Time is limited to how many hours there are in a day and some things cannot be put off until tomorrow. As a student you will be given time critical tasks that must be completed by a certain time and date. Late is no good and neither is unfinished work going to give you good results.
For students time management is a crucial skill to be learned and understood. There are so many distractions in student life that it is easy to forget all about the work until it is getting to be too late to complete it in time. Planning is crucial and setting a time period to complete the work in is vital to avoid being overwhelmed with the task.
With a plan of work you should have allowed a reasonable time to complete any part of that work and have the finsihed material ready to be delivered on time with the knowledge that you have done a decent job of it. Without a plan you may well end up rushing to complete the work when your friends are finished and relaxing.
It may sound boring but an organized schedule helps you and actually keeps you focused on the important tasks. It should also enable you to spend a little more time on some parts of your work if you need to without this meaning that some work doesn't ever seem to get finished.
It is important that you plan properly and schedule your work. A vague plan will not be as effective or helpful. Proper planning will aloow leeway so that if one part of your work takes longer than expected you can adapt the plan and get back on schedule to complete the work by the deadline.
- Is your life structured in any way?
- Have you stopped to think how you life has changed and evolved over the past few years?
- When was the last time you identified what needs to be organized in your life?
- What time do you allocate to planning and implementing disciplines, good habits and systems?
Naturally you have to start off by identifying the problem areas where you aren't organized. You do this by reviewing different sectors of your life. Once you have identified the problems it is a good idea to record this information on a Tracking Chart to help you implement the steps to reaching your goals.
Here are some ways to help you make better use of your invaluable time, and achieve more quickly and easily the things that you want to do, or have in your life.
1. Identify areas in your life that are not well organized
Financial- paying bills on time, checking the efficiency of your expenditure.
Home - Keeping inside clean and tidy. Smoke alarm & fire extinguishers in working order. Maintaining roof, and outside of building.
Car - Regular maintenance and safety checks, MOT, car insurance & licence kept up-to-date.
Work - Organized filing system, portfolio, product samples, printed advertising material, business cards.
2. Look at what you procrastinate about doing - To get started, I suggest making a list of all the things you have been avoiding or procrastinating over, that need to be done in your life.
3. Create lists of things to do - Whenever you need to remember something you want to get or do, jot it down. This includes home, clothes, car, business, health and recreation.
4. Prioritize - decide what needs to be done first - Prioritizing is a problem for most people. List your responsibilities and commitments and review them. Then record the date and how you will implement the actions you need to take. Write down how and when each goal will be achieved.
5. Keep a Calendar & Day Planner - Diaries, planners and calendars are great tools for keeping you organized. Discover which works best for you to help you keep track of important things from day to day.
6. Create an Organization Tracking Chart - Once you have identified problem areas that need organizing you can set up an Organizing Tracking Chart. You need to ensure that you have organized yourself and that you have a proper place for all your belongings and other pertinent information. Note the problem area, followed by what you will do to improve in that area.
7. Create a Division of Time Chart - Good time management isn't just about arriving on time; it's how you divide your time. If you are always late, there is a reason for this. You consistently make decisions and re-adjustments on how much time is spent on each activity as you assess your daily priorities. Using a chart will greatly facilitate this.
8. Create a Responsibilities & Commitments Chart - Use this to keep track of ongoing or new responsibilities.
9. Use visual reminders - Write important things down - on colored post it notes or similar - and place them where you will regularly see them.
10. Set up data bases - Select either electronic or printed version for your needs. Take time to record everything of importance correctly, and update often.
Both Jason Tickbourne & Genevieve Dawid are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Jason Tickbourne has sinced written about articles on various topics from Time Management Skills. With proper work gets done properly and on time. Read more about time management and how it affe. Jason Tickbourne's top article generates over 2900 views. to your Favourites.
Genevieve Dawid has sinced written about articles on various topics from Mentoring, Education and Web Development. is a published author and highly successful consultant,. Genevieve Dawid's top article generates over 27100 views. to your Favourites.