how i do ‘it’ – time management

For the first three installments of this series see:

• “How I Do ‘It’ – Healthy Eating”
• “How I Do “It” – Exercise
• “How I do ‘It’ – Self Worth”

I’ve probably mentioned this once or twice.. but I’m slightly neurotic – in a good way, I swear.

Well, sometimes in a good way.

Mostly in a “my husband wants to rip his hair out every time I open my mouth” kind of way. Hey, he picked me, right?

You must know before reading this that I am a planner. With every fiber of my being, I want to plan exactly down to the second of my life. In fact, the majority of my disagreements with the Husband have something to do with me “planning our lives like I run my classroom” – which is funny because I’m really flexible at work! My mind is always racing about how I can accomplish things efficiently and effectively, which sometimes leads me to not enjoy the moment I’m in at the time because I am planning the next thing on my list.

The good news about all of this is that I am fantastic with time management. I have a habit of looking days or even weeks ahead to know what needs to be accomplished when. I’m really starting to sound lame right now, aren’t I?

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My planning and scheduling can be a little over the top at times, but it definitely pays off – especially during the school year when I feel as if I am being pulled in twenty different directions at once. So, how exactly do I do ‘it’?

1. Decide what your priorities are. This is such a big one if you have a lot of responsibilities. My main priorities always are my faith, family & friends, job, blog, and staying healthy by working out and eating well. Obviously due to my summer break, I am spending much more of my free time devoted to updating and freshening up (more to come soon!) my blog, but teaching is definitely one of my top priorities come August.
   
2. Make “To Do” Lists. If I had a nickel for every to do list I have created, I think I would be a millionaire. This was a great strategy I used while I was in college. You know how it goes – you have class for three hours every day, hang out with your friends, and then suddenly that huge 10 page paper is due in two days. I always made a to do list every day and broke down huge assignments into smaller parts so I was able to complete tasks in a reasonable amount of time!
   
3. Realize you’re not super(wo)man. No matter how hard you try, your day is only going to be 24 hours long. I know, right? I already know what I would do if I had 2 extra hours (sleep more!) in my day. It isn’t healthy to try and squeeze in too many activities or tasks every day. I find when I’m tired and cranky from trying to “do it all”, I end up having to REDO everything because I’ve messed something up. Take some time off and sleep for goodness sake!
   
4. Be Flexible. Things aren’t always going to go your way. In fact, I can guarantee they won’t. By knowing that it is okay to put something on the backburner for something more important from time to time, it will cause you a lot less stress and anxiety. Of course, this isn’t the case – if you’re a college student, do that paper instead of going out with friends. I’m sorry, but sometimes you’ve got to just buckle down.
   
5. There’s always tomorrow. My first year of teaching, I had to do it all every day. I spent so many hours after school and most times did not walk through the door until 6:30 or 7:00 at night. Pair that with leaving for work at 6:00 the next morning, and you’ve got yourself a recipe for disaster. This past year, I did my job and I did it well. However, I developed a “there’s always tomorrow” mentality. I did everything that was absolutely a priority, but if I ran out of time for the “extra” stuff, I could always pick it back up the next day.

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With these five things in mind, managing my time has become quite simple and I am able to spend more time on other things in my free time that I love (read: going to the pool). And be okay with your planning totally backfiring sometimes. That’s just the way life is. Have you ever heard the quote “man plans, God laughs”? There are some instances where you’ve just got to let go of your plans and be okay with everything falling apart.

Tonight’s post is getting crossed off my list as we speak. Success!

Question: How do you manage your time? Are you a planner or do you fly by the seat of your pants?

Tagged as: advice, how i do it, planning ahead, time management, tips for planning ahead