Week 5 – Time Management

Though it often gets overlooked, there isn’t any way around it; time management is key. As you grow older and get more involved in various activities, there will always be something vying for your time. And if you aren’t able to manage your time well (or flat out say “no” to various activities/invitations), you’re going to run out of steam pretty fast.

Over a month into my college experience, I’m reminded of this daily. On days that I don’t use my planner to schedule (practically every minute) of my time, I am often swept into various activities that I typically just don’t have the time for. Yet when I take just ten minutes to use my planner and schedule my day such that I utilize every minute (thanks for beating that into my head mom), I’m much more effective. In fact, I’m so much more effective that I am able to say “yes” to many of the spontaneous and scheduled activities I would have had to decline otherwise.

To live the fullest life, one must determine their priorities and balance their various activities accordingly. And in my experience, the easiest way to do this is to take the time to write it all out on a planner. There are a plethora of tremendous books and resources for learning proper time management should you decide to pursue it, so I’m not going to get into all of that (though I do recommend reading both Brian Tracy and Dr. Stephen Covey). All I know is that time management has proven to be essential to succeeding on a daily basis, which in turn leads to success in the long term.

My parents were right: the best way to be effective is to “plan your work and work your plan.” So as I continue on my collegiate career, I’ll definitely be managing my time.

Until next time.

– JP

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