Beating the Clock with Time Management

Time is an elusive thing. It runs quicker when you are enjoying yourself or chasing deadlines at the eleventh hour, and moves slower when you are uncomfortable or bored beyond belief. Where time runs its steady course, we constantly end up either waiting for it to pass, or rushing to catch up to it.

The funny thing though is that time is constant. It runs in a fixed and steady manner – how we perceive it, how we manage it, and we ourselves are the variables in this life equation.

It may be easier to say “I don’t have enough time,” but let’s face it, you can’t change time. There are smart strategies however that you can apply to manage your time.

For starters, know your priorities. A priority is essentially something more important than other tasks, and because there can be so many to do – think in a classroom or office setting – you tend to prioritize the easier, shallower work to get more done and in result put off the work that needs a lot more expenditure of time, focus, energy, and effort. This is why you are so busy getting nothing done. This notion is by author and professor Cal Newport, who advises that one prioritize more difficult tasks as opposed to simpler ones.

It may take longer to finish and take away more energy, but these heavier tasks are scientifically proven to make you happier and satisfied in the long run. More than that, it aids in productively managing time and getting things done.

Another thing that can concretely get you to beat the clock is keeping track of yourself. This can easily be achieved by scheduling your days but to do it more comprehensively, start a bullet journal or bujo.

Teaching you to do more with less, a bullet journal is a highly customizable, all-around organization system that can serve as a to-do list, schedule book, diary and more. List down your goals, monthly activities, weekly schedule, and daily tasks. Keep a habit and budget tracker to maximize this tip, too.

It may sound like a lot of work, but it is very fun to create and will be a huge help in managing personal growth and time. Keeping a bullet journal will help you identify your priorities, track your progress, counter procrastination, and transform demeaning chores and tasks into habits you enjoy.

One last crucial advice to managing time: Learn to say no to distractions, and stop creating them. In a time and age where distractions run amok in every shape and form, “focus is the new IQ” Newport says.

Say no to binging television shows in Netflix, or to going out with friends in a time that conflicts with work schedule. These things can be scheduled at a better time and place. There is time for work and a time for leisure, after all.

Ultimately, time is not elusive; it is only as elusive as your time management skills.

In the words of Author H. Jackson Brown Jr., “Don’t say you don’t have enough time. You have exactly the same number of hours per day that were given to Helen Keller, Pasteur, Michelangelo, Mother Teresa, Leonardo da Vinci, Thomas Jefferson, and Albert Einstein.”