I dedicate this to those are searching for a better life. Many of us are almost always faced with stresses and challenges daily. Recent reports about the young in particular easily giving up disturbed me, as you should also be.
Time management binds our life. The Pareto Principle also known as the 80:20 Rule states that 80 percent of efforts that are not managed or unfocused generate only 20 percent of desired output, but that 80 percent of the desired output can be generated using only 20 percent of well-managed efforts. Although the ratio 80:20 is only arbitrary, it is used to emphasize how much is lost or gained through judicious or wasteful time management.
Some people view time management as a list of rules that involves scheduling appointments or setting goals or priorities through thorough planning. But there are more skills involved in time management than the core basics of making it to meetings or achieving targets, among them, learning to make decisions and developing inherent abilities, such as critical thinking.
Personal time management involves everything big and small that you do. Every bit of knowledge you acquire, each new advice you consider and each new skill you develop should be considered in managing your time well.
Getting results, not being busy, is what personal time management should be all about. To get the results, you first have to improve your physical, intellectual, social, career, emotional and spiritual aspects, key areas to achieving a better life.
The physical aspect involves having a healthy body and lessening stress and fatigue.
The intellectual aspect involves learning and other mental-growth activities.
The social aspect involves developing personal or intimate relations and being an active contributor to society.
The career aspect involves school and work.
The emotional aspect involves manifesting feelings and desires.
The spiritual aspect involves a personal quest for meaning.
Thoroughly planning and preparing a to-do list for each of the key areas may not be very practical, but determining which area in your life is not being given enough attention is part of time management. Each area creates the whole you. If you are ignoring one area, then you are ignoring an important part of yourself.
Personal time management need not be so daunting a task. It is a very sensible and reasonable approach to solving problems big or small. Practice it and enjoy self-fulfillment and other benefits.
Through the following, learn time management and improve your personal and better life:
- Review your goals whether short term or long term.
- Make good on the review by keeping a list of such goals. You should always have access to the list.
- Always determine which task is necessary or not in achieving your goals and which activities are helping you maintain a balanced lifestyle.
- Do the difficult tasks when you are at your sharpest.
- Learn to say “No.” You actually hear this advice often. Heed it even if it involves saying the word to family or friends.
- Pat yourself on the back or just reward yourself in any manner for effective time-management results.
- Try to get the cooperation of people around you who are actually benefiting from your efforts to manage your time well.
- Don’t procrastinate.
- Adopt a positive attitude and set yourself up for success but be realistic in your approach in achieving your goals.
- Have a record or journal of all your activities. This will help you put things in their proper perspective.
Personal time management is the art and science of building a better life. In acquiring time-management skills, you are presented options on how to grow personally and doors for opportunities to knock on. A happy better life to all.
(Armando Bartolome is a business mentor to numerous micro entrepreneurs who are now themselves big names in the industry. This article was previously published on the author’s website. For questions and more information, you may contact Armando "Butz" Bartolome by email:firstname.lastname@example.org or on Twitter @philfranguru. His website is www.gmb.com.ph)