Time management in studies: in-depth discussion

Time management in studies

Since our childhood, we all have been listening about the importance of time, mostly by our elders who have gained a sufficient amount of experience. These sayings can be deeply felt when we think about our past experiences. 

We all have experienced a time in our life be it recent or back in old days when we can say, “that moment/day I could have avoided wasting time and done something better". And if we feel it then it means somewhere in our mind we have known the importance of time.

Being teenagers or youth, time management becomes a crucial weapon to achieve something. Although during our school days we were not much worried about time, as we move to college for higher studies then gradually learn the importance of time and in today’s scenario, where after the graduation or higher studies we manage our jobs and competitive examinations it becomes more important, as the development around us tends to divert our attention.

There are several factors which encourage us to manage our time and work according to it. These are as follows.

1.  Dream
2. Aim/goal
3.  Priorities 
4. Situation around us

Dream: 

The dream is a destination which we set in our life. Some set it at early stages of their life, some set it a bit late. Ultimately we all have a dream which we want to make part of our life, be it the dream job, business, music, acting, sports, and many others. 

There is a large spectrum of dreams. To achieve this dream of our life we make every possible effort in our capability.

Aim/Goal: 

To achieve our dream, we set our aim/goal. This aim/goal helps to achieve the dream, for example, to achieve our dream job, we set aim for a particular exam related to it, for an acting career, qualifying a theatre. When we give our best for the aim we come closer to our dream.

Priorities: 

priorities make the foundation and we can consider one of the most important factor to achieve the dream and makes the base of time management. 

Setting up the priority becomes easy when we identify the things which are going to benefit us to improve our condition and our ability to achieve our aim. Most commonly in the youth, there are many events or happenings in life which seems to be important and we try to take all the things with us simultaneously.

Here comes the importance of priorities to decide which event is of most relevance and which is of the least, we need to understand what we gain ultimately from the event/happening. So it is important to arrange our priorities.

The situation around us: 

The situations have a wide range differ on person to person. Some face financial crunch, some face emotional, and some are facing resources crunch. 

The management of time is extracted from these situations, gradually simplifying and segregating the overlapping of the conditions, situations, and the obstructions present on a daily basis.

If a person can extract the time and use the best of the time extracted, then we can say an individual has the will power to achieve the goal. That will power is inside us, not to be borrowed, but to be developed and utilized for self-improvement.

It can also be said that this situation acts as a catalyst for the efforts of the person. Thereby boosting The Hunger to extend the limits of the intensity of efforts one is giving or one can give.

As we have gone through what are the factors that motivate us to achieve the goal and for that manage our time. Now let’s see the step by step method to manage our time. These steps are from scratch.

Step 1: Identifying goals -

This is the basic step in which one has to identify the dream. The dream which gives You Goosebumps, which motivates you to give your life’s best effort.

Step 2: Doing research - 

Every dream has its certain unique needs, the traits of a person who wants to achieve it for example to become a successful musician, one needs to have the knowledge of music and the ability to implement that knowledge on the musical instrument if we pick any profession and compare the qualities required with the qualities which current have.

 But this doesn’t mean if we didn’t find quality within us matching to it then we are not we going to make it. The human mind has magic, the magic of attending any possible things which are practically feasible. imagine a mobile phone you might not know how to make it but the phone has been invented by people who once did not have any knowledge related to technology. 

What they did was studied, implemented the knowledge, failed, improvised, may have failed again or many times but finally succeeded. Similar is the case with everything made by humans around us.

Step 3: Finding the answer to ‘How' -

This is one of the most important steps, it’s like you are going to a track but don’t know which way to go to reach the hilltop. Sometimes you have to follow those trails made by others and sometimes you have to make your own trail. From step 2, one can find the direction. 

One way which I find the most efficient is to learn from the people related to the field, their success stories, most importantly their failure stories. A government job seeker can go through the achievers, the information shared by them and their direction to approach the exam.

Step 4: Making time table - 

Since the research has been done, sufficient knowledge about the target has been gained, in short, the filtration of knowledge and resources has been done. 

Jumping onto the making of time table as the time table helps in bringing consistency to our efforts, a constant hammering on the red hot iron gives it the desired shape. We’ll discuss the making of time table shortly in this article.

Step5: Following the time table religiously - 

Just like it has become important to have a meal without skipping, similar is the importance of time table. This step should be short clear and without any doubt.

Step 6: Tracking the improvement - 

The improvement gained by us while following the above steps helps us to analyze the improvement and according to that the change/modification in strategy is to be done.

Change in the basic framework has been discussed now let’s come to the much-awaited thing that is how to make a time table. The following are several things that are to be kept in mind.

•  Make a list of activities which has to be covered, for studies the subject needs to be listed.

• The subject listed needs to be marked according to our knowledge, in each of them. The subject which is difficult or we have the least knowledge needs to be marked as important, subsequently, the subject in which we have better knowledge has to be kept at last. According to the importance time per day has to be set for it.

• Daily a particular time has to be dedicated to, revising the matter studied.

• The revision session if added weekly too will give a better result.

•  The time table should include the time Window for physical activity preferably group games as it will also maintain interaction with friends and helps in releasing stress.

•  Daily targets have to be made for a particular subject. Also weekly / monthly targets according to the syllabus.

• Too many subjects per day make the time table haphazard, so it’s better to keep Limited subject per day so that a satisfactory number of topics per day can be covered.

• Those subjects with less weightage or in which one has a good command can be studied on alternate days.

• The mock test has to be placed at least every weekend.

• Limited use of technology that is mainly mobile phone, the time has to be set for the usage.

• Sleep is very important and that too healthy sleep, tension-free sleep. your sleep will be healthy automatically when your target is achieved per day and time table is followed strictly. This also helps you to enhance your confidence level.

While keeping these steps in mind it becomes easier to manage our time. The in-depth discussion about the time management if followed, blending an individual’s own method too, then it’s definitely going to benefit those who are willing to take out best from the 24hours available per day.

Initially, it may be difficult to follow timetable but that difficult phase when conquered, the routine will become smooth and in few days, if by mistake your routine will not be followed in any day, you will know the importance of time and will swear to be on track as quickly as possible. 

In the process of time management and implementation of the schedule, some sacrifices need to be done sacrifice of some social gatherings, sometimes maybe a trip, event which is not that much of importance. But in front of the big dream of an individual, these sacrifices seem to be very tiny.

Written by: Deepak Adhikari

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