Ever wonder why a day only has 24 hours in it? Ever feel like once you have completed something, there is another task that takes its place? Everyone is subject to the pressures of a heavy workload that must be completed in a short 24 hour day. I have compiled a list of steps that should help ease the stress and make you succeed the next time you are trying to beat the clock.
Tips to Successfully Manage Your Workload in a 24 Hour Day
1) Record a Typical Day- What do you spend time on during a typical school day? Making a schedule on
paper (I find Microsoft Excel very easy to manage time) will allow you to see what activities you do from a whole perspective. Make sure you track your activities for a weekend too. And again, making a chart like this will allow you to see where exactly you are spending time doing something when you could be working on something important.
2) Create Goals- Create goals for yourself when you first start to kick the habit of “wasting time.” For example, go a week with playing video games only 30 minutes a day or without taking any phone calls or texting while you are completing homework. You will be surprised how much time that will save!
3) Get a Planner or A Piece of Paper- Write down what you need to have accomplished at the beginning of the day and throughout your school day. As you finish a task, cross it off your “To-Do” list. It is a very gratifying experience striking off something on your “To-Do” list.
4) Time Management Tools- Remember that schedule you created that listed what your typical day looked like? You should also keep a calendar that records upcoming events so you can plan your time wisely before days you know that you won’t be able to get any work done. (Ex. Soccer Tournaments, Vacations, etc.)
5) Prioritize- This is probably the biggest step in your plan for time management. List the things on your “To-Do” list in order of importance (ex. due date, importance to you, etc.). This will make you save time because you will spend time only on the most important of tasks, not waste time on tasks that can be done at a later date.
6) Create a Time Table- I know you have to create a lot of tables, but this is your most important. Create a time table that breaks down the day in 24 1 hour intervals. Then allocate time starting with your most important tasks to your least important. Make sure you try to stick to the time you allocated for each task.
7) Discipline- If you follow an organized plan of managing time, you will succeed. This is the biggest obstacle to overcome. It is easy to point out what you waste time with and how to fix it. The second step is to minimize the time-wasters and maximize productivity once and for all. As long as you stick to a plan, stay organized, and only work when it is work time, you will succeed in the short 24 hour day.
8) Breathe- Everyone has a lot to do in such a short amount of time. Make sure you take time to breathe and don’t get caught up with all the work that needs to be completed. Allocate SOME time to free time because it is just important to relax and have fun.
I hope these steps will help you manage your time better than before. Just remember the main step is to STAY FOCUSED. And remember to allocate 8 hours for sleep. Staying up late to finish assignments isn’t healthy, and will make you unproductive the next day. Those 8 hours of sleep are vital to make sure your body is running properly so you can finish work efficiently.
