How To Improve Your Time Management Skill For University
This post is all about time management and schedule planning.
One of my Top 10 tips for university student is to prioritize time management. Other than academic duties like homework and quizzes, many university students have a side hustle or a part time job on hand at the same time.
Without proper time management skills students could become overwhelmed, leading to many problems like lower grades, emotional problems, stress, and so on.
Benefits of Better Time Management
You can benefit from better time management in many ways:
• Better productivity & efficiency
• Stress reduction
• More rest and advancement
• More opportunities to pursue your desired goals
When you are in control of your time, you get to choose where and how much time you spend on each of the small aspects of your life, allowing you to have more freedom.
As a university student there are many goals to achieve and targets to reach, by mastering in managing your time, you are in a great place to do so.
About Me
Hi! My name is Debbie. I’m a 3rd-year university student at the University of Toronto.
With the perfect study techniques and organizational skills, I have been able to maintain a CGPA of 3.27. Come along with me at this blog post for the right university resource you need to become like me.
How To Master At Time Management
In the following sections we will go through different steps and approaches you can take to improve your skill.
Starting point: Reflect Upon Yourself
Start by reflecting on how you manage your time currently, do you have a system? Do you use any tools? How do you decide on which task to do first?
My Advice: Keep in mind that being busy is not the same as being effective, you can fill your day out with 10 tasks and not achieve anything.
The “busy schedule” only tricks your mind into thinking you are managing your time well but it is not effective time management.
Beginner’s Approach To Time Management
There are many tools to use or ‘rules’ to follow in helping you to plan out your day and manage your time. For any beginners, I have always recommended the 8-8-8 time management technique
The 8-8-8 technique simply divides your day into 3 sections:
1) 8 hours of sleep
2) 8 hours of work
3) 8 hours of leisure
For more details on how the technique works, check out this blog post that explains everything.
Tools To Use For Time Management
Oftentime we need different tools that help us to achieve things and act as a support. There are two different types of tools that can help us:
Digital Tools:
Digital tools refer to tools like application, system or technical stuff, here are some of the ones that I use:
• Google Calendar
• Notion
• Goodnotes templates
You can find Goodnotes on Canva for free or purchase one on Etsy and various platforms.
Physical Tools:
Physical tools refer to tools that are tangible, here are some examples:
• Planners
• Notebook / Journal
While planners are great for planning out details, digital tools like Google calendar gives you a glance of what’s ahead for you quickly.
Personally I like both tools, utilizing both of them and bringing the best out of it.
Tips For Time Management
Here are some tips I have for you to help you manage your time better:
Prioritization
Achieve more and get things done faster by dedicating time to doing the right things.
Determine on which task to do first. Eisenhower’s Urgent/Important Principle is a way to distinguish between demands, so that you prioritize them wisely.
Time Blocking
Time blocking your day is a great way to manage your time. You don’t always have to follow exactly how you planned, but by planning so you have a clearer mind for what and when you need to work on your task, and thus avoiding procrastination.
Have A To Do List
Having a todo list for each day helps prioritizing tasks. Keep in mind though don’t squeeze everything into one day, you should have no more than 3 tasks on your todo list each day.
Anything that comes after those 3 should be your secondary tasks, meaning that you don’t necessarily have to check them off by the end of the day, but rather tasks that you can do if you have time after finishing your first 3 tasks.
Key Takeaway Points
Time management means prioritizing tasks and organizing time effectively.
The benefits of better time management are:
• Better productivity & efficiency
• Stress reduction
• More rest and advancement
• More opportunities to pursue your desired goals
Utilizing tools can improve your time management skill, that includes both
Digital tools & Physical tools
Goal setting is also an important aspect of succeeding in university, our blog provides many other great resources that help you to navigate your university life.
Choose your journey by clicking on one of the categories on the right side bar or read more by clicking on one of the recommended post below.
