Time management about how to address that aspect
1 Use small pockets of time in the day to sort out minor tasks
This is a key strategy for effective time management. Use time waiting in queues, on a bus or even waiting for the kettle to boil to recap on your learning, formulate lists, work out a problem, etc.
Keep a pencil and small notebook with detachable pages nearby to jot down your ideas. Make a mental note of the times in the day when you could multi-task in this way. This strategy also reduces the stress associated with queuing and tedious tasks.
2 Motivation to ‘get going’
We saw in how important motivation is to success. If you do not feel motivated, then be active in finding a source of motivation or inspiration. Focus on your long-term goals: check these are still important to you. Remind yourself of the benefits you expect. Write these where you can see them. Set short-term targets that you can manage, so that you get frequent tastes of success.
Time management requires you to know how long something takes. This is easier if you break a larger project down into smaller tasks. Often, one or two of these will take longer than you expect. It may be aspects of starting and finishing tasks that take longer than expected. Plan for all stages, and find out how much time you need to allocate for each stage.
Work out whether the amount of time you spend on each aspect of a task is ‘cost-effective’. Usually the return (such as extra marks) decreases after a certain point. Academic work is hard to get perfect, as there isn’t usually a single right answer. If you gain satisfaction from the additional study time, that is fine, as long as you have calculated what you are giving up in exchange.
Identify what lies behind your difficulty in saying ‘no’. It may be your beliefs, such as that ‘a nice person’ always helps out. If so, think what it means to be kind to yourself. Also, what are the negative consequences of always saying ‘yes’? For example, does this give other people a chance to be kind or to take full responsibility? Alternatively, this might be a question of assertiveness or negotiation There may be very long-standing or domestic issues which contribute to your difficulty in saying ‘no’.If so, you should speak to a student counsellor.
Identify what lies beneath a reluctance to delegate. For example, do you distrust others to do the job well? If so, what are the effects of this on your own time management, stress levels and personal efficiency? What would be the benefits to you and to others if you delegated more? How will others learn to do a job well if you do not delegate? Could you find a compromise where you share some tasks in the shorter term?
Recognise your own limits. Support services are set up because it is expected that people will need help. This is especially true for students. Asking friends and colleagues for help can contribute to their own personal development too. It can build their self-esteem and problem-solving skills. It gives them an opportunity to be helpful, which they may value.
8 and 9 Starting strategies
Use a basic starting strategy such as brainstorming or writing a list. Start with what you can do – and work from there. Often, a problem arises when we focus too much on what the end product should be rather than building from what we already know. Start small. Branch out. The ideas will come. If not, look for ideas
A diary is an essential life tool. Some people prefer electronic organisers. Choose one that is light enough to carry around at all times. Check it at least three times a day. Develop the habit of writing everything in it to avoid double-booking. Enter all targets. Enter deadlines on the date of the deadline and the day you want to start work on that assignment.
12 Plan activities out in a logical order
Write a list of all the tasks you need to undertake during the day. Re-write the list, grouping the activities by place. Allow sufficient time to move from one place to another. Write the locations in your diary.
Block in all your lectures, seminars, tutorials, workshops, lab-sessions, and assignment deadlines for each term or semester and then copy it. This saves writing it out several times. Indicate the room, the lecturer, and any materials you have to bring with you, so the information is easy to find.
Things that get forgotten
The time it takes to travel between appointments –mark that in.
The time when work for a deadline should begin-rather than just the deadline itself.
New locations.These may be hard to find. Plan to leave time for getting lost.
Transport delays. These are not usually accepted as excuses unless they are very rare with unusual circumstances.
Information technology going wrong; waiting to use a shared printer, etc.
Time management for academic work is covered in more detail in The Study Skills Handbook (Cottrell, (2013).
Up to a point, every man is what he thinks he is.
No two people respond in the same way to the same event. One person may be angry and determined to take action if something goes wrong; a second may shrug and forget it; a third may feel it is ‘yet another example of why there is no point trying’. Our thinking about an event influences our response to it and the outcome. Our thoughts shape our experience, affecting what we feel physically and emotionally, how we interpret events, how we respond in a crisis and how we direct our lives.
One of the first steps in managing a situation is taking responsibility for oneself as an active, thinking, creative agent within the process. It may well be the case that ‘someone’ should have acted better, or may even be to blame for what happened. Taking responsibility does not mean excusing or taking the blame for somebody else’s actions. It means moving beyond the ‘blame’to find the most constructive outcome possible. The responsibility here is to yourself.
Often, the internal story that we create around events focuses on what went wrong and whose fault it was rather than on finding the best outcome. We run ‘pre-recorded messages’about ‘they’ or ‘it’, such as:
they should take the first step …
they shouldn’t put me in this position …
they shouldn’t set these deadlines …
they should help me more …
they design these so badly …
it keeps doing this wrong …
Reflection: The pre-recorded message
Which ‘it’ do you tend to blame (if any)?
Which ‘they’ do you tend to blame (if any)?
What other responses do you make when things go wrong that avoid taking personal responsibility for a constructive outcome?
We can create alternative messages that lead to more productive outcomes. For example:
It’s OK. There is a way of dealing with this.
In the circumstances, the best step is …
I take responsibility for my part in this.
If we repeat these often enough, these become new ‘pre-recorded messages’ that will kick in automatically.
Activity Change the message
Write down five constructive responses you could use when things go wrong.
Check that these enable you to take responsibility for yourself.
Choose the one you like the most and write it where you will see it this week. Try it out and record what happens.
Belief in oneself and one’s own capabilities is essential. Low self-esteem creates stress, which makes the brain less efficient. It is also more likely to encourage a sense of defeat and a belief that there is ‘no point’.
Self-confidence, a belief that one has the right to be and think and do what one wants, subject to reasonable limits and concern for others, enhances performance. It motivates and drives you forward.
Brainstorm a list of 30 things that you like.
Go through your list, and underline all those that contain a positive description: ‘I’m a reliable person’, ‘I am kind’, ‘I am helpful’, etc.
If there are fewer than 30 such positive phrases, add more to your list until there are 30. Don’t underestimate yourself. If any phrases contain the words ‘I try to …’ or ‘I am quite …’, reword these so they are more definite and positive.
Which three descriptions of yourself do you like the best? What reasons have you for believing that these descriptions are accurate?
Reflection: Self-belief critical incident
In your reflective journal, jot down a list of things you have done, no matter how small, that you are pleased about or proud of. Then, choose one to think about in more detail. Jot down:
What happened? What did you do or say?
What were the consequences? How did you or others benefit from this situation?
What personal characteristics are demonstrated in this incident?
What can you find in this incident that should ma ke you feel good about yourself?
It is also attractive to other people. This can bring more interest, resources and support, increasing the likelihood of success.
Sometimes, we are unable to move forward because we refuse to give ourselves ‘permission’. It is as if we hear a pre-recorded message saying:
‘I’m not worthy of the risk’
‘I’m not deserving of the consequences’
‘I’m not made for this sort of thing’
‘I’m not strong enough to cope with failure’
This can be true of anybody, but it is especially the case if there were strong messages at school or in the family that encouraged low expectations.
Take three minutes each to complete the following two lists. Write quickly, without analysing your responses as you write.
(write as many things as you can think of).
(write as many things as you can think of).
Check back over your two lists and see if you can spot any themes.
What sorts of things are you ‘allowed’ to do?
What sorts of things are you ‘not allowed’ to do?
Which list is longer? What might be the reason for that?
Who says ‘you are not allowed to …’? Is it really true that you do not have permission to achieve in these areas?
Consider whether you could give yourself more permission to try out some of these things.
From this activity, you may recognise messages from a long time ago that are still echoing in the present. Many of the ‘permissions’we refuse ourselves today began a long time ago. These do not have to remain as barriers to achievement. Take a look at your list and identify those on the ‘I am not allowed’ list that you could transfer to the ‘I am allowed’list. Write these down.
Taking a solution-focused approach
Whenever you are asked if you can do a job, tell ’em,
Certainly I can! –and get busy and find out how to do it.
Solution-focused versus difficulty-focused thinking
Difficulty-focused thinking
Focusing on the difficulty usually produces negative responses: the problem can seem insoluble. It depletes your own and other people’s emotional and physical energy, creating a sense of weariness, hopelessness or helplessness. The dominant message is that the problem is difficult, it will be hard work to find a solution, and solutions are unlikely. The difficulty-focused approach uses words and phrases such as:
At worst, difficulty-focused people tend to pick fault with every proposal, draw attention to flaws in the best possible solution, and discourage others from believing that there could be a sensible solution.
A solution-focused approach
A solution-focused approach describes the situation, identifies the points of difficulty, and moves quickly to a search for the best possible resolution. It uses words and phrases such as:
‘are there other ways of looking at this?’
‘let’s brainstorm ideas …’
‘let’s look again at our options …’
‘let’s see if we have missed any options …’
‘let’s check whether we can make this work …’
‘who else would know about this …?’
The dominant message is that a solution of one kind or another will have to be found eventually, even if it is an interim one, so it is better to focus energies on finding the solution sooner rather than later. A solution-focused approach is often expected of those in managerial roles. As most graduates enter jobs with managerial responsibilities, it is worth developing this approach. If you have been surrounded by people who take a difficulty-focused approach, you might find this a useful challenge.
Reflection: Solution focus
Do you tend to use the words and phrases associated with a ‘difficulty-focused’approach or a ‘solution-focused’ approach?
Which words and phrases are typical of you when faced with a complex situation?
Do you tend to employ a solution-focused approach?
What could you do to develop a more solution-focused attitude?
Ways of addressing a new challenge
Lazarus (1999) identifies two main strategies for approaching a difficulty: ‘problem-focused coping’and ‘emotion-focused’ coping:
problem-focused: looking outwards to the external, concrete problem and its circumstances
emotion-focused: looking inwards at personal attitudes and emotions that impact upon your individual reaction to the situation.
A solution-focused approach can use either approach, adopting a constructive and positive attitude for either. The solution-focused approach takes the position that there is a solution to every problem and that we have that solution within us. Sometimes, we arrive at the solution more easily if we talk to others or use a particular strategy. The ‘solution’is the best constructive outcome that can be found for the situation in the circumstances. This may not be everything that we would like, but it directs energy in a positive way so that the best outcome possible is achieved.
A solution-focused approach requires very little, beyond an attitude of mind.
Changing your environment
A negative, blaming, ‘can’t be bothered’ environment is not inspiring. A few people with such approaches can spread negativity very easily. They can even create a culture which is self-defeating. You can probably think of the people around you who create an aura of negativity. (Maybe you are that person?)
As adults, we can monitor the impact of our environment on our responses, taking note of what leaves us feeling encouraged and what does not. We can take action to create an environment around us that supports what we want to achieve.
Identify the people around you who leave you feeling positive about your goals, direction or programme of study.
What is it about them that seems to increase positive responses?
What other things in the environment support your goal? Competition and constructive criticism can be included as positive inputs.
Jot down these factors, starting with ‘I …’, and identifying how you could increase the positive aspects of your environment. For example:
I appreciate the way Busola makes a point of saying she enjoys good seminars. I could identify the things I find positive about each seminar.
I find it useful that the library is open until 8:00 p.m. I could use it more in the evening.
Which people leave you feeling dejected, anxious, tired, despondent?
What do you feel or do when you are in the presence of negative attitudes?
What factors in your current environment could undermine or sabotage your goals?
What can you do to reduce the impact of such factors upon you?
Evaluating your emotional intelligence
The following activity enables you to evaluate your emotional intelligence. This is not a scientific test: emotions do not lend themselves easily to such testing. However, it gives you an opportunity to reflect upon your emotional life through a structured activity.
Activity Evaluating your emotional intelligence
1 Emotional management (self)
For each item, identify which one response is most true for you, indicating this with a tick.
2 Emotional management (others)
For each item, identify which one response is most true for you, indicating this with a tick.
For each item, identify which one response is most true for you, indicating this with a tick.
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