Time management

The next topic will be dedicated to time management. It is an element of vital importance for productivity, since the perception we have about it is commonly affected, making us believe that we have more than we really have, which is why we suffer from finalism in our responsibilities and we do not develop the ability to measure with certainty the hours that each task will take.

Below we will outline the fundamental aspects of this topic, with the objective of helping you to create useful tools for the improvement of your study system, increasing its effectiveness and use.

Measure the time it takes you to complete each task.

The most important thing to know how to value your time and understand how much you waste it during the day is to know on average how long it takes you to perform each task. Usually we perform a series of daily tasks that are somewhat mechanical and repetitive, these are usually executed in a similar period of time, provided they are performed in the same conditions. An example of this, applied to student life, can be reading articles.

Try timing how long it takes you to read 20 pages of a class book. Suppose that on average it takes you one hour, this data can be adapted to 60 pages (three hours) or 10 pages (half an hour), the point is that you begin to understand that if you need to write an article on a reading of 80 pages you will need 4 hours to read it completely, a fact that perhaps was previously ignored, which led you to start the task at 10 at night, with the intention of finishing it at 12 when it is not humanly possible.

The above example only seeks to illustrate a very popular measurement technique both at individual and business level, knowing the times is essential to measure your performance, you can not plan your studies based on the number of tasks you must complete, but in the estimated time it will take those tasks.

Rewards are at the end

The human brain always seeks the path that offers the least resistance, this is the result of a hereditary behavior that has its origins in prehistoric times, where man had to reserve his energy for times of danger, which is why our brain avoided the loss of energy and found rest in trivial activities and little reasoning.

That said, you will often try to self-sabotage, ideas like checking your cell phone, watching an episode of a series you like or calling a friend before you start studying is a very common and somewhat reasonable thought, you are unconsciously looking for the path that offers the least resistance.

With this in mind, get in the habit of rewarding yourself once you've finished the work. If you're looking forward to watching your movie, let that be the reward for finishing, not the excuse for procrastinating.

Plan your schedule

We've already talked about measuring the time it takes you to complete each task and rewarding yourself once you've finished your obligations, now let's talk about planning your schedule.

Schools and workplaces have a previously established schedule, it is not that we arrive at the center and we find out in an improvised way what we have to do. With the study happens the same thing, you must impose discipline through the rigorous planning of your schedule.

If you have time to spare, add it to your reward, the motivation is that you already know the time you have to dedicate to each task and you face your work with a previous planning that includes your study and rest time.

Combining these three tools will make it much easier for you to understand the value of your time and find better ways to manage it.