Mastering the Balancing Act
Time Management

Forget going out with your friends, you can't find time for dinner. And don't even think about working out, you're too tired to move from pulling an all-nighter. And your boyfriend/girlfriend, they're just going to have to wait as well. You don't have time for anything; after all, you're a freshman in college.

This is a glimpse into a possible scenario where you play the lead part: the exhausted student. The truth is, many college students are faced with similar scenarios. For students who don't actively manage their time, days seem to fly by at warp-speed. The last thing on their minds is finding an opening in their schedule to work on managing their time.

The good news is this does not have to be you. You can learn to effectively manage your time now. That way, when you begin college, you will be used to managing your time and prioritizing you life. Managing your time in college can alleviate stress, allow you to fit in the activities you enjoy, and most importantly, give you peace of mind.

So how do we begin to manage our time? An important part of being in control of your days is to prioritize your life. Prioritizing is an absolute must-do time- management step that many students skip. It is a quick process and can make a world of difference. Just follow these steps:

Identify your Priorities.

Common priorities of the average student include work, school, family, friends, and personal time. Not everyone's priorities are the same. Many students have the priority of religion or children or important hobbies. Once you have identified your priorities, move on to step 2.

Rank your priorities.

Yes, priorities range in order of importance so you must rank them accordingly. This can be difficult for some but is a necessary step in prioritizing your life. Which priority is the most important to you and takes the most of your time? This priority would be number one in the ranking. Use the same idea to rank your remaining priorities.

Identify the activities that accompany your priorities.

Each priority comes with activities. For example, the activities that accompany school are spending time in class, study groups, individual study, or paper writing. When it comes to family, activities can include time on the phone and family functions. Don't overlook activities that you think are merely everyday occurrences (such as showers and meals) because they too take time and need to be scheduled into your day along with your other activities.

Schedule your priorities and their activities.

Once you identify the activities that accompany your priorities, you can begin your scheduling. Get a planner or day calendar and take control of your time! Once you have all of your activities scheduled, it will be much easier to see when you are booked or when you have blocks of time available. Following your new "priority schedule" is guaranteed to result in more effective and less stressful days.

Another equally important aspect of time-management is organization. Keeping your life organized is key in effectively managing your time. There are three factors to staying organized that will allow you to keep your life clutter-free. The first is to organize your tasks. Using a planner, to do lists, calendar, or journal can help students keep track of their tasks. Be sure to write down events/activities as soon as you learn of them. Check your task-organizer daily to keep up on what your schedule looks like in the near future.

The second factor to staying organized is to organize your workspace. Have you ever heard of the phrase "clutter causes confusion"? There is much truth to that statement. Avoid stacking papers on your desk or workspace. Eventually, you'll forget about the papers on the bottom of the pile and may miss out on important information. Also, when you are switching subjects or finished with certain material, remove it from your workspace. There is no need to keep yourself surrounded by papers that you're not using at the time.

Finally, organize your home. Nothing is worse than being late for school because you couldn't find your books or keys. Unorganized students tend to spend too much time searching for items that they could have easily found if they were put away where they belong. Remember, it takes just as long to put something where it doesn't belong as it does to put it away properly. Make things easier on yourself by keeping your life organized.

By beginning to prioritize and organize your life now, you are well on your way to becoming an effective student. Be sure to keep up with your schedule and allow time for you. Time will always be limited but you have the ability to control how you spend it.

Editoiral provided by Angela Zanardelli, University Counselor II/Learning Specialist, Academic Success Center at Wayne State University.