Page 115 - Learning to Learn

L

EARNING

TO

L

EARN

: B

ECOMING

A

S

ELF

-G

ROWER

115

E

XPERIENCE

5: T

IME

, P

LANNING

,

AND

P

RODUCTIVITY

READING

Timing is Everything

Someone once observed that time is that quality of nature which keeps events from all happening at once

and that lately it doesn’t seem to be working. This chapter will explore the concept of time management:

how you plan, control, regulate, and schedule your time. Management of any kind is a relatively high-

level skill; managing your time effectively will require that you make either explicit or implicit use of

the Problem Solving Methodology as well as the Information Processing Methodology. In the context of

college, strong time management skills help you to complete all your course work in a timely manner while

maintaining balance in your life outside of school. While it may be tempting to think you should focus as

much time as possible on coursework, it is important to recognize that developing social and emotional

skills and maintaining good mental and physical health are every bit as important if the larger goal is to be

successful not only in school but throughout life.

Time management is recognized as a critical factor for determining success in college. High-performing

students tend to make a conscious effort to plan and manage their time. Perhaps the main reason more

students don’t focus on time management is that it’s not trivial and takes real effort. This chapter will

examine some of the important aspects of time management and offer successful strategies that can help

you manage your time more efficiently. Let’s start by focusing on schedules and plans.

Zach is a first-year student who really enjoys the social aspects of

college and does pretty well in his courses though he admits that if he

spent more time studying, it would be easy enough to turn a few of

his B’s into A’s. He carpools to school with two friends, and they’ve

all known each other since third grade. He runs track and has a

passion for paintball. He thinks of himself as reasonably organized,

but things have started to get a bit more complicated since he

started working a part-time job at a local fitness center and

hanging out with Kylie, a trainer who works there too.

Turning Your Time into a Schedule

The first step in time management is to become aware of how you are currently spending your time. Once

this determination is made, regardless of your current situation, you can take action to make improvements.

A good tool to monitor your time is a day-planner that breaks down each day into certain time increments.

Day-planners are readily available in bookstores or you can easily create your own day-planner.

Monday

Task

Time

Duration