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Crunched
For Time?
Here are Some Clock Watchin' Tips
by
Cal Newport
 "One
advantage of our student time-management strategies
is that they don't take much time to implement!"
Or so claimed the introduction to a popular student
time-management guide I found on the Internet,
one written by the Center for Advancement of Learning
at a well-known college.
I
was intrigued. Like most college freshmen, I arrived
on campus with the time-management ability of
a doorstop, so I was understandably eager
to open myself to the wisdom of the Center for
Advancement of Learning. And I was pleasantly
surprised to find out how "simple" it
is to manage your time as a student! All you need
for a stress-free and productive college career
is a well-managed semester planner, a weekly grid,
a daily planner, a monthly calendar, a color-coded
project binder, a homework organizer, timed self-evaluation
forms, spacing reviews, and of course, an activity
matrix. Yeah right!
Consider
this: While interviewing dozens of the country's
most phenomenally active undergraduates (and winners
of insanely competitive national scholarships),
I asked them each a very simple question: "How
do you manage your time?" Contrary to what
the Center for Advancement of Learning might have
predicted, almost every student I interviewed
described using a time management system no more
complicated than a calendar and/or some scrap
paper.
These
prolifically committed students didn't need weekly
grids, color-coded organizers, or activity matrices
(what are those, anyway?!) to tame their hectic
schedules. Their improvised time-management systems
all seemed to abide by one governing principle:
Keep it simple; keep it smart.
Drawing from their wisdom, combined with my personal
experience as a perpetually busy student and former
college entrepreneur, here are seven indispensable
tips for effective student time management.
Each
of these concepts is crafted to be easy to implement
and effective. But don't just take my word for
it. To ensure that our student strategies didn't
stray too far from reality, I enlisted the aid
of two professional time management consultants
and organizational experts, Mark Lamendola and
Debbie Williams (see their stats below). Their
task was to critique the strategies that follow.
And not surprisingly, they were in full agreement
with what we found.
1.
Block out your day.
Although you may believe that creating a daily
to-do list is a good way to organize yourself,
think again. When you use a to-do list, you're
planning your day around what you want to get
done, as opposed to what you actually can get
done. A better way to organize is to use time
blocking. Every morning, before your first class,
rip a sheet of paper out of your notebook. Moving
down the left-hand margin, mark the hours of the
day using every other line. Now draw boxes around
the chunks of time when you will be in class,
meetings, sports practice, or any other planned
commitments. Next, draw boxes around the chunks
of time when you will be eating your meals, exercising,
or relaxing. The open space that remains is your
free time for the day. Now you can start to build
a realistic work schedule.
First,
box this free time into chunks that are at least
30 minutes long, and label each chunk with what
you are going to accomplish during that period
(e.g., work on math homework, start research for
history paper, read two chapters for English class.)
Then, fold up this scrap of paper, put it in your
pocket, and reference it throughout the day to
remind yourself of what you should be doing at
any given moment. Unlike a daily to-do list, time
blocking provides you with a realistic plan that
you can actually accomplish. "Carving your
time into blocks is a fundamental aspect of successful
time management," concurs Lamendola.
2.
Schedule at least one "to-do" block
every day.
Each morning, when you block out your day into
chunks of time, set aside at least one chunk for
accomplishing essential small tasks. Next to this
block, write out a mini to-do list of the small
errands and chores you need to accomplish. Add
tasks to this list throughout the day as they
pop up. This chunk of time is now your "to-do"
block -- a consolidated piece of your day when
you can efficiently take care of quick tasks such
as returning books and videos, making reservations,
or mailing in bill payments.
"This
works great," explains Lamendola. "You
can accomplish a lot in one concentrated flurry
of activity." Williams agrees, adding that
you can also consolidate to-dos by location. "If
you have to head across campus anyway, you should
see if there any errands you can do along the
route."
By attacking all your small chores during one
concise block of time, you will get them done
quickly and painlessly.
3.
Keep a mini calendar in your backpack.
Buy a pocket-sized calendar notebook that has
one page for every day of the current year, and
bring it with you wherever you go. When deadlines,
exam schedules, special events, or other important
dates arise, quickly jot them down. Get in the
habit of looking at your calendar each morning
so you know what's coming up, and you can plan
your day accordingly.
Don't
fall into the temptation of trying to keep track
of dates in your head -- you'll forget something
important. You can use a cheap giveaway from your
bookstore or an expensive day planner, says Williams.
"It doesn't really matter, as long as it
has a space to write for each day."
4.
Be flexible.
The astute reader has probably noticed an apparent
flaw with the time blocking system recommended
above. It seems rather optimistic to assume that
the schedule you sketch out each morning will
remain accurate throughout the day. As any undergraduate
will attest, college life is, if nothing else,
unpredictable. Friends drop by unexpectedly, assignments
take twice as long as you planned, printers jam,
computers crash, and can't-miss events are brought
to your attention at the last minute. Don't worry!
Lamendola warns about the danger of becoming a
"slave" to your schedule.
"I
have an aunt who is so dependent on her organizer
that if guests stops by unexpectedly she can't
entertain them. Why? Because their visit is not
written down in her planner for the day!"
The reason you jot down your schedule quickly
on a piece of scrap paper (as opposed to a giant
organizer) is because your plans will change.
If
an unexpected event occurs, wait until you're
free again, and then take that scrap of paper
out of your pocket and spend 30 seconds redrawing
the blocks for the remainder of the day. It's
that simple.
Don't
let your schedule be anything more than just a
convenient and highly adaptable guide. As Williams
puts it, "you've just got to go with the
flow." So embrace the craziness that is student
life. Flexibility will keep you sane.
5.
Keep an accountability log.
How do you deal with long-term projects? Perhaps
one of the most important attributes of a successful
student is the ability to break down large assignments
into smaller pieces of work, and then spread these
small assignments out over a period of time. This
skill is actually not that hard to acquire. Want
to know the trick? Hold yourself accountable.
The
human ego is a powerful thing, and you can use
it to your advantage as follows: As soon as a
long-term project is assigned, mark on your calendar
the days you plan to work on it. When you get
to each of these marked days, block out on your
scrap paper schedule the specific work you want
to accomplish. Then -- and this is the important
part -- at the end of each of those days, jot
down on your calendar whether or not you've accomplished
your goal. You'll be surprised how motivating
this method is.
However,
both Williams and Lamendola agree that accountability
logs are not for everyone. If you have no problem
working ahead of schedule, then logging your progress
is an unnecessary step. But if you constantly
find yourself finishing projects at the last minute,
get in the habit of keeping yourself accountable.
It only takes a few extra seconds a day, and its
positive effects are undeniable.
6.
Take Fridays off!
That's right, declare Friday a day free from organization.
Don't let a daily schedule come anywhere near
you. One of the most common reasons people abandon
their time management systems is because they
begin to feel overwhelmed. "Taking time off
is critical," agrees Lamendola, "otherwise
you will start resenting your schedule. Then you
won't follow it."
After
your classes are done on Friday, relax! Although
it is often a good idea to try to get some work
done on Friday afternoons (so you won't be swamped
come Sunday), don't formally schedule any work.
Just accomplish what seems reasonable and interesting,
and above all, take it easy. On Saturday, start
easing back into a scheduled lifestyle by blocking
out three or four hours in the late afternoon
to get some work done, but leave the rest of the
day open. Treat Sunday like a full scheduled workday,
and try to accomplish as much as possible. This
method will keep you energized for the week ahead,
and prevent you from burning out from organization-overload.
7.
Create chore rituals.
Perhaps equally as difficult as scheduling work
for long-term assignments, is convincing yourself
to tackle non-essential chores like doing your
laundry, cleaning your room, running boring errands,
and calling home. These seemingly simple tasks
rarely seem "vital" to accomplish, so
they are often pushed aside and ignored.
One
of the easiest ways to stay on top of these tasks
is to create chore rituals. "I am a big fan
of routine," claims Williams. "The beauty
of a routine is it prevents you from forgetting
to do something important." For example,
you could get in the habit of doing your laundry
every other Sunday. During the half hour when
your clothes are in the washer, you can clean
your room. During the hour when your clothes are
in the dryer, finish your boring errands. While
you fold and put away your clothes, call home.
Don't stress -- in a few weeks, your chore rituals
will become habitual.
During
this learning period, leave yourself constant
reminders about the exact time and composition
of your routine. Williams recommends going as
far as having your rituals laminated and posted
above your desk. Once they become habit, you will
no longer have to expend mental energy to get
your chores accomplished on a regular basis. Your
parents will be so proud!
Though
proven and useful, these seven tips by no means
describe a complete time management system. However,
they do provide a push in the right direction
toward a personalized system that is simple, smart,
and works well for your particular circumstances.
So
stand tall, wield your piece of scrap paper proudly,
and take control of your time. And by the way,
if you happen to run into anyone from the Center
for Advancement of Learning, let them know that
I have a color-coded homework organizer to return
to them.
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