What’s the best way to manage time effectively?
When you live in a college town like that of Manipal’s, you often lose track of time. The activities are endless, and the day is just 24 hours long. At a point, we all wish that the day was just slightly longer so we could fit in some more time, but that isn’t really possible, is it now?
But here are some excellent tools we can use to cope up with these stressful times, and being a student who studied in Manipal, I can guarantee these will work when followed religiously (by this, I do not mean, go to a worship center; I mean to do it sincerely) to manage time.
Make a timetable
I know it sounds schoolish, but the truth is timetables are the most effective tools ever to manage time. A principle called ‘Peter’s Principle’ states that work expands to fill in the time available. This means that no matter how much time you have, the work will expand itself to keep you busy throughout.
The simplest way to break this cycle is- Create a timetable for yourself that you would stick to; now, this timetable doesn’t necessarily have to be a daily timetable. It can be a weekly one with the weekly targets set out, and everything you achieve a target, you can reward yourself for a job well done.
Keep gaps
Although it is important to be in the zone, it is also important not to lose focus on our health. Our brain tends to wear out faster than we realize. It is like when a piece of machinery reaches its extent and starts overheating. Our brain undergoes a similar process, which is called burnout. Burnouts are rather sneaky, and one doesn’t really realize when it starts but definitely knows when it hits.
The simplest way of keeping that in control is by keeping sufficient gaps between activities. The gaps can be a minimum of 30 mins to a maximum of a day. Always keep in mind, work is not the most important thing in life; it is just a part of life.
The 21 days Principle to Manage Time
Did you know to make or break a habit, you need to continue striving at it for 21 days diligently? It’s literally that simple! In 21 days, you will have to fight your body a lot to be able to come to an end, but once you cross the finish line, you will already have made it a habit. Following a schedule, learning new things, or unlearning old habits, it’s all part and parcel of life. All you have to do is set a routine and follow it for 21 days.
Urgency- Importance Graph
Another principle talks about how all our activities can be categorized into 4 major blocks High Urgency-High Importance, High Urgency- Low importance, Low Urgency- High Importance, and Low Urgency- Low Importance. If you had to take a guess- where do most of your time go daily? It’s actually in the High Urgency-Low Importance quadrant. The reason behind this is because it’s something that has to happen not because you want it to, it’s delegated to you. The second highest time-consuming quadrant is the High Urgency- High Importance quadrant. The reason behind this is also straightforward, not giving it enough time when it was a smaller issue, and now it blew out of proportion.
The simplest way of handling this is, every activity you do should undergo two questions- “Is it important?” and “Is it urgent?”. It’s that simple! Once categorized, here is how to deal with it,
- High Urgency- Low Importance- Delegate the task
- High Urgency- High Importance- Eliminate in the first stage
- Low Urgency- High Importance- Complete as soon as possible
- Low Urgency- Low Importance- Eliminate by saying NO
Make your own personal space
In a town that is full of students all the time, having ‘Me’ time is a little hard; you first share your hostel room with your roommate and then your flat with a flatmate. You are always around friends either at college or the parties. Soon it feels like there is no time for yourself, and that starts to take tolls on your body and mind.
The simplest solution is to take out some time when you do things alone or spend some time doing things you like just by yourself. It sounds lonely, but it is imperative to have your own space. You can create one physically by assigning a spot in the room just yours, like your bed or study table.
Being a student losing track of time is not hard, but being the one in charge is important. Hope these tips will help you manage time in Manipal better.
Do you have any other tips that our readers would benefit from while in Manipal?
Share your thoughts and ideas by sending a mail to admin[at]manipalblog.com.
About the Author – The Wilderness Live Established in 2020, are a freelancing content company writing in the field of travel, culture, food, and animals. We run a podcast on Spotify, Apple, and Google podcasts under the name of Wilderness Live and you check out more of our work on www.thewildernesslive.com.
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