LESSON 6
TIME MANAGEMENT
STRUCTURE 6.0
OBJECTIVES
6.1
INTRODUCTION
6.2
THE CONCEPT OF TIME 6.2.1
SOME FACTS ABOUT TIME
6.3
NEED FOR TIME MANAGEMENT
6.4
TIME MANAGEMENT AND ITS IMPORTANCE
6.5
APPLYING TIME MANAGEMENT CONCEPTS IN REAL LIFE
6.6
TIME AUDIT 6.6.1 6.6.2 6.6.3
TIME-USE CHART SUMMARY OF ACTIVITIES DATA ANALYSIS OF TIME
USE
CHART
SUMMARY
AND
EVALUATION
6.7
TIME MANAGEMENT PRINCIPLES
6.8
GOAL SETTING 6.8.1 6.8.2 6.8.3 6.8.4
6.9
IDENTIFYING THE GOALS IN LIFE LEARN TO PRIORITIZE SUB-DIVIDING GOALS INTO MANAGEABLE PIECES THE MONTHLY PLANNER
ASSIGNMENTS 6.9.1 6.9.2
CLASS ASSIGNMENTS HOME ASSIGNMENTS
6.10
SUMMING UP
6.11
POSSIBLE ANSWERS TO SELF-CHECK QUESTIONS
6.12
TERMINAL QUESTIONS
6.13
REFERENCES AND SUGGESTED FURTHER READING
6.14
GLOSSARY 1
6. TIME MANAGEMENT In the previous two lessons of this unit, we have familiarized ourselves with the principles of management as well as the various facets of office management. In this final lesson of this unit we will deal with another important aspect of modern man’s life – TIME. Time is a very precious ‘commodity’ and its optimum utilization is of prime importance for everyone. However, the method for achieving this is not known to many.
6.0
Objectives After studying this lesson, you will:
•
Gain an insight into the concept of Time.
•
Understand the technique of applying Time Management concepts to your everyday life.
•
Appreciate the importance and the basic principles of effective and efficient Time Management.
6.1
Introduction
In this lesson ways and means of utilizing time in the most effective and efficient manner have been discussed. The subject of Time Management has been scientifically considered. It is important to understand the concept of time, and the need to manage it before delving further into the topic of Time Management.
6.2
The Concept of Time
As far as the dictionary meaning goes, time is the duration in which things happen in the past, present, and future. Time is every minute there has been or ever will be. Or, that time is a system of measuring the passing of hours. Time is an instance or single occasion for some event. Time is what we live in spatially, chronologically, etc. 6.2.1 Some facts about time We cannot actually manage the resource of time. We can only manage ourselves in relation to time. 2
We cannot control how much of it we have (24 hours/day). We can only control how we use it. •
We cannot choose whether or not to spend it. We can only choose how to spend it.
•
It cannot be stored to be used later.
•
Time once spent, can never be regained.
We spend time on various activities viz., personal, educational, professional etc. It is difficult to realize that a lot of time is spent on activities such as Sleeping, Bathing etc., which may not require so much time to be spent on, resulting in time crunch for pursuing our goals. Thus arises the need, the technique and importance of time management.
6.3
Need for Time Management “Early to bed and early to Rise, Makes a Man Healthy, Wealthy, and Wise”
The importance of the above saying today is still as much as it was in the past. If not even more so in our high-pressured, fast-paced, ever-changing, highly competitive world. Today, more than ever, one needs to manage one’s personal, educational, and professional time with the utmost efficiency and utility, if one wants to succeed and attain success and satisfaction in life.
6.4
Time Management and Its Importance
Time Management is the skill of being able to organize and allocate time to activities, situations or tasks in such a way that time is used effectively and the required results are achieved in the given time. •
There is only a finite amount of time in each day - you cannot get more.
•
The clock cannot be speeded up or slowed down.
•
Time is the only resource that is spent the instant it is received.
•
Time is spent at a fixed rate of 60 secs / min and 60 mins / hr.
•
Everyone has the same amount of Time.
Self-check Questions 1.
6.5
Give any one definition of Time Management.
Applying Time Management Concepts in Real Life 3
Since everybody does not possess the skills to successfully manage their time available to them in each day; we need to learn how to develop those skills within ourselves. To develop effective Time Management skills, we have to first, identify the two to three main areas in our lives. Specifically, people’s lives today are divided into the Personal, Educational, and the Professional. • • •
Personal = Time outside of school/college and office spent in our personal pursuits and pleasures Educational = Time spent at school/college or on work pertaining to these areas Professional = Time spent at your job/office or on work related to this area
The first step taken towards managing time is to determine how we spend our time. In other words, in each person’s life there will be time spent in at least two or more of the above-mentioned areas. How do we spend our personal time educational time, professional time? A very useful tool for finding out how we are using our time is a device called a TIME AUDIT.
6.6
Time Audit
A Time Audit is an activity where a record (commonly called a ‘Time-Use Chart’) is kept of daily activities either hourly or half-hourly. The data collected in the Time Audit is first summarized (in a procedure called ‘Summary of Activities’) and then analyzed (in a procedure called ‘Analysis of Activities’) after a specified, preset time. Conducting a Time Audit will help us rearrange the hours or minutes we have been wasting unnecessarily on unneeded activities in our day towards investing that saved time in activities that will positively help us achieve your goals. Let us learn how to conduct a Time Audit for ourselves. The first step in conducting a Time Audit is to make a Time-Use Chart.
6.6.1 Time - use chart This is typically a chart akin to a time-table with seven days of week slotted in the header row and time slots of one hour each, spanning through 24hrs of a day on the left most column. Activities a person does are categorized as per the above, and are recorded in the slots. A sample sheet is provided here for reference.
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•
Sample sheet
Time / Day
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
7:00 AM
Prayer & Exercise
Prayer & Exercise
Prayer & Exercise
Prayer & Exercise
Prayer & Exercise
Sleep
Sleep
7:30 AM
Bath
Bath
Bath
Bath
Bath
Sleep
Bath
8:00 AM
Breakfast
Breakfast
Breakfast
Breakfast
Breakfast
Exercise
Prayers
8:30 AM
Travel
Travel
Travel
Travel
Travel
Breakfast
Exercise
9:00 AM
Class OR Profession
Class OR Profession
Class OR Class OR Class OR Profession Profession Profession
Newspaper Reading
Breakfast
9:30 AM
Class OR Profession
Class OR Profession
Class OR Class OR Class OR Profession Profession Profession
Bath
Social Work
10:00 AM
Class OR Profession
Class OR Profession
Class OR Class OR Class OR Profession Profession Profession
Housework
Housework
After recording the activities in the Time-Use chart, the next step is the Summary of Activities. 6.6.2 Summary of activities Completing the Summary of Activities will show us how we spend our time. It is the time totalled against each activity that we had filled in the respective slots of the Time - Use chart. This will let us know how much time we spent against each activity. A sample sheet of charting summary of activities is shown here. •
Summary of Activities ACTIVITY
Personal
MON
TUE
WED
THU
FRI
SAT
SUN
TOTAL
PERCENT
Prayers & Exercise
4
2
So on so forth…
n
n
Total
29
17
31
18
n
n
45
27
6
4
168
100
Education Class OR Profession OR Profession al So on so forth… Total Other Total Hours
24
24
24
24
24
24
24
6.6.3 Data analysis of time use chart summary and evaluation 5
When the data from the time use chart is summarized, it results in the balance sheet with time expenditure. The data from the summary can be analyzed to introspect and retrospect efficient or inefficient usage of time. The analysis can be tabulated into two columns, one with the possible problems arising out of inefficient usage of time and the second column with evaluation, i.e., speculating possible solutions. A sample analysis is shown here. POSSIBLE PROBLEMS
POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS
Too much time spent preparing to study and not enough time given for actual studying.
1.
Determine the time of day when you are most alert and use that time for studying.
2.
Set realistic goals for amount of studying to be accomplished per day or week.
3.
Have one fixed place for study.
This was a brief sketch of the practical steps to be taken in order to apply the techniques of Time Management in real life. By implementing desirable and possible changes, as per the Time Audit, time can be effectively managed to accomplish the set goals. Before taking a detailed look into what goals mean and how to plan for reaching them in the subsequent section, let us quickly draw a list of important Time Management principles.
Self-check Questions 2.
From the point of Time Management, broadly speaking, a person’s life is divided into the following three main heads: a)
3.
6.7
b)
c)
Data collected in the Time Use Chart is first summarised in a procedure called the _________ and then analysed in a procedure called the __________ .
Time Management Principles
In addition to the practical steps outlined previously, there are some basic principles of Time Management. They are: 1.
It is desirable to start the day early by waking up early as it fine-tunes the mind.
2.
Practicing some techniques for clearing and calming the mind like meditation, concentration, yoga and prayers help focus on goals for the day.
6
3.
Some physical exercise should form a regular part of morning routine as it helps to have an alert brain, physical agility and increased mental and physical stamina.
4.
Everyone has high and low points in the day. Identify your ‘Best Time’ for important activities like studying. Take advantage of your natural cycles; schedule the most difficult activities when you are sharpest.
5.
Students are suggested to study difficult subjects first since a fresh mind can process information more quickly and save time.
6.
Students can use distributed learning and practice. Study in shorter time blocks with short breaks between. This keeps you from getting fatigued. This type of studying is efficient because while you are taking a break, the brain is still processing information.
7.
Conducive surroundings are necessary for studying as it allows reducing distractions that lead to wastage of time.
8.
Healthy food and sound sleep are a must for everyone whether a student or a professional. Nutritious and balanced diet pumps energy into body and a good night’s sleep relaxes the body thereby resulting in better concentration.
9.
Review your long-term and intermediate goals often. Keep a list where you will see it often. Continually try to eliminate unnecessary tasks that are not related to your goals or to maintaining a balanced life style. Realistic goals setting and hard work with an individualized approach will lead to success.
10. Maintaining monthly planners to schedule tasks, recording important events etc., also help. 11. Use your personal time to learn a new skill or talent. It will act as a stress buster and relaxant too. This will also help to become a complete person. 12. Join some social service organization or activity in your city or neighbourhood. The sense of satisfaction you will experience from helping others help themselves will be cherished by you. 13. It is essential to say ‘no’ to certain things firmly but politely, at times. This practice not only to save time from unwanted activities but also helps warding off unpleasant happenings sometimes. 14. Solicit cooperation from those around you. Let your spouse, family members, roommates, and others know about your efforts to manage time. 15. Reward yourself for effective time management.
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6.8
Goal Setting
6.8.1 Identifying the goals in life Goals set the focus for how you spend your time. Identify some goals in your life and make a rough list of them. Take a look at your list of goals. It might help to divide your goals into time frames (immediate goals, short/mid-term goals, long-range goals). Your goals are likely to shift and change over time anyway. Organize your daily plan to spend time on activities that will help you reach your goals. The next step in working towards your goals is to prioritize them. That is to rank them in the order of preference. 6.8.2 Learn to prioritize Prioritizing your responsibilities and engagements is very important. Some people do not know how to prioritize and become procrastinators. A "to do list" places items in order of importance. One method is the ABC list. This list is divided into three sections; a, b, or c. The items placed in the A section are those needed to be done that day. The items placed in the B section need completion within the week. The C section items are those things that need to be done within the month. As the B, C items become more pertinent they are bumped up to the A or B list. The methods of prioritization can be arbitrarily customized to suit individually. 6.8.3 Sub-dividing goals into manageable pieces Once your goals are set, prioritized them, it is desirable to decompose the goals into manageable steps or sub-goals. Decomposing your goals makes it possible to tackle them one small step at a time and to reduce procrastination. Accomplishing in smaller chunks not only boosts one’s morale but also makes the long journey to accomplish the major goal simpler and manageable. 6.8.4 The monthly planner The monthly planner can be used as a time-bound memory aid, tracking major deadlines and exam dates, appointments, important anniversaries, birthdays, holidays, vacations and so on.
Self-check Questions 4.
Goals can broadly be divided in the following time frames: a)
b)
c)
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6.9
Assignments
6.9.1 Class assignments i)
Prepare a time-use chart of your own as per the sample format. Complete it as home assignment.
ii)
Prepare a report of summary from the completed time-use chart and analyze the data from it.
iii)
Conduct an evaluation of the summary with the co-students to draw up the possible problems and possible solutions for them.
6.9.2 Home assignments i)
Write down your short term and long terms goals.
ii)
Prepare a monthly planner according to your goals.
6.10 Summing Up In this lesson, the importance of time management and the way it can be achieved are discussed in detail with the help of time-use and activity charts. The basic time management principles and the need for setting of goals have also been highlighted.
6.11 Possible Answers to Self-check Questions 1.
Time is a system of measuring the passing of hours.
2.
From the point of Time Management, broadly speaking, a person’s life is divided into the following three main heads: a) Personal
b) Educational
c) Professional
3.
Data collected in the Time Audit is first summarised in a procedure called the summary of activities and then analysed in a procedure called the analysis of activities.
4.
Goals can broadly be divided in the following time frames: a) immediate goals b) mid-term goals
c) long-term goals
6.12 Terminal Questions 1. Why is time management important to us? 2. Write a note on importance of goals in life. 9
3. After going through this lesson, do you think you have been using your time most effectively? Elaborate your answer by stating where corrections are needed.
6.13 References and Suggested Further Reading 1. Cole, K. 2003. Making Time: Practical time management that really works. Tata McGraw-Hill Publishing Co. Ltd., New Delhi. 2. Mancini, M. 2003. Time Management. Tata McGraw-Hill Publishing Co. Ltd., New Delhi.
6.14 Glossary 1.
Delving into
Investigating
2.
Spatially
Of or existing in shape
3.
Chronologically
Arranged in the order of occurrence (time)
4.
Audit
An official examination of account
5.
Analysis
A detailed examination of the elements of a subject, mixture, etc.
6.
Distributed learning
Learning after dividing into parts
7.
Fatigued
Tired
8.
Conducive
Contributing or helping towards something
9.
To Schedule
To plan for a certain time
10. Cherish
To hold in the heart, To cling to hope
11. Solicit
To ask or seek earnestly, appeal for
12. Goal
An end that one strives to attain
13. Prioritize
Rank according to order of importance
14. Arbitrarily customized
Make or modify according to individual requirement using uninformed opinion or random choice
15. Decompose
To separate into simpler constituents
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