Time Management the Saying Run

¶ … Time Management

The saying run the day or it runs you is very true and based on the lessons learned in our first session, I've been able to better manage my time, accomplishing more and feeling less stressed as a result. The majority of my time daily is spent on reading, studying and homework, with 35% of my study time spent on reviewing and strengthening my math skills. In total, I read, study, work on my math skills and complete homework assignments, using 70 hours a week to accomplish these tasks. I'm sacrificing a very large part of my time to get an education. It's been said the more you can say "no" to things that don't matter the stronger you are to say "yes" to those that do. Education matters much to me, and while I have much less time for fun and running around with friends, I've noticed it is easier to make the harder decisions to study first and play later.

This aspect of being able to say "no" to more things and "yes" to others is a lesson learned from the assignment. I'm finding the more I say "no" to outside distractions the more I can say "yes" to staying in shape, running 45 minutes to an hour a day to keep my stress levels down. Saying "no" to distractions has opened up more time t stay focused on school work, get it done and get out to have fun with friends too. Being able to prioritize these tasks as significantly reduced my stress level and given me a chance to get six to seven hours of sleep a night.

In addition to prioritizing my time, I've also begun to look for opportunities to learn more efficiently. Using the learning center for math and biology also engineering computer lab and Bioengineering recitation time I've been able to increase the speed and thoroughness of learning new concepts too. Not spending so much time struggling entirely on my own has also freed up a large segment of time each week as well. What I've also noticed is that setting goals for learning, both from a content and time standpoints, really works. Saying to myself I will learn a series of concepts in a given chapter or segment of the course and getting the urgency to master those concepts within a given timeframe is a tremendously powerful motivator. While I don't make all the deadlines I set for myself, the urgency to learn a specific area within a given timeframe really helps to say "no" to distractions and feel better about mastering a given area of a course. I'm finding this really helps in my more difficult classes as well.