Time Strategies... Check!
I am a very organized person: my calendar is color coordinated and maps when I should be doing everything that day and my to-do lists give a precise look at everything I need to be doing.
I think I learned my time management skills when I had to work and attend school my sophomore year. I had difficult curriculum and I had to manage having a job during the school year for the first time. It was a struggle at first to find enough time in the day to get everything done, but I soon realized that it was my mindset that got in the way. I was overwhelmed by all I had to do, so I made excuses and didn't prioritize well.
I eventually found out that I do my best school work in the morning, so I like to get up an hour or so before I have to be anywhere to just get a jump start on homework for the day. Like the article Eat The Frogs First Thing in The Morning mentioned, get those big unwanted tasks out of the way as quickly as you can. I find this to be helpful because once I am exhausted by my day, the last thing I want to do is write that paper or read the long confusing research article, even if it needs to be done.
This same article discussed creative procrastination. This is a seemingly paradoxical idea, but I realized it is something we all naturally do when we prioritize the things on our to-do list. We may realize it is okay to put off certain things, or even put something we were working on on hold. I think this is an important skill to establish so you don't become easily overwhelmed or frustrated by your work.
In Three Steps to Recapture Time, the step that was most important for me was the "art of saying no". I have trouble telling people no for many different reasons. I want to help others as much as I can, I don't want to disappoint them or make their day harder, and I also think I am super human and can complete 5000 tasks in a day. However, I find that sometimes I don't do my best work, or end up getting frustrated with the person I couldn't say no to. Developing this task will definitely help make my time management strategies that much better.
I am not worried about my time management strategies for this semester. With it being my last one, I feel like a seasoned veteran. However, when I reach law school in the Fall... that may be a different story.
(Image from Stacy Spensley 2010. Source Flickr)
I eventually found out that I do my best school work in the morning, so I like to get up an hour or so before I have to be anywhere to just get a jump start on homework for the day. Like the article Eat The Frogs First Thing in The Morning mentioned, get those big unwanted tasks out of the way as quickly as you can. I find this to be helpful because once I am exhausted by my day, the last thing I want to do is write that paper or read the long confusing research article, even if it needs to be done.
This same article discussed creative procrastination. This is a seemingly paradoxical idea, but I realized it is something we all naturally do when we prioritize the things on our to-do list. We may realize it is okay to put off certain things, or even put something we were working on on hold. I think this is an important skill to establish so you don't become easily overwhelmed or frustrated by your work.
In Three Steps to Recapture Time, the step that was most important for me was the "art of saying no". I have trouble telling people no for many different reasons. I want to help others as much as I can, I don't want to disappoint them or make their day harder, and I also think I am super human and can complete 5000 tasks in a day. However, I find that sometimes I don't do my best work, or end up getting frustrated with the person I couldn't say no to. Developing this task will definitely help make my time management strategies that much better.
I am not worried about my time management strategies for this semester. With it being my last one, I feel like a seasoned veteran. However, when I reach law school in the Fall... that may be a different story.
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