10 ways to manage successful living

How often have you found that you have 28 hours worth of tasks to accomplish in a day, but only the standard 24 hours available?  Do you sometimes wish there were two of you?  Do you sometimes find yourself “short-changing” your tasks, putting in only minimal effort just to get them done, even though you know you could have done better if only you had more time?

In his online Lifehack presentations (https://www.lifehack.org/author/rinkesh-kukreja), Rinkesh Kukreja offers ten time management tips that can be of help in sorting out the daily challenges of “getting it all” done, and in a reasonably competent way.  Organizing your tasks effectively not only improve the chances of being able to meet expectations, but can be welcome stress relief as well!

Don’t expect to develop a perfect time-management plan immediately; organizing your strategies requires practice just like any other new skill.  So, be patient, select the techniques that work best for you, give it time and honest effort, and trust that there are indeed solutions to your time-management problems, including keeping up with your school work! 

Mr. Kukreja’s ten time-management techniques are outlined as follows:

1.  Let others help you:  It is not unusual for us to try to do more that we can handle.  This kind of situation commonly ends in one of two ways:  burnout or failure!  Mr. Kukreja says that letting others help does not mean that you are not accomplishing your tasks, only that you are doing them in a more efficient and effective way.

2.  Prioritize your work:  Simply make a list of everything you think you must accomplish that day, write a number beside each one in order of importance, and deal with them in the proper order.  Maybe you will find that those at the bottom of the numbered list can wait until tomorrow – or perhaps they were not important at all.

3.  Avoid procrastination:  Simply put, waiting to start a task (and possibly hoping that it will go away) is rarely a good time management strategy.  Moreover, waiting can cost additional time and energy that could have been avoided had you gotten an earlier start.  Procrastination can only result in more frustration and stress, with the task still left to be accomplished.

4.  Schedule your tasks:  A properly prioritized task list can help to keep you focused and on-track.  At least it will not let you forget what needs to be done, and in what order.

5.  Avoid stress:  This is easier said than done, but with practice you can improve.  Stress usually starts when we know we have taken on or been given too many responsibilities.  Following all of the ten tips outlined herein will help.  It is important that you leave a bit of relaxation time for yourself and – most importantly of all – get enough sleep!

6.  Set deadlines:  As you list and prioritize your tasks, be sure to specify a “complete-by” date/time.  This way, you will know how far ahead or behind you are in your scheduling.  If you fall too far behind schedule, this means you have missed one of the other steps noted in this list, or have simply taken on too much. Challenge yourself to meet deadlines and reward yourself for completion, but be alert to over-tasking.

7.  Avoid multi-tasking:  Many of us believe that multi-tasking is a much sought-after skill, but the truth is that we really cannot do more than well thing well at a time. Time-management skills should be valued more highly than any capacity to multi-task.  This will make you a much better student, employee or manager.

8.  Start early:  Mr. Kukreja notes that “most of the successful men and women have one thing in common: they start their day early as it gives them time to sit, think, and plan their day” (https://www.lifehack.org/author/rinkesh-kukreja). Many people are bright and active early in the day, then begin to “lose steam” as the day wears on. Also, starting early gives you more time to get things done, which helps your time-management problem in the first place!

9.  Take breaks:  if you begin to feel fatigued coming on, and especially if you are ahead of schedule, treat yourself to a short break.  Spend a few minutes with family and friends, and give your mind and body a rest.  Becoming over-tired is very rarely an effective strategy for effective and efficient work.

10.  Learn to say “No”:  This can sometimes be the most difficult of the ten tips to follow, but it can be the most important.  Sometimes it is necessary to politely decline additional responsibilities, simply because you know you cannot do them.  Informing someone that you will not have the time to give their project the appropriate time and respect it deserves often results in a better-than-expected response.

In conclusion, Mr. Kukreja shows that you do not have to go through your academic or professional life completely “swamped” with work, the results of which sometimes do not meet with the expectations of your associates, or even of yourself. Come on! Give it a try.  You have nothing to lose by trying to improve your study and work life by making some of these tips work for you!

Related Articles

UNYP Chronicle Newsletter

The e-mail address you provide will be used only to send you the newsletter. Your privacy is important to us.

For more information download our UNYP Brochure.


UNYP logo

Contacts

University of New York in Prague
Londýnská 41, 120 00 Praha


ID no: 25676598
Phone: +420 224 221 261   Skype
Email: unyp@unyp.cz

Back to top