Tuesday, March 9, 2010

The clock is always ticking

"If every morning your bank credited your account with $86,400 but every evening cancelled whatever part of the amount you failed to use, what would you do? Spend every cent -- of course! Well, you have such a bank account, it is called time." -John Wooden-

John Wooden is a legendary basketball coach who led UCLA to 10 NCAA National championships. But his words aren't something that just apply to basketball or business, but something that applies to life.

Time is the most important thing we have. It is something that if you don't use it, it's lost forever. There is no such thing as saving today's leftover time for tommorrow. That's why time management, especially in the business world is one of the most important assets. Use it effectively and you're golden. Use it poorly, and you'll find things harder, longer, and more painful, as well as less successful.

As an individual, think about yourself. How often do you waste time? Or do you procrastinate? Think about how time management could help you out. I am going to lay out a couple of tips to effective time management so you will be able to succeed both individually and professionally.
  1. Make plans. Use a planner or calander to write out when you will do something. Don't just assume you will find time to do something, make sure you will.
  2. Set reachable goals. Set goals that you can achieve but at the same time continue to challange yourself.
  3. Identify "time wasters." Identify things in your life that are meaningless that you waste a lot of time on; get rid of those bad habits.

So these are just a few ways to improve your time management skills. Remember that Barack Obama, Bill Gates, Oprah, and Steve Jobs all have the same amount of time in their day as you! So use it effectively!

1 comment:

  1. Time management is a difficult concept to grasp. I believe it takes years, if not forever, to fully grasp how to manage time.

    The hardest part for me is comparing the difference between "wasting" time and relaxing. As my education has grown, so too has my ability to understand my mind and my abilities. For example, I have learned that my mind does not work anywhere near capacity as the clock turns into A.M at night.

    Time management is an individual concept. We have all heard countless stories of professionals in all works of life staying up all night working on certain pieces of their work. However, it has been proven that your long-term memory consolidates information during the night while you sleep. This is why I am very against "all-nighters" as many college students like to stay up all night the night before a test. Sleep is vital to functioning at maximum capacity.

    My time management skills are exceptionally stronger than they were in High School. As I continue to grow and my work becomes tougher, I expect for these skills to continue to progress to the point that I figure out exactly how to complete my work in the best manner possible.

    Source: http://www.memory-key.com/natureofmemory/sleep_news.htm

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