T.I.M.E. Management Series – M

Ready for another post in the T.I.M.E. Management Series? In our last post, we talked about I: Invest in a Planner. Using a planner can help you map out when assignments are due so that you can feel prepared. But, what about the unexpected events in life that aren’t in a planner, like a late-night talk with your roommate or a spontaneous trip to Fort Wayne?

Luckily, in T.I.M.E. Management, M stands for...

Make Room

As the saying goes, “Expect the unexpected.” Even if you fill out your planner, commit to a study schedule, and try to fall asleep at a reasonable time, life, especially in college, is completely unpredictable. Some events are unavoidable, like an illness or family situation. Others are by choice, like choosing to watch a movie with your roommate instead of finishing up your chemistry lab (guilty!). No matter the situation or event, making room for the spontaneous and unpredictable moments in college helps you manage your time and have room to work with when your time is filled with other things. Here is my biggest tip for how to make room in your schedule for the unknown:

Eat the Frog

In Mark Batterson’s book Win the Day, he lists seven habits that can help you accomplish more and stress less. One of the habits is called “Eat the Frog.” Long story short, if you were forced to eat a frog every day, you would want to do it in the morning so that you would get the thing you had to do done and enjoy the rest of your day, right? The same goes with life. The frog in your life is the hardest, biggest, or most important priority you have.

Eating the frog for you may look like making a priority to study for your exam before anything else in the day. Or, maybe it means waking up a little earlier to read your Bible instead of scrolling on your phone late at night. Either way, eating the frog clears up the rest of your day and puts your biggest and most important priorities first. That way, you can say “yes” to a few more spontaneous adventures, because that’s what college is all about.

T is for Take a Deep Breath, I is for Invest in a Planner, and M is for Make Room. Keep a lookout for the next post in the T.I.M.E. Management Series — E is for Employ Strategies!