Time Strategies

When it comes to time management, I have everything blocked into time slots of when I can work on things. Because I have demanding work and school schedules, I don't have much of a choice in my time allotment. I like structure, so it helps me to have everything worked out ahead of time. However, my biggest struggle is starting. There are times when I can see the time slipping away, and I continue to stare at the clock, instead of just getting to work. As was stated in The Important Habit of Just Starting, this greatly adds to my stress level, when I could have just gotten the work done and saved myself the anxiety. I was drawn to this article because I am a terrible procrastinator, despite my limited time to get things done. What I found the most interesting about this article was its link to impulsiveness. I have never considered procrastination a symptom of impulsivity, but it makes perfect sense. The now is the focus, rather than the later. As this semester goes on, I need to be diligent about "just starting" my schoolwork, or I will quickly get behind. This is true for all of my courses, not only this one! 

Various hanging pocket watches
Source: Giallo, Flickr

The other article that jumped out at me was How Checklists Train Your Brain to be More Productive and Goal-Oriented. I clicked on this article because I am a list-maker. Although they tend to look scary to those who don't understand my system, they help me to stay aware of everything that needs to get done in a week. What I found interesting about this article was the psychology behind that satisfying moment when you finally get to check something off your list. The brain releases dopamine, which explains why I love my lists, I guess! I also found this article helpful because it stresses the importance of breaking goals down into achievable pieces. I can easily get overwhelmed by looming big projects, but by breaking them down into measurable goals, they are much less intimidating. For this semester, I will continue my list-making strategy, but I will make sure to keep my goals small and do-able to avoid getting overwhelmed, and subsequently, procrastinating.