Top 5 Time Management Skills for the Students

‘Every ticking hour counts!’

If you are a school or a college-going student or a learner of any age, at some point while occupied with some assignment, you might have felt that time management is an important skill one must possess. If you come into the category of ‘being organized’, then it’s comprehensive for you to take up some actions for futile results. But, if you are a full-time procrastinator with major goals to accomplish, then it is difficult for you to maintain decorum. You might have felt how your batch-mates or friends are able to finish the tasks on time and you are left with a last-minute dreaded situation. The one thing which lack is ‘Time Management.’

If we look at the current lifestyle, students are engaged with multiple assignments at a single time. And even a single delay can cost them a fine of stress and confusion. There is no doubt in the fact that managing the time for important work schedules and school or college projects is a pre-requisite knack for learners and students. Be it an academic assignment or a non-academic curriculum, every student should be one-step-forward and manage their time in order to get results. 

What is Time Management?

Time is an important factor in our day-to-day lives. It helps us keep organized and stay productive. In simple terms, Time Management is planning and controlling our daily activities in a coordinated manner that it simplify our tasks and make us efficient and productive. 

Why Time Management is important?

Let’s try to understand this concept with the help of an example. 

Suppose there are two bundles of files kept on a table. The former is highly disorganized with no paper arrangement, improper day and date order, and random covers of no use. And the latter is systematically arranged with proper order and detailing and no loosening of papers from the folder. Which folder will be easier for you to analyze or work with?

It is the second folder. 

This situation gives a wider vision that proper arrangement of the tasks is beneficial to lower down the stress and become more efficient. As a student, you are piled with multiple things together, and it is important for you to manage your valuable time and move forward with efficacy. 

In this blog, we will find out ways to manage time and how these tips will be beneficial for you as a student. 

Time Management Tips for the students:

• • Make a Simple Plan for Your Tasks: Before beginning your day, simply make a list of all the things you need to cover in a day. As a student and a learner, you need to juggle multiple subjects altogether, and each subject is enfolded in various topics and assignments. Before beginning to panic, re-think and re-shuffle your thoughts.
  • • Grab a pen and a paper and write down all the tasks.
    • Mention every subject with a nice heading and its associate task as a sub-heading. 
    • Use different color coding for them and leave a blank space to give a ‘check’ when the task is done.
    • If you want to write down some personal daily chores, you can add that too.

• • Prioritize Your Tasks: After preparing the list, take a deeper vision of all the assigned tasks. Prioritize them as per your necessity and willpower. This will take 15-20 minutes but will be helpful for the rest of your day. With this sequence of lists, you will be all set to begin your day productively. 
  • • Make a column of long-term goals and short-term goals below your prepared list.
    • List down each one of them separately.
    • Use different color pens and highlighters for pleasant vision. 

• • Grade Your Goals: Now that you have written down your long-term and short-term goals, take a little extra but efficient effort to grade them accordingly. While looking at the list, ask which goal is most important and which can be taken light-headedly. It will help you complete them in a sequence and without stranding your hair in frustration. 
  • • Take a separate paper and make a column with the headings, ‘Tasks and Time.’
    • Write down which task is most important and how much time will it take for its completion (it can be an estimated time).
    • Highlight the time with a dark red or black color pen 
    • Stick both the paper in front of your study table either on a wall or a green board as a reminder for you. 

• • Use Some Techniques and Tools For Time Management: There are plenty of techniques explained by some foremost individuals for managing the time that makes us more efficient and productive. You can implement those techniques in your daily schedule. 
    • 80/20 Rule in Time Management: It is also known as the ‘Pareto Principle.’ As per this principle, 20% of your input (efforts) in any task can lead to 80% of output (efficient results). So for better time management, focus on your 20% of tasks that will yield fruitful results. Identify your key goals and start acting on them. 
    • How to do it?
    • • List down the problems you are facing to accomplish your goal.
      • Analyze them altogether.
      • At last, ask which problem you should start acting on. For example, you are confused with which subject to start first or how to improve your grades. Now, ask which is more important on which problem I should give my 20% effort to.
      • Select it and then act accordingly.

• •  Pomodoro Technique: This technique focuses on breaking your work into time intervals with regular breaks. It is helpful in boosting your productivity and bringing out the desired result at a given time. 
    • How to do it?
    • • Choose a task you need to work on.
      • Set a timer for it to finish.
      • Try to finish that task in the given time duration. 
      • After completion, reward yourself.
      • Take 5 minutes break.
      • Repeat with other tasks. 

• Do Not Forget To Switch On Your Break Mode: Amid this chaos and bundle of responsibilities, do not forget to take necessary breaks. Do not get involved in the task that you forget to live. Nothing is more important than your mental peace. 
• • Give yourself rewards on completion of the tasks.
  • Listen to your favorite music or have your favorite snack.
  • Go for an evening walk.
  • Do some stretches and muscle-relaxing exercises.
  • Deep breathing always helps! 

With these tips, you can achieve your goals for the day on time before worrying about any delay. This will aid in giving you a balanced life, too! 

P.s. Utilise your mornings!