How You Can Take Control of Time
In the early years of railroading, conductors always carried a pocket watch which they pulled out to check for the arrival of their trains. They did this not just for efficiency, but in order to avoid collision with another train. One can only imagine what would happen if the conductor became distracted, or did not pay attention to time as the train was traveling.
For us, knowing time is essential in our face-paced world. Time, of course, tics on and on whether we pay attention to it or not. Many of us who are home bound are challenged right now with establishing a rhythm to our day as we navigate time for school or work, without getting derailed with what if’s and sensory overload. Think about it for a moment. When have you lost track of time, gotten distracted, or even procrastinated when something important was due? By choosing to wait, doing nothing, or letting time pass, you give power over to time, and therefore miss your deadline window. This is what is referred to as passive decision making, meaning time tics away and time decides for you.
In contrast, with active decision making you can take charge and manage time by deciding the best course of action and following these few, simple steps:
· Know when something important is due.
· Plan your timeline and strategies for getting the lesson, project, or homework done on time.
· Break down the whole of the project into smaller, easy-to-
accomplish steps.
· Execute the steps and put all the pieces together.
· Pace yourself and monitor your progress.
· Check your work before turning it in.
· Celebrate your success!
Believe it or not, the LEGO Star Wars Millennium Falcon has 1,329 pieces and was not built in 10 minutes. Success starts with one single LEGO piece.
So, it is up to you to decide if getting important things done becomes a fire drill where time controls you or a managed work strategy where you control time.
Come back again soon. Next week we will focus on how parents can help their kids with time management.