Managing Your Time
People spend their time in four different ways – called Time Quadrants. They are:
Quadrant 1 - These are things that are both important and urgent. They need to be dealt with immediately.
o
An exam tomorrowo
Help an injured friendo
Project due todayo
Car breaks downQuadrant 2 – These are things that are important, but not urgent.
o
Planning, goal settingo
Essay due in a weeko
Exerciseo
RelationshipsQuadrant 3 – These are things that are not important, but urgent.
o
Interruptionso
Other people’s small problemso
Peer pressureQuadrant 4 – These are things that are neither important nor urgent
o
Too much TVo
Talking on the phoneo
Playing computer gameso
Instant MessagingEach of us spends time in every one of these quadrants at different points in our lives. There are also four different ways to deal with time:
The Procrastinator - This person spends most of her time in Quadrant 1. She puts off doing anything until it has become a huge problem. The Procrastinator is addicted to urgency. She puts things off until it becomes a crisis. The result is stress, anxiety, burnout, and a mediocre performance.
The Yes-man - This person spends most of his life in Quadrant 3. He hardly has any time to say no to anything or anyone. He tries so hard that he ends up pleasing no one, including himself. The result is a reputation for being a ‘pleaser’, a lack of discipline, feeling like a doormat for others to wipe their feet on.
The Slacker - This person spends most of his life in Quadrant 4. He is a professional loafer who sleeps until noon and has never had a job. He cannot be depended on for anything. He’d rather just hang out. The result is lack of responsibility, guilt, and flakiness
The Prioritizer – This person spends most of his time in Quadrant 2. He takes a look at everything and then makes sure the first things get done first. Staying balanced is important to him. The result it control of his life, balance, and high performance.
How To Spend Less Time Spinning Your Wheels
Shrink Q1 by procrastinating less. If you can cut your procrastination in half, you will have half the stress!
Say no to Q3 activities. Don’t be so interruptible. Remember to say no to unimportant things, so that you can say yes to the important ones.
Cut down on Q4 activities. Don’t stop doing these things, just do them less often. You need to relax, but avoid doing it excessively.