Learning to manage my time

Up until my second year of College, time management was simple. I went by whatever schedule other people gave me, and up until the middle of my second year, they all work out reasonably well. The bus schedule usually worked with the school’s schedule, and my own schedule simply revolved around my own basic needs which filled in wherever there were gaps in the other two schedules. With two part time jobs in addition to being a full time student, time management was becoming complicated. Peer tutoring required me to negotiate times with students that didn’t conflict with my lab technician job and my own school schedule. Further, I was aware of the impending prospect of arranging job interviews and career planning in my future. Cognizant of the usefulness of day planners which I had been ignoring up until this point in my life, I realized it was time for me to implement this time management tool into my daily routine.

Choosing the right one for me

A pocket sized day planner

Day planners come in all shapes and sizes; from the basic, simple pocket-sized compact monthly calendars to the deluxe leather-bounded models that are so large, they have their own carrying handle. Neither extreme would do for me. After carefully considering my needs, I decided to choose something small enough to fit in my pocket so as not to add to the already burdensome load of textbooks and binders I was required to carry every day. It had to be able to contain enough detail that I could store my contacts, to-do lists, and weekday schedules broken down by the hour. I also wanted it to have tear-off page corners so that I could quickly flip to the current day.

I would have thought my ideal day planner would have been much more common than it actually is. I discovered that many were either too complex or too simple, and the tear-off page corners weren’t as popular as I thought they should be. Nevertheless, I found what I was looking for, and immediately set to employing it in my daily life.

Time can make money, but money can’t buy time

My spouse favors the larger day planner

The day planner to me was to my time what the spreadsheet was to my money, with one important difference. While I was well on my way to increasing my monetary income significantly, there was nothing within my power to create any more time. My daily budget of time was, and remains, exactly the same as everyone else’s. Further, I could spend it any way I wanted, with my daily allotment replenished tomorrow.

I started off by filling in my class schedule, followed with the hours I was scheduled to work as a lab technician. I then added times I needed to catch the bus. I left a block open for lunch, and then tried to fill the gaps with peer tutoring sessions. With my day planner on me at all times, I could quickly confirm and book appointments, as well as keep on top of the commitments that were required of me. I was no longer at the mercy of my own imperfect memory.

I soon discovered that, in spite of me doing more in my life, I had more free time. My days, organized into blocks of time, were full of purpose. No longer was I looking for ways to while away the gap hours. Projects were completed well before deadlines, and late night cramming for exams was unnecessary. I always knew what had to be done, and as I filled every hour of my days with purposeful tasks, my evenings and weekends were truly mine to do as I pleased. In my third year, I had enough time to add a third part time job as a software developer and analyst with a local company, which turned into my job placement; as well, I had taken up new weekly routines like swimming once a week and travelling on my weekends. I was truly transforming into the person I wanted to be, and I had my frugal time and money management ways to thank.

Into the future, PDA’s and beyond

My first ever PDA

I had some issues with paper-based time management. The first was that, unless I remembered to constantly check my day planner, it was possible that I might miss an appointment. The other was that it was time consuming entering a repeating schedule, as well as re-entering information every year. I knew both of these issues would be solved with computer technology. Personal Digital Assistants were the promise of the future, but at this time the ones as useful as a paper-based day planner were toys for the rich, while affordable ones lacked a lot of functionality and paled in comparison to even a basic day planner.

My Motorola flipout, an Android phone

Eventually, the Sharp ZR-4000 came along and represented a PDA that was both affordable and useful enough to completely replace the paper-based planners in my life. The computer link added a new dimension as I discovered the usefulness of linking and synchronizing with my desktop, making it easy to enter repeating data.

Today, I favour Google Calendar. It’s free and syncs with my inexpensive Android smartphone. Further, it adds the new dimension of collaboration with other Google Calendar users. When I make an appointment with someone and enter their e-mail address, they can confirm the appointment and it shows up on both of our calendars. It’s so easy and effective, and the benefit of taking back control of one’s life makes the effort well worth the investment of time.