Why is time management so important?

Time management is important to  help you structure your work in a way that allows for you to accomplish tasks/goals/academic work.

It is a necessary skill to have in all areas of your personal and professional life.

Managing your time well also allows you to have time to be creative and proactive without stress.

Finally, when you have specific time set aside to complete your work, you can also allow for time to think about looking after the other aspects of your life (physical and emotional well-being)

Step 1

Set Short and Long-Term Goals 

Practicing regular goal-setting will help you clearly understand exactly what you need to accomplish and by when.

Breaking down any larger project into realistic and achievable steps will help you become more effective and will reduce the stress and feelings of being overwhelmed!

BE SMART

Be Specific in what you want to get done...

Ensure it's Measurable and ask yourself "how and when will I know I'm finished?"...

Make sure that its actually Achievable and not unrealistic...

Make sure that what you spend your time on parts that are actually Relevant and necessary...

Set yourself a deadline and focus on being Time-based/conscious, all things must come to an end and by setting yourself a deadline, it's something that you can work towards!

Step 2

Manage Your Calendar

Setting time aside to complete the most important tasks on your list is important managing your time. 

You might consider blocking off certain blocks of time on your calendar on a regular basis so you are guaranteed to have time in your schedule without distractions. You should also consider whether or not certain things that you've committed to doing right now, are worth putting off what you should be working on.

Keep a personalised planner like this below, this template is available to download via Moodle, by clicking on the button below.

Step 3

Prioritise Your Assignments

Prioritisation is a difficult skill but gets easier with practice. 

Make a "To Do List"

Writing or typing out everything you need to get done can help you physically prioritise the tasks that are most urgent or easy to get out of the way. 

Keep Track of Due Dates

Keeping track of due dates and deadlines needn't be something to worry about! Write them into your Student Diary, log on to Moodle to see them on your dashboard calendar or...

Or you can use your DBC Outlook Calendar or Google Calendar too if you're using a smart-device.

MOST COMMON SCENARIO 

"I'm panicking, I've let so many assignments pile up and now I don't know where to start or what to do!"

Starting with my SMART goals....

S = I'm setting myself a deadline to get the larger assignment completed (the one that is worth the most marks) and submitted on time.

M = If I can get the larger one completed and submitted on time, then I can focus on the other smaller and easier assignments.

A = I'll only spend __________ days to complete this assignment, spending too long procrastinating or putting it off because I'm worried about it, won't help me in the long run!

R = I'll gather my notes and research as much as I can on this topic alone, and when  I feel  confident that I have a good idea of the subject, then I'll start  writing.

T = I'll set my own deadline for parts to complete using my planner/calendar. Then I'll be sure to submit it on time to my Tutor.