Managing Time in College « college-time-management.com

Effective college students have essential personal time management skills in place. Students with these essential skills are usually high achievers not only in school but also in life. Good use of time management all but ensures that you will be able to function and handle your college workload even under some of the most intense pressures. Work overload may be a thing of the past once you hone your time management skills and take control of your college responsibilities; therefore, learning some practical time management methods should be at the top of your list.

To optimize your efforts focus on the results you want and not just on how busy you are. This is a serious waste of your time; therefore, you must re-direct and re-focus your thoughts in order to truly take control of your workload. Recognize that you will feel overwhelmed and that this is normal. Now re-direct your attention to the tasks in your workload that matter most rather than continue to worry about how busy you are.

You need to be able to take control of your time by eliminating the areas that are wasting your time and energy. The best way to do this is to set short-term goals in order to accomplish the bigger, long term objectives. You would do this by scheduling your activities in order to take control of your workload and personal life.

Procrastination can be a college student’s nemesis and should be avoided at all costs. Completing tasks at the last minute or always asking for extensions is very stress producing and emotionally costly. Always thinking that you will have time ‘later’ to complete a task could be your downfall. Try to figure out why you are procrastinating so that you can set new goals, refocus yourself and begin tasks promptly.

Prioritize tasks in your workload. This is similar to scheduling except that when you prioritize you are putting a value on your tasks. Are they low, medium or high in importance and value? When you are given a new assignment, learn to analyze it for it’s importance and prioritize it accordingly.

Whatever you do, you need an organized system that allows you to handle your workload regardless of the pressures placed on you. Time management skills are the keys to your college success; get serious about effectively managing your time and you will never again have to worry about what needs to get done or where you are going. You will be on your way to knowing your goals, maximizing your effectiveness and winning control of your life and time.

Sue Behlmar writes eduaction related articles for the American Educational Guidance Center. Subjects of her articles include online colleges, financial aid and online degrees most likely to lead to career advancement.