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How
to Better Manage Your Time
Some people say that Americans
are really rich, that is true; but they are also the poorest
people in the world - they are suffering from another
kind of poverty - Time Poverty! Time is precious to everybody
at the information age we are living in and time management
appears to be more a basic living skill than an entrepreneurial
requirement today. College online students have an even
tighter schedule to deal with because many of you also
hold jobs, have child to take care of, and have a family
to support. To understand the following time management
principles and time management skills, we expect, would
help you manage your course in a more efficient way.
Principle #1: Make an overall time
distribution plan in advance. Budgeting your time
efficiently based on the course syllabus and personal
situations, by using the scoping and sequencing strategy,
make a detailed time table to follow.
Principle #2: Set priorities. Most
of us have more to do each day than we can possibly accomplish.
It's important, therefore, to set priorities. Some items
or contents might be especially important to you. You
need to plan more time for them. Priority is relative;
everybody has his/her own priorities in leaning a certain
course.
Principle #3: Do the most important
thing at the best time. What time is the best time?
That depends on what you are going to do, and also depends
on individual preferences. Night after 10 might be the
best time to write an important paper for John, but it
might be the best time to check emails for Jane, and for
Tom it is the best time to go to bed; early morning might
be a proper time for Jack to do readings, while Jennifer
prefer to do the online quizzes, and Christina has a habit
to clear up the house chores. Time availability is usually
measure by length, when, and where. How long, what time,
and where you have time. The ideal situation is to have
the three dimensions of available time meet the requirement
of the nature of your task (writing, reading, discussion…).
So the advice in regard to this principle is: Do what
is important at the time you think will be the most effective
and efficient for you.
Principle #4: Make good use of fragmented
time. Fragmented time is also very valuable for some
of your course works. You can do some reading at the airport;
logon the Internet in a hotel, or structure you essay
outlines in a plane….
Principle #5: Build flexibility into
your schedule. Leave room for unexpected happenings
that might disturb your study. If the schedule were flexible
enough, you would have time to catch up much easily.
Principle #6: Keep a time management
checklist. Use this list to enforce the plan you
have made.
Time Management Strategies
- Plan your schedule in advance.
Make clear contracts with yourself regarding time,
place, and study task. You will work best with a clear
sense of purpose.
- Keep up with due dates, no matter
how chaotic your life is. Form a good habit is very
important at the very beginning.
- Doing your most difficult work
during hours when you feel best. (Save pleasant tasks
for less productive times of the day). This will make
you more efficient. Most of us have high-energy time
each day, with two periods of medium and one of low
energy. Find these times for yourself and work with
them--doing difficult work during high time and easier
work during lower times.
- Try to get ahead in the course,
rather than get left behind. You’ll feel more
comfortable and confident if you could turn in assignments
before the due date.
- Find the study environment that
's best for you. Where you study can often be as important
as when you study.
- Break large assignments (e.g., writing
essays) into small and very specific tasks (e.g.,
developing outlines, writing introductions, etc.).
- Revisit the material involving
a great deal of memorization throughout the week or
month. Plan time for every other two or three days
for such review.
- Plan on leaving yourself reasonably
large blocks of time for big projects such as essays.
- Build regular breaks into your study
periods. Most people can concentrate on material for
about 25 minutes to 1 hour at a time. Try taking a
5 minute break after each 25 minutes or longer of
studying.
- Allow time for review. At the end
of each study session, plan time for review of the
material that you've already covered.
- Watch out for procrastination! Procrastination
is a habit that, once formed, can be very difficult
to break.
All in all, time is our
biggest enemy. In a commercialized modern society, time
should and could be squeezed. When there are no forceful
and direct external time management regulations, people
tend to procrastinate. So taking an online course is time-managerially
challenging. It requires your skills to make realistic
plan, your perseverance to adhere to the self-determined
time schedules and in short, it requires the gust to regulate
yourself.
Final statement:
Online courses require just as much (if not more) time
and commitment than a traditional class. Completing your
course assignments and learning activities may take hours
each week, stay on task or you could fall behind with
the coursework. You may need to get online everyday and
login to your course. Make sure you set aside time to
"go to class."
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