About Time Management

Due to my propensity for putting off tasks till the last minute, I frequently have mountains of work. In this situation, my problem with time management is that I am constantly in a reactive mindset, which makes it difficult to make progress on the most crucial tasks. It's usually a good idea to set aside a little time each day to work on pressing and vital tasks. One can prevent problems from becoming crises by finding solutions in advance (Brans, 2013). Since the environment is always important when it comes to productivity, how can I alter my environment in order to increase my productivity?

Quadrant 2 (Important x Not Urgent)

Reading lecture notes

Planned study

Exercise and Health

The time management challenge, in this case, is that I am easily distracted by things that are not urgent. Another challenge is that I tend not to finish what I start since the motivation brought about by urgency is not present any more. A possible solution to this is setting aside at least one hour each day to work on such things. The duration can increase once one gets into the habit (Chapman & Rupured, 2010). Managing interruptions for instance by turning off instant messaging chat when you need to focus would help one to gain control (Whetten & Cameron, 2002). Doesn’t urgency serve as a perfect motivator when it comes to tasks?

Quadrant 3 (Urgent x Not Important)

Soccer match live on air

Emails and phone calls from health club

The activities in this quadrant end up wasting loads of time. I am always aware of that but soccer matches end up eating up lots of my time especially over the weekend. My time management challenge in this case is that I don’t know how to say no. A possible solution as regards this challenge is practicing to say no to things I love more frequently. It would also be beneficial to limit exposure to such addictive activities. This would ensure prioritizing of more important things (Covey, Merrill, & Merrill, 1994). This will minimize wastage of time in low-value activities. How does one know what meeting to categorize in this quadrant?

Quadrant 4 (Not Urgent x Not Important)

Excessive playing of video games

Binge watching movies and TV series on Netflix

Excessive social media activity

These activities are time wasters. However, they are my favorite pastimes. The time management challenge, in this case, is the lack of prioritization. One possible solution would be ensuring that I spend less than 5% of my time each day on activities that are neither important nor urgent. It would also be advisable to substitute these activities with other fun activities that are more beneficial in the long run such as meditation and working out (Brans, 2013). Don’t activities in this quadrant somehow determine the quality of life of an individual?

References

Brans, P. (2013). The Top Ten Challenges in Time Management. Retrieved from http://www.forbes.com/sites/patbrans/2013/02/19/the-top-ten-challenges-in-time-management/#5ab160422619

Chapman, S.W., & Rupured, M. (2010). 10 Strategies for Better Time Management. Retrieved from http://www.fcs.uga.edu/docs/time_management.pdf

Covey, S. R., Merrill, A. R., & Merrill, R. R. (1994). First things first. New York: Simon & Schuster.

Whetten, D.A., & Cameron, K.S. (2002). Developing Management Skills, (5th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice- Hall.