To develop effective time management strategies it's
important to take a look at your personal goals or in
other words, what it is that you specifically want out
of life. This includes goals that can be achieved in
both the long term and the and short term.
Because you have chosen to undertake tertiary study, one of
your long term goals will include a focus on learning. This
may encompass some or all of the following:
- developing new professional skills
- upgrading the skills you already have
- learning for your own personal development.
To really clarify your long terms goals you can start
by jotting them down on a piece of paper. Make sure that
you include both academic and non-academic goals in your
list and work on being as specific as possible.
You can then think about what you will need to do to
achieve those goals. Make a list of these also. This
will make it easier to see how well your various goals
match up and help you determine how realistic they are.
As an example, you may wish to develop new professional
skills by embarking on a wildlife management course as
well as improving skills you already have, such as research
and writing. During the upcoming year you may also want
to learn to do something that you have thought about
for many years, but have kept putting off. This may be
the very year that you work on becoming a hang gliding
instructor!!! This non-academic goal should also be included
in your list.
What
are my long term goals?
Your short term goals are the stepping
stones to your long term aspirations. In other words,
they enable you to achieve your long term goals. Undoubtedly,
one of your long term goals will be to gain a degree.
To do this you'll need to fulfill all of the requirements
of your program. This will include enrolling in specific
courses and passing various types of assessment each
semester. In terms of the time management strategies
you'll need to adopt while you are studying, it is these
short term goals that you'll need to really concentrate
on.
