College is a time for young adults to put their own self motivation to the test. One of the biggest challenges that they have is their time management skills. If they developed none in college, then there will not be the chance for them to become effective in their college work unless they develop them quickly. In this article, the author discusses how to gain these skills quickly and easily. read on for more.
Now that you’re in college you will find out sooner or later that managing your time is a skill that must be learned and put into practice in order to keep a level head, mature, grow and succeed. If you haven’t already noticed, sometimes it just seems like there isn’t enough time in the day to accomplish everything you need to do. Why does it feel like no matter how hard you try, time seems to slip away?
Whether you want to or not, mastering time management is a task that will be forced upon you in order for you to keep track and keep up with all the responsibilities and activities of college life. By following these 4 critical steps, you’ll be able to make time work for you and not against you.
Let’s start with figuring out how many hours a day can truly be classified as “free” time. Let’s break it down.
There are 24 hours in a day X 7 days a week = 168 hours total a week.
1. Take Charge
Realizing you only have 10 hours of free time available every day, a take charge attitude is imperative in making this allotted time work to your advantage. You’ve got to take the initiative in making decisions rather than waiting for others or circumstances to dictate your steps. Being proactive instead of reactive is imperative.
Taking the reactive approach will not allow you to utilize your time efficiently. Don’t choose to study “when your classmates are studying” instead, look at your own schedule and figure out the free time you have in between whatever other responsibilities you have for the day, making every minute productive.
2. Be Organized
Being organized is the foundational aspect of being proactive. How can you make decisions if you are unsure of what lies ahead? If you haven’t figured out a system to use, such as a planner, then get one. If you own a Mac, the iCal is a tool you can use to organize your life. Make sure you include everything, such as:
Test dates from your syllabus
Project deadlines
Last day to drop classes
School holidays
Professor office hours
Club and organization meetings and events
Doctor’s appointments
Football/Basketball games
Final exam/midterm dates and times
Any other event or task that you need to be aware of
Seeing everything down on paper/computer screen drastically reduces anxiety as well as feeling overwhelmed by too much to do.
3. Plan Each Day
When you get up in the morning, go to your planner and plan your day from beginning to end. You can even start by going over things in your head when you go to bed the night before. If anything important comes up, be sure to write it down in your planner.
4. Prioritize
Make sure when you look at the things that need to be accomplished for the day to prioritize what’s truly important. Finishing a group project is going to take top priority over organizing a basketball game with your friends. Rank your tasks by their level of importance and complete those first then continue down the list until the rest are completed.
Learn My Proven College Success Strategies!
Do you want to learn more about how I do it? At my website, I teach students how to develop study skills by incorporating new technology into the learning process. Visit http://www.CampusByte.com to learn how.
More on Time Management in College:
College and Time Management – Life Coaching Service
Having a plan and knowing how to use your time wisely may be the keys to your success in college. Time management is an essential skill that helps you keep your workload and life under control. Of course, with your time management …
Publish Date: 05/05/2010
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