Prime, a Nigerian born, Cyprus based rapper, in one of his featured tracks titled “Rolling out” said:
”I make good use of my time, I am clockwise…… ”
This is a pun (and that is why I love the rap genre - the word play!). Clockwise in that line can be interpreted as using time properly or wisely.
So as you can now see, this is where I drew the inspiration for the title of this piece.
Clockwise
From what I deduce from Prime’s line, I will define “clockwise” as time management, or using time effectively.
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Time, as we all know, is a limited resource. Both the rich and poor, able and disabled, black and white, all have the same time. In the sense that no matter where you come from, or how privileged you may appear, everyone has the same 24 hours in a day. Time can never be bought, else only the rich would have it.
Another thing about this resource called time is that once wasted, time can never be regained. So there is therefore the need to make efficient use of the limited time that one has; thus the need for proper time management.
Time management
Time management involves the organization and planning of one’s time, and the division of one’s time for different tasks. Time management usually instills the attitude of time consciousness into the manager of time.
In proper time management, one would focus on the end results and goals, rather than processes; this is turn makes one to streamline one’s self towards achieving specific goals in a time interval, rather than just being busy for the time.
Proper time management is necessary for the following reasons:
It saves you from stress and anxiety.
It can improve your productivity.
For smarter work.
For utilization of opportunities, etc.
On the other hand, the absence of time management can cause several of the following:
High stress.
Low productivity.
It creates an unserious persona/reputation.
Poor work quality, etc.
Much said already (I find it difficult not to be concise), now, let us look at the various techniques that one can apply to manage his/her time properly.
Set realistic (timed) goals: It is very necessary to set goals and itemize them. Your goals should have time frames and durations for which they should be achieved. It will be necessary to also set time limits for sub-categories also; for example, if you set a goal for when to finish building a house (all things being equal), you should consider how long it will take to deck, how long it will take to roof, paint, install fittings, etc. And please, make sure that your goals are realistic.
Prioritize: Next, you prioritize your goals, according to their scales of preference; from more serious to less serious activities for the day.
Make a to-do-list: Most times, it is necessary to make a to-do-list of your activities for the day, or over a period of time.
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This list should contain the already prioritized activities chronologically. The list should be handy for reference purposes.
Plan ahead: The way that these prioritized tasks should be done should be known already. Most of the time, ad-libbing an activity makes it more difficult and more time consuming.
Dedication: Its one thing to plan, and another to undertake such planned tasks. Dedication is required to go through till the end.
PS: Never forget to include rest time in your plan. It is very necessary.