TIME MANAGEMENT
Weekly time chart
1. Sit down and examine your day. Make a list of all the things you need to do, from taking a shower to doing homework and after-school activities.
2. When you begin to write things into your schedule chart, start with those things that have specific start times. For instance, if you know you have to be at the bus stop at 7:00 a.m., fill in that square with “Bus stop”. If you have to be at band practice from 5:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m., write “Band practice” in the 5:00 square.
3. Next, move on to the things that don’t have specific start times, but that you have to get done. When finding squares of time to fit them in, think about the time of day. For example, it may be a good idea to schedule homework before dinner, since after your meal you may get too sleepy to concentrate.
4. Give yourself a break or several! If doing all of your homework in one chunk is too much for you, schedule a little bit of free time between subjects.
5. If you have an important event like band practice that falls right in the middle of your evening, talk to a parent about adjusting other things, such as dinnertime, so you can make your schedule work out.
6. Consider using a different colored pen or marker to color in different types of responsibilities. You could use yellow for family chores, red for school events, blue for sports and activities, and so on. This way, you’ll get a good sense of how your day is planned out just by glancing at your schedule. If there’s way too much blue, for example, you’ll know that you’re probably overloaded with sports and activities.
7. Remember that we can’t predict what’s going to happen every day, and time management involves being flexible, too. If you hurt your ankle on a Wednesday afternoon and have to spend two hours at the hospital, you probably won’t be able to stick to your schedule and that’s okay. When this type of thing happens, use that schedule to help you juggle your time. For instance, your trip to the hospital may have cut into your homework square, but you can make it up by giving yourself an extra homework square the next day.
MONTHY CALENDAR
Here’s how to make the most out of a Monthly Calendar:
1. Buy or make one for your wall or desk, with really big daily squares where you can write in important dates.
2. Get in the habit of writing every important deadline or event, from school project due dates to club meetings and sports games.
3. Make important dates as visible as possible, so they’ll catch your eye.
· Try using colored markers, stickers, or magazine photos to make the calendar squares pop out.
4. Mark “warning dates” for really important events. For example, if you have a big science project due on a certain day, don’t just mark that day. Count back a week, and then mark that calendar square with “ONE WEEK UNTIL SCIENCE PROJECT DUE!!” This can be especially helpful when something is scheduled for the beginning of a month, because you could flip to the new month page and be taken by surprise by what’s waiting there. If you make yourself some warning squares, things won’t sneak up on you.
HAVE-TO’S, WANT-TO’S, GOALS
Have-To’s:
“Have-To’s” need to be a part of almost every day. Whether we like it or not, we all have to find time to get them done.
· Family responsibilities. You know the drill: household chores, helping your little bro with homework, keeping your room clean.
· School and homework. You won’t always be a student, but while you are, it’s your job to give time and energy to your education.
· Sleep. Sleep is a must for our bodies and minds, and doctors agree that young people need at least eight hours every night. If you think you can squeeze more time into your schedule by cutting back on Zzzz’s, you’ll probably find that you’re sleepy and sluggish during the day, and wind up taking longer to do things anyway.
· Eating and personal hygiene. Taking enough time to eat so that you actually enjoy it, rather than just shoving cereal down your throat, will help you develop healthy food habits. The same goes for bathing, dressing, and other things that make you presentable to the world. If you block out time to do them and enjoy them, you’re likely to feel better about yourself that day.
Want-To’s:
Fortunately, our time isn’t just about responsibilities…we get to have some fun, too! “Want-To’s” make our lives a little more fulfilling.
· Activities. You might be a violinist, a soccer player, a painter, a poet, or a ballet dancer. Sports, the arts, and other hobbies are important because they help make us well-rounded and develop our bodies and minds. Plus, they just plain make us happy.
· Chill time. Okay, let’s not forget that you also deserve some time to just be you and do whatever you feel like, whether it’s going to the park, hanging out with friends, reading a book, or being alone with your thoughts.
Goals:
Short-term goals are things we want or need to do that can be accomplished in a few hours or days.
Long-term goals are part of the “bigger picture” of our lives -- our dreams and aspirations. Although they may take months or years to accomplish, they still take up time on a regular basis.
Priorities
Remember the big things. There are big things in life, and there are little things, and you’ve got to do your best to tell them apart. School assignments and completing your family responsibilities are always important. These are the “big things” that you should always consider first when making a time budget. Always reserve plenty of time for these priorities, and use “leftover” time for things that are less important.
Think about what’s urgent. You’ve set aside time after school to do some research on your history paper, but you also have a big concert coming up and need to practice your cello. Which takes priority that day? Well, which deadline is coming up first? If the concert is next week, but the report’s not due until the week after, there’s your answer. Knowing which task is more urgent is an easy way to choose priorities.
Think about the consequences of NOT spending time on it. Can’t decide whether something is worth your time? Ask yourself this: What would happen if you DIDN’T do it? For example, should you finish writing up a science project, or watch a movie on DVD? Let’s see:
· The consequences of NOT doing your science work: You get a failing grade on the project, your parents get upset, and you have to work harder to bring up your grade average.
· The consequences of NOT watching the DVD: You miss out on a good flick, but you can always see it when you have more time, like on the weekend or a night when you have less homework.
This makes it pretty clear which of these two things should be dropped from your time budget, right?