A GUIDE TO HAVING THE INESTIMABLE MOMENT EVER

A GUIDE TO HAVING

THE INESTIMABLE MOMENT EVER

Over the years, even right from time immemorial, time has been the major asset handed to man daily but generally and widely misused or underutilized. As it is generally known, a day is made up of 24 hours which is further broken down into minutes and seconds which by the tick of the clock gets exhausted unnoticed. Every day is supposed to be a goal-fulfilled one where you can boldly accomplish some inestimable tasks and make every of your time ‘’ The Inestimable Moments Ever’’

We all as a matter of fact, we claim that we do not have enough time and at the same time we are faced with a challenge which is that the day can never go beyond 24 hours. Most of us say that we are robbed of time, the time is running too fast but come to think of it, does the time actually run faster? No, it doesn’t.  What we simply lack is time management.

Time management has been a great hurdle to cross for mankind and has reduced the total output of many and made them inefficient. There have been several articles and books written on time management and yet people are still guilty of time misuse. This material will go a long way in breaking into bits the dos and don’ts in time management that will better improve our lives.

UNDERSTANDING TIME

Time is a treasure that if well harnessed can determine the success of man and if not well managed can spell doom. This is not to scare any reader of this article but to spell and emphasise the importance of time management.  For time to be well managed, it has to be understood.

 At every point in time we should bear in mind that time waits for no man and any time lost cannot be regained. If you are supposed to do an assignment now and you postpone it, be sure that you have to use the time meant for another task to do the one left undone. Understanding time involves studying to know you, never compare yourself with anyone. The reason for this is that what works for Mr. A might not necessarily work for Mr B. You have to understand the habit you have cultivated overtime and how it has affected you thus far. You need to ask yourself salient questions which you must be truthful to yourself in answering;

·        Do I have a goal?

·        Is the goal obtainable or it’s just a wild goal?

·        Do I have the ability or the knowhow to accomplish this goal or do I need help?

·        Do I have a mapped out plan on how to achieve my goals or tasks?

·        What method works best for me not what works for the other person?

One thing that I have been able to find out overtime as a difference between successful people and failures is Time Management. It is often said that ‘time is money’ and if it’s not well managed how can you be rich? Learn to stick to your plan and change them only if you are convinced that you have developed a better or counter plan.

10 WINNING TOOLS

For effective time management, some tools are needed which I call the winning tools. These tools are a must need for whoever wants to be a successful time manager. You wish and desire to be at the top? Then, follows these winning tools.

1.      SET A GOAL: This is a great place to start with time management and it’s very essential for overcoming the challenges and hurdles on the way to success through time management. A very important part of goal setting is having a list of what you intend to do. This will serve as the owner’s manual that you can always consult to know if you are still on the right track. If you so desire, you can read it to yourself daily or paste it where you can see it and be reminded of it always.

2.      LOVE WHAT YOU DO: There is a saying that ‘Love covers a lot of sin’. You may be wondering what sin has to do with time management but sin can be likened to obstacles. If you deeply love a person, no matter how much they hurt you, you still find it not too hard to forgive them. So also it applies to whatever we do be it work, schooling etc make sure you are doing a job you love and have passion for because that is when you can give your best and then get the best from it. Even as a student, you don’t have to go for a course because your friends are going for it or your parents want you to. You have to go after the quest that fuels your passion.

3.     KNOW YOURSELF: One of the greatest philosophers – Socrates said ‘’man, know thyself’’. This is a very strong tool to successful time management because you are the architect of your own success or failure. If you can successfully figure out your habits and hobbies then you are set to manage time. You will be able to organize yourself skilfully and knowledgeably. You need to know how you fit into your work environment. or school time table and adjust yourself into it. Don’t be scared of change because it’s the only constant thing in life; if it involves doing away with some habits to learn new ones, do it.

4.     PLANNING: This is a necessity because whoever fails to plan surely has planned to fail. Planning is strategizing in the direction of success. It is not enough to plan but it’s more of a herculean task to follow the plan because it is easier said than done. It’s always advisable to have a scale of preference i.e. having the most important coming first on your lists of tasks to be done.

5.     DO IT NOW: A very good killer of time management is procrastination. You must learn the do it now method so that you do what you have to do today and do what is meant for tomorrow, tomorrow. You must if possible try to squeeze more into a little time; this shows how much you have valued that time. At the same time, you need to avoid unnecessary multitasking so that you do not wear yourself out.

6.     NEVER ASSUME: Though it’s a virtue to always be optimistic in all we do but assumption is a very dangerous risk to take when talking about time even in civilized worlds where all seem to be well planned. Assumption is bad because no one can predict what can happen in the next minute. It is advisable to hope for the best but prepare for the worst so that if it happens by chance, you are well cushioned for it. Never expect people to behave or respond in a particular way, be prepared always

7.     TEAM WORK: TEAM is defined by some school of thought as Total Effort Achieves More and this is a great weapon in time management. A tree usually does not make a forest and if it will, then it could take a hundred years. When jobs are assigned, they are done with much ease and pace. This helps against stress which can affect our health and also others in our lives. Always learn to ask for help because this can save you a lot of headache and stress thereby improving your productivity. There is no harm in asking and so pride is not allowed when you have success at the back of your mind.

8.     HAVE A PLAN ‘’B’’: Having an alternative plan is strength even though most of our plans are based on ‘’all things will be equal’’ (ceteris paribus) which sometimes fail us. We do not have all conditions under control and so there must always be an exit route. Unforeseen circumstances like accident, fire outbreak, rainfall, change in government policies etc may affect us one way or the other but we must not dwell too long on leaking our wounds. This is where our alternate plan comes into play.

9.     UPDATE YOURSELF:  Technological advancement is the order of the day and we must always strive to rise to the occasion. There are many software and tools developed daily to ease our work and if we are not adept and on top of our games, we keep using the crude methods that may be time wasting and even prone to mistakes. This will definitely make you to lag behind and less competitive in the market if you are a business man.

10. BALANCE THE EQUATION: I still remember the elementary chemistry where we are told that for any equation to be balanced, the left hand side must be equal to the right hand side. We must learn to balance work with pleasure (rest) because all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. If you are investing more in the hours you are spending on managing your time, then balancing is needed between investment and time. You could take time out with friends, families and loved ones or just do whatever makes you relax. This is to keep you refreshed and livened for the task ahead considering the fact that we are humans and not robots. Even robots have to be maintained to avoid malfunction.

The most rewarding commodity in life is knowing that you managed your time well. Time managed well will reveal itself when you reach your goals and the key to reaching any goal is making efforts to achieve it.

Finally, if you read and follow this material to the letter, you will find short cuts that will help you make your time The Inestimable Moment Ever.

Time is money and money is time!