CHAPTER 3: MANAGING YOUR TIME

CHAPTER 3:MANAGING YOUR TIME

3.1. Analysing the demands on your time 3.2. Deciding how much to study 3.3. Determining time available for study 3.4. Setting priorities for what to study 3.5. Deciding when to study 3.6. Making better use of time 3.7. Balancing your responsibilities

    As a college student, you will have many demands on your time. In addition to attending classes and studying, you will spend time visiting your friends and relatives, participating in sports or other activities, and attending to personal matters such as eating, shopping, traveling, and grooming. You may also spend time working at a job.

    The problem all college students confront is to find time to attend class, study, and also do all the other things they need or want to do. This is made more difficult by the fact that college study is very demanding - it requires much more time than studying in high school. In a typical term, full- time college students may read five, six, or more textbooks, complete a major project in each course, and take many tests. With a great deal to accomplish in the few weeks of a term, successful college students find it is essential to schedule their time to accomplish everything they must do.

    "How to Manage You Time" below, summarizes the procedures that are explained in detail in this chapter. You will learn how to manage your time by using a weekly assignment sheet.

How to Manage Your Time • Analyze the demands on your time. Analyze how you use your time for school, work, friends, and family, caring for yourself, and for other activities. • Decide how much to study. Figure out how much time you need to study to get the grades you want. • Determine how much time you have available for studying. Use your list of things to do, your calendar, and your analysis of times you can't study because you are engaged in other activities. • Decide what to study first. Keep records of assignments on a form of the type illustrated on page • Decide when you will study. Schedule short rather than long study sessions at times you are most alert and not engaged in other activities.

3.1. ANALYZING THE DEMANDS ON YOUR TIME 

    Before you try to figure out how to manage your time, you need to analyze the various ways in which you use it.

Some Demands on Your Time • School. In addition to the time you spend in classes, you need time to study for tests and to complete papers and other projects for your courses. • Work. If you have a job, you may need to plan time you traveling to and from your place of employment in addition to the time you actually spend working. • Friends and family. Developing and maintaining good relations with friends and relatives requires spending time with them. You need time for making telephone calls, writing letters, and socializing, and for celebrating birthdays, anniversaries, and holidays. • Activities of special interest to you. If you have a special interest such as acting, gardening, playing a sport, being an active member of church, or participating in school or local politics, you will need time for this activity. • Caring for yourself. You need time for sleeping, eating, grooming, traveling, paying bills, and caring for your clothing. These activities can be very time consuming if you need to shop for groceries, clean your living place, do your own laundry, or travel to school or work. • Caring for others. If you are responsible for the care of a spouse, children, or parents, this may require many hours each week. In addition to planning time for the things you need and want to do, you must be prepared to deal with the unexpected. One key to successful time management is to be ready to handle emergencies such as the following.

    In addition to planning time for the things you need and want to do, you must be prepared to deal with the unexpected. One key to successful time management is to be ready to handle emergencies such as the following:

Common Types of Emergencies • Mechanical failure. You could be delayed in your arrival to school because of the breakdown of an automobile or bus, you could be unable to complete an assignment because a computer went down, or you could be prevented from attending classes because of an electrical or plumbing failure in your home. • Illness or injury. An illness or injury could prevent you from going to school and from completing assignments or preparing for tests. • Family and friends. Someone close to you may need your help or attention suddenly. Or the illness or death of a family member or friend could make an unexpected demand on your time. • Love interest. A new romance could take a great deal of your time, or a breakup with your boyfriend or girlfriend could upset you and make it impossible for you to concentrate on schoolwork. • Miscalculation. You could have insufficient time to do an assignment because you underestimated how long it would take you to complete it or because you forgot or overlooked when it was due.

    Now and then you will need to adjust your schedule because of emergencies such as these.

3.2. DECIDING HOW MUCH TO STUDY 

    If one of your goals is to earn good grades in your college courses, you will need to decide how much time you will spend studying so you can achieve this goal.
Teachers often tell students that they should spend two hours studying outside of class for each hour they spend in the classroom. For instance, when students take a course that meets for three class hours each week, instructors customarily recommend that they study for six hours each week outside of class. Unfortunately, this advice doesn't take into account that some students need to devote more time to studying than others.

    There is no way for anybody but you to know how long it will take you to do any particular assignments; you should study for as long as it takes you to achieve the goals you have set for yourself and to learn whatever it is you want to learn. An assignment that takes you two hours may take another student five hours, and an assignment that takes you five hours may take someone else two hours.

    One way to find out how much you must study is to keep records of how long it actually takes you to study for your courses. For example, when you read a textbook, write the time in pencil on the page where you begin. After you have finished reading, write the time again. Then count the number of pages you read and figure out the average time it took you to read each page. If you do this a few times with each book you are studying, you will soon be able to estimate very accurately how long it takes you to read ten, twenty-five, or fifty pages in any book you are studying. Use this information to help in deciding how much time you will spend studying.

3.3. DETERMINING TIME AVAILABLE FOR STUDY 

    Use the following three steps to determine how many hours each week are available to you for studying.

• Step 1: Enter in your schedule all the time you have specific obligations, such as attending class, working, traveling, or engaging in other activities that you cannot change. Use one of the study schedules below. In Figure 3.1 these types of obligations are shaded in grey. "Free" indicates time that may be used for exercise, leisure activities, or additional studying.

STUDY SCHEDULE

	MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT	SUN
7-8
8-9
9-10
10-11
11-12
12-1
1-2
2-3
3-4
4-5
5-6
6-7
7-8
8-9
9-10
10-11
11-12

• Step 2: Keep a list of chores and other things that you have to do each week. The study schedule in Figure 3.1 includes the items in the following list.

Things to do Wash the car Do the laundry Plan dinner for sat (10/14) Buy birthday present for mom

    If you have a personal computer that you use each day, I recommend that you store your list of things to do in a computer document. Divide the list into whatever categories best suit your needs. For instance, it might be organized under headings such as "Today", "Tomorrow", "Next Week", and "Next month", or " School", "Work", "Home", and " Shopping." Each morning,

• Read your list of things to do.
• Delete the items you did


the day before.
• Copy the list and select from it the things you will do today.
• Print the list of things you will do today.

    Refer to the list throughout the day, crossing off items as you do them.

• Step 3: Prepare a calendar of social activities and other important dates. Some of the activities shown in the following calendar are included in the study schedule in Figure 3.1.

OCTOBER

Sunday	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday
1	2	3 Psych Quiz	4	5	6	7 Jane's party 9 P.M
8 Lunch/movie with George	9	10	11 Photography Club 8 P.M	12	13	14 Friends for dinner 7 P.M
15	16	17	18 History paper due	19 Football game 2 P.M	20	21
22	23 Mom's birthday	24	25	26 Chemistry test	27	28 Rita visits campus
29	30	31 Halloween party 9 P.M

    When you analyze how much time you have for studying, you may find that you don't have enough time to study because you devote a great deal of time to work, sports, family responsibilities, or some other activity. If you are so busy with another activity that it interferes with your ability to do well in college, you may need reduce the number of courses you take each term, or you may need to spend less time engaging in the conflicting activity.

Figure 3.1 : A Weekly Study Schedule

    The student cannot study during the hours shaded in grey because she is in class, working, or engaged in other activities.

	SAT	SUN	MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI
	Oct.7	Oct.8	Oct.9	Oct.10	Oct.11	Oct.12	Oct.13
8-9	Eng-Revise	Free	Chem-	Psych- Read Ch 9	Math - Odd	Psych - Read Ch 10	Chem - Ex 12.1
9-10	Type paper	Free	Ex 11.1 - 11.5	Prep to discuss ques 1,4&6	Problems 1-19, pp187-188	Prep to discuss ques 1-7	12.3, 12.7 - 12.9
10-11	Hist -Read	Chem -	X	X	X	X	X
11-12	Ch.8 Pp 231-252	Read Ch.11	X	X	X	X	X
12-1	X	↑	X	X	X	X	X
1-2	Hist - work on	Lunch and movie	Hist - Read	Math - prep for	Hist - Answer	Eng- Research	X
2-3	Paper (Library)	with Grorge	Ch.8, pp253-279	Quiz on Ch 4-6	Ques 1-12 pp280-281	for paper (Library)	Hist-work on
3-4	X	↓	X	Eng - Outline	X	X	paper (Library)
4-5	X	Do Laundry	Math - Odd	for paper (Library)	X	X	↓
5-6	X	Wash car	Problems 20-39 Pp172-174	Free	X	Free	X
6-7	Free	Plan dinner	X	Free	X	Free	X
7-8	Free	for Oct.14	X	X	X	X	Free
8-9	Free	Math- Odd problems	Free	Chem-	↑	Chem - Read	Free
9-10	Free	1 - 19, pp 171-172	Free	Ex 11.6 -11.11	Photography Club	Ch 12	Free
10-11	Free	X	X	X	↓	X	Free

3.4. SETTING PRIORITIES WHAT TO STUDY 

    One secret of success is to do now the things that must be done now. Begin each day by looking over your assignments to decide which of them must absolutely, positively be done today, and do those assignments now. This decision is easier to make if you keep your assignments in the format illustrated in Figure 3.2.

Figure 3.2: A Method for Keeping Assignments

COURSE	MON Oct 9	TUE Oct 10	WED Oct 11	THU Oct 12	FRI Oct 13
English	- Revise the two-page paper - Type neatly		- Bring outline for research paper		- Bring list of references for research paper (at least 10)
Math	- Odd problems 1-19, pp 171-172	- Odd problems 20-25, pp172-174	- Quiz on Chapters 1-6
Chemistry	- Read Ch.11 - Do Ex 11.1-11.5 (Test. Oct. 26)		- Do Ex 11.6-11.11		- Read Ch.12 - Do Ex 12.1, 12.3, & 12.7 - 12.9
History	- Read Ch.8 pp.231-252 (paper due Oct. 18)	- Read Ch.8 pp.253-279		- Write answers to questions 1012, pp. 280-281
Psychology		- Read Ch.9 - Prepare for discussion questions 1,4 & 6		- Read Ch.10 - Prepare for discussion questions 1-7

    The record of assignments in Figure 3.2 was used to prepare the study schedule in Figure 3.1. For example, compare Figure 3.2 with Figure 3.1 to notice that the student plans to complete Thursday's assignments on Wednesday and Thursday.

    Following is the form that you may use to keep records of your assignments. Make photocopies of the form, punch holes in the copies, and put them in the assignments section of your ring binder.

Assignment Form*

Course Name	Monday Date:	Tuesday Date:	Wednesday Date:	Thursday Date:	Friday Date:

    You may sometimes find that you are so busy that it is impossible for you to do all of your assignments as thoroughly as you would like. If this happens, use the following procedure.

Deciding How Much Time to Spend Studying • Will the assignment help me master a skill that is important to my long- term goals? A business student may give priority to English composition assignments because he knows that the ability to write well will be important to his success in business. • How will my grade for the assignment or test affect my final course grade? A student of electrical technology may give priority to written assignments in her electrical technology courses because her instructors use assignment grades to compute final course grades. • How important is my grade in the course to help me achieve my goals? A student at a school in Florida wants high grades in all of her courses so she can transfer credits for the courses she takes in Florida to a school in Illinois.

    You probably want to do your best in each course you take. However, when you have insufficient time to study as much as you want, establish your priorities by spending your study time in the ways that will benefit you most in the future.

3.5. DECIDING WHEN TO STUDY 

    Some students try to study when they are taking a sunbath, when they are watching television; or when they are overly tired, hungry, or under too much stress. Unfortunately, studying at times such as these is not likely to be very effective. Rather, use the following suggestions as a guide in deciding the actual times you will study will for your various courses.

Deciding When to Study • Study at the time you are most alert. Observe yourself when you study to determine whether you are most alert early in the morning, in the afternoon, in the evening, or late at night. Use what you learn to schedule study periods at the time of day you concentrate best. • Study about lecture topics immediately before class. By reading about the lecture topic just before class, you will have the material fresh in your mind when you listen to the lecture. • Review and correct class notes immediately after class. If you don't understand your notes right after class, you won't understand them later when you study them to prepare for a test; therefore, review your notes as soon after class as possible. • Try learning information just before you go to sleep. There is evidence that we remember more information when it is learned just before sleep than when it is learned at other times. • Schedule many short study sessions rather than a few long ones. For example, when you schedule six hours to study for a test, plan six one-hour study sessions rather than one six-hour or two three -hour study sessions. Short study sessions are more effective than long ones because it is tiring to study for long periods, and we do not learn well when we are tired. • When you must study a subject for several consecutive hours, take a five-or ten-minute break every hour. You can make these breaks productive by using them to do things you need or want to do-make a short telephone call, go for a brief walk, shoot a few baskets, read the baby a bedtime story, make a pot of coffee, or put clothes in the washer.

    It is necessary to revise study schedules often to accommodate changing school, social, and other obligations. Also, some weeks have holidays that offer-uninterrupted stretches of time for working on major projects and preparing for examinations. You may photocopy the study schedule form if you want. You may want to make one copy for each week of the term because no two weeks are exactly alike.

3.6. MAKING BETTER USE OF TIME 

    If you analyze how you spend your time, you may find that you waste time each day that you could use studying and doing other things you need to do. One way you can make better use of your time is to combine activities by doing two things at once, as suggested in the following list.

Some Ways to Do Two Things at Once • As you drive friends or children from place to place, have them quiz you on material in your notes. • Write material on 3-by-5-inch cards and study the information while you walk from place to place or ride on a bus. • Think about what you will do during your next study session while you are walking, driving or doing household chores. • Record material you want to learn on an audiocassette and listen to the cassette while you are driving or doing household chores. • Study while you wash clothes, while you wait for a favorite television program to start, or while you wait for a friend to arrive.

   A second way to accomplish more is to make use of short periods that you now may waste doing nothing of importance. Following are some suggestions.

Some Ways to Use Short Periods • Five minutes. In five minutes, you could review words you are learning, revise your list of things to do, plan your next study session, do some sit-ups or pushups, take out the garbage, put clothes in the washer, or clean the bathroom sink. • Fifteen minutes. In fifteen minutes, you could review notes, survey a chapter, wash dishes, solve a math problem, pick the topic for a paper, balance a checkbook, pay some bills, or work out on exercise equipment. • Thirty minutes. In thirty minutes, you could run an errand, write a letter, locate material in the library, review notes, read five pages in a textbook, buy birthday cards, or jog three miles.

    Give some thought to how you might make better use of your time. One student saved time by using the telephone. He avoided unnecessary trips to the library by calling first to find out whether books he wanted were available; he also avoided time-consuming shopping trips by using catalogs and toll-free numbers to do much of his shopping by telephone. Another student taught her nine- and ten-year-old children to do laundry and other household chores so that she would have more time to play with them and help them with their homework. The best time-saving strategies are the ones that you devise to suit your particular circumstances.

3.7. BALANCING YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES 

    Some students don't have enough time for studying because they devote much of their time to a job, family responsibilities, a sport or hobby, or some other activity. If you are so busy with another activity that it interferes with your ability to do well in college, you may need to reduce the number of courses you take or you may need to spend less time engaging in the conflicting activity.

    Place checks in the boxes in front of any of the statements in the following multiple-choice questions that describe you.

1. I have been absent from classes because of  a. my job  b. family responsibilities or friends  c. a sport or hobby  d. something else I do2. I have been late to classes because of  a. my job b. family responsibilities or friends  c. a sport or hobby  d. something else I do 3. I am sometimes tired in classes because of  a. my job  b. family responsibilities or friends  c. a sport or hobby  d. something else I do 4. I have done poor work on assignments because of  a. my job  b. family responsibilities or friends  c. a sport or hobby  d. something else I do 5. I have failed to turn in assignments because of  a. my job  b. family responsibilities or friends  c. a sport or hobby  d. something else I do 6. I have been poorly prepared for a test or quiz because of  a. my job  b. family responsibilities or friends  c. a sport or hobby  d. something else I do 7. I have been absent from a test or quiz because of  a. my job  b. family responsibilities or friends  c. a sport or hobby  d. something else I do

    If you checked any box, your job or some other responsibility or interest is interfering with your ability to do your best in college. You need to figure out how you can balance your desire to do well in college with your other responsibilities or interests. For instance, if you are a full-time student having academic difficulty because of your job, following are some alternatives you might consider.

How to Balance Work and School • Work a great deal during the summer and very little, or not at all during the school year. • If you spend much time traveling to and from work, find a job on campus, near campus, or near where you live (even if it pays less money). • If the hours that you must work are the problem, find a job with more suitable hours (even if it pays less money). • If you are working only because you want to enjoy a luxury, such as an expensive automobile, consider doing without the luxury. • If you are working mainly because you receive more approval from your parents for working than you do for being a student, consider explaining the demands of college study to your parents.

    If none of these alternatives is a solution for you, or if you are a part-time student working full-time to support yourself or your family, you may need to enroll in fewer courses next term or to use one of the other suggestions in this chapter.