxation
ACTIVITES:
Trivia/busy work
Junk Mail
Some phone/e-mail
Time wasters
Escape Activities
Viewing Mindless TV
Adapted from Steven Covey’s- 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
Not Important
IV
ACTIVITES:
Interruptions, some calls
Pressing matters
Some mail / reports
Popular activities
ACTIVITES:
PERSONAL GROWTH
Important
Crisis
Medical Emergencies
Pressing problems
Deadline Driven Projects
Last-minute Projects
III
II
ACTIVITES:
Not Important
I
The Time Management Matrix
Urgent
I
Not Urgent
II
ACTIVITES:
ACTIVITES:
III
IV
Not Important
Activities in this Quadrant
are Activities of Deception
They should be
Avoided/Controlled
ACTIVITES:
Activities in this Quadrant
are Activities of Waste
They should be
Avoided/Controlled
Adapted from Steven Covey’s- 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
Not Important
ACTIVITES:
Important
Activities in this Quadrant
are Activities that will bring
Control to your life
This should be your
FOCUS
Important
Activities in this Quadrant
are Activities of Necessity
They must be Managed
Time Management
What’s Worked For Me
1. Use an
Organizer
2. “To Do” Lists
3. Rewards!
4. The “3 Ds”
5. Use “in
between” Times
What’s Worked For Me
1. Use an Organizer
o Get an organizer
and use it.
o Schedule
everything!
o Include classes,
study time,
projects, tests,
work and play.
What’s Worked For Me
2. “To Do” Lists
o Make a daily “to
do” lists.
o Include priorities
(a,b,c,…1,2,3)
o Anything not
done today is the
first on the list
tomorrow.
What’s Worked For Me
3. Rewards!
o Reward things I need
to get done with
things I love.
o Example: 10 minutes
of TV, phone, etc.
after 50 minutes of
studying.
o Example: after two
hours of studying 30
minutes of exercise.
What’s Worked for Me
4. The “3 Ds”
Anytime you get a new
task, immediately do
one of the three D’s
with it.
1. Do it now!
2. Dump It!
3. Delegate it! (get
someone else to do it)
What’s Worked For Me
5. Use “in between” Times
“Time opportunities”
are everywhere – use
them.
Have materials
(Blackberry,
flashcards, notes,
etc.) ready.
Artifacts for Staying on Track
10 Minutes a day for planning.
Flexible Scheduling
Automated Schedulers - Netscape
Calendar, Microsoft Schedule,
Outlook, Palm Pilot
Pad of Paper - Running to-do list,
place for unloading.
A Watch
•Build in flexible schedules.
•Don’t optimize to the minute.
•Allow for error.
•Running to-do lists are useful for getting
distracting thoughts out of your head
Developing The Habit
Takes Discipline and Practice to Have
Good Time Management Skills
Develop Skills Incrementally
Start by developing a realistic
schedule
Build in reward system for finishing
things
Over time, it’ll become second nature.
The Big Picture
Important to know when you’ve
done all that you can.
Don’t schedule more than is
humanly possible.
Don’t stress about things that you
can’t control.
Keep the long term goals in mind.
TIME MANAGEMENT
Some Days Are Impossible
In spite of best efforts - It’s still
impossible to get everything done.
Partly the Environment or too
many commitments.
This can lead to stress.
Active Inactivity
“Music is the Space Between
Notes”
- Claude Debussy
Creating Empty Spaces
in Life
is Essential.
•Creating Quiet Time - turn off phone, don’t check
email, just “Be”
•Very important to break up your life with quiet periods
for reflection, planning, and refocusing.
The Art of Procrastination
Wastes more time worrying about the
outcome or avoiding what seems to be
unpleasant.
Art of Delaying the Inevitable
Where can you lose time?
Worrying about finishing on time.
Worrying about the final outcome.
Distractions.
Doing “unimportant” things first.
Components of procrastination
A behavior sequence for
postponement
Often resulting in a substandard
product
Involving a task that is NOT
important to do
Resulting in a state of emotional
upset
Procrastination
Procrastination is a crime it only leads to sorrow, I can
stop at anytime, I think I will tomorrow!!!! – Unknown
The act of putting off something
that needs to be done.
Ignoring the task, hoping it will go
away.
A natural human tendency
Undermines The Creative Process
Important: When you exclude the
creative process, everything suffers!
STEPS IN THE CREATIVE PROCESS
1.
PREPARATION
1.
2.
INCUBATION
1.
2.
3.
Whatever steps necessary to think about,
begin to gather resources, STARTIN THE
PROCESS.
Let it chill…
Give yourself time and space to think
about, revise, revisit the first step.
ILLUMINATION
1.
Aha! Moment: "Aha!", "Eureka!", "What-da-ya-know"... or just
plain "hmmm." Whatever we call it, it’s that single, magical moment when
things just make sense
4.
VERIFICATION (Doing it!)
The actual process of getting it done!
Pe rform ance
High
PROCRASTINATION
ZON E OF
PEAK ACADEMIC
Boredom
Lack of motivation
PERFORMAN CE
Stressed
Anxious
Irritable
Fatigue
Moody
Vague
Agitated
Tired
Panicky
Aimless
Nervous
Depressed
Worried
Lacking in concentration
Scared
Forgetful/poor memory
High
Low
Low
High
Swings
Level of Body Arousals
The Power of Thought
Procrastinating
Productive
I must/have to…or something
awful will happen.
I choose to...
I've gotta finish...
When can I get started on...
Oh God, this assignment is
huge!.
Where is the best place to
start?
I must do well (fantastic,
perfect).
I'll do okay; I'll give it time.
I have no time to play.
It is important to play one
hour.
I see life and work as a grind.
Life and work are rewarding &
fun.
I can't succeed.
I will succeeding if I...
Six Styles of Procrastination
1. Dreamers:
These procrastinators desperately want life to be easy and free
from pain. They retreat from the real world and live in their heads.
2. Worriers:
Prizes security above all else. Has a narrow comfort zone and is
paralyzed with anxiety.
Endless stream of "what ifs" about hypothetical situations, all
with negative consequences.
3. Defiers:
Resents authority but expresses the rebellion covertly.
Likely to say, "sure, I’ll do that". Then they "forget", or delivers
work that’s late.
4. Crisis Makers:
Most of us do our best work under some kind of time constraint.
A crisis-maker goes out of the way to create drama
5. Perfectionists:
Self-esteem is on the line every time they do anything.
Often they are idealists who are unrealistic in their use of time and
energy
6. Overdoers:
Always busy.
People pleaser, the guy who never says no to taking on more
work.
For specific info: http://www.nypsychotherapy.com/procrastination.html
Anti-Procrastination Techniques
for Dreamers
Change your someday’s and soon’s to
specific times.
Buy and maintain calendar’s: keep them
visible and utilize it.
Write out assignments.
Do fewer passive activities and more
active activities.
Prioritize!!!
Which one are you?
Take a couple of minutes to write down
which of the procrastination type best
fits you?
Give 2 - 3 specific (personal) examples
Find others like you and come up with
2-5 effective strategies to stop
procrastinating.
Anti-Procrastination Techniques
for Worriers
Recognize that making no decision is,
in fact, making a decision.
To help yourself become more
decisive, follow a two-part-decisionmaking process: first commit yourself
to the goal, then determine the steps
you’ll take to achieve the goal.
Instead of panicking with a rhetorical
“What if?” question, go one step
further and state the answer.
Anti-Procrastination Techniques
for Perfectionists
Focus on what is realistic rather
than perfectionism.
Change your “have to’s” to “want
to’s”
Make a daily “to do” list that is
short and practical
Anti-Procrastination Techniques
for Over-Doers
Say no when appropriate
Take breaks and enjoy free
time
Make to do lists
Anti-Procrastination Techniques
for Defiers
Pick your battles carefully, weighing
what's really worth fighting for according
to a scale of priorities.
Mean what you say.
Do what you know needs to be done.
Always try to act instead of react. Take
pains to “decide and do” rather than
“complain and defy”
Anti-Procrastination Techniques
for Crisis Makers
The crisis maker needs to increase his
self-motivation to accomplish things
Decrease the emotional investment in
the death-defying, last minute
performance.
Recognize your need for an adrenaline
rush, but find a safer avenue for it than
your work or your relationships.
Managing procrastination
Simply begin
Set reasonable goals
Set priorities
Chunk tasks
Use time line
Write contract
Use positive self talk
Affirm your ability
Motivational
messages
Challenge
perfectionism
Write reminders
Reward yourself
Develop a routine
Reward yourself
for progress “Work before you
play”
Work in daylight
Time of Your Life – Green Day
Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road.
Time grabs you by the wrist, directs you were to go
So make the best of this task and don't ask why.
It's not a
question but a lesson learned in time.
It's something unpredictable but in the end is right.
I hope you had the time of your life.
So take the photographs and still frames in your mind
Hang them on a shelf of good health and good time.
Tattoos of memories and dead skin on trial.
For what it's worth, it was worth all the while.
It's something unpredictable, but in the end is right
I hope you have the time of your life.
Time – Pink Floyd
Ticking away the moments that make up a dull day
You fritter and waste the hours in an offhand way.
Kicking around on a piece of ground in your hometown
Waiting for someone or something to show you the way.
Tired of lying in the sunshine staying home to watch the rain.
You are young and life is long and there is time to kill today.
And then one day you find ten years have got behind you.
No one told you when to run, you missed the starting gun.
So you run and you run to catch up with the sun but it's sinking
Racing around to come up behind you again.
The sun is the same in a relative way but you're older,
Shorter of breath and one day closer to death.
Every year is getting shorter never seem to find the time.
Plans that either come to naught or half a page of scribbled lines
Hanging on in quiet desperation is the English way
The time is gone, the song is over,
Thought I'd something more to say.
Create your own Time Sheet
Make a choice to change
Begin to manage your time more efficiently
http://www.usd.edu/trio/tut/time/evtime.html
Resource:
Covey, S. R. (1989) The 7 habits of highly effective people. Simon
& Schuster: New York.