In order to balance and prioritize your academic, professional and personal responsibilities
is to be okay with removing things from your day to day schedule that can solely cause
further issues or delays to the end goal for each one of those aspects. An example would be,
if you have to go out and watch a movie with friends at that time but you also have to do
school assignments, think to yourself, the movie is coming out soon so I can watch it then
in the meantime school has to be taken care of. One of my most successful time
management tools at work is mainly breaking out my day to a specific to do list and
sticking with it. I do have items that come up last minute and I have learned to be able to
add the unexpected to that to do list. It has helped significantly as it does not allow me to
neglect timelines. One of the main things as a supervisor is to not want to take that one call
that you know will make your day the worst thing ever. That specific client needed to meet
a contract deadline but due to me avoiding having to call them back I caused a further delay
of such contract. Sticking to a goal end of day would help me not avoid the situation and
not to procrastinate. Avoiding the matter will not help but just add more issues to your
plate. I believe that the only way for me to find balance in my life is to first sit down and
write down all of the things that I have to get done. Doing these will allow me more time to
assess the things that I have to get done.
Some effective time management strategies that I have used in my day to day life are
prioritizing and useful time. I first would decide what is urgent, what needs to be done first,
and if there’s a deadline. Then I would set aside time to get the other things done. I always
try to take advantage of the extra time that I have to get things done.This year I
procrastinated a lot on going back to school. Every time it was time for me to call and
enroll I would put it off and say next month. Then when next month would come it would
be the same thing again. So when I really decided I was ready and I wouldn’t let anything
stop me I finally called. I was so happy I thought everything was good, then I found out
that there was some things that was holding me up from starting. I had to get them taken
care of first. I was so mad I was rushing the people, getting angry, yelling and other things.
But it wasn’t their fault it was mines. I had one week to get it all done. I just had to sit
down and pray and I told God if you do this I promise that I will prioritize and do things
differently. He answered and I was able to start school on time. But it was hard and
frustrating to get them done. That out a lot of stress on me. I learned that things that are
important to me should be done in a timely manner. Procrastinating only delays things. To
be able to have balance and prioritize your academic ,professional and personal
responsibilities you have to have self discipline to manage your time wisely and prioritize
what is more important in your life . honestly my time management is not so great ,but to
management m times I keep a schedule at work to keep me on track .I also keep all my
extracurricular activities in the same area at home that has to be done after work for
example my sin football practice is only 2 miles from my mom house which is where he
goes after school. So I manage my time eliminating extra travel time. Most important I
analyze what's more of a priority and get them task out the way first that's how I make it
successful for me and my lifestyle. However procrastinating is a very bad habit of mines I
just procrastinated getting dress last week because i ran into my friend and didn't pay
attention to the time, I was invited to an affair I really wanted to attend I end up being late
and missed being called out for an unexpected award for me. I've learned quite a few tips
this week, and I and definitely trying the make a to do list everyday to see what I have to
do visual so maybe this will help me out in the future with school, work, and home. The
best way for me to find a balance between academic, profession and personal
responsibilities is to create a schedule. I have realized that one of the most effective time
management strategies for myself is to write down all of my tasks and then prioritize. I
work through my list based on priority. I tend to procrastinate on getting ready for the next
day and then put myself in a bind in the morning. I have three children and I know that
getting out of the house will be very difficult yet I always procrastinate on getting ready the
night before. I learned this week how to schedule my time more effectively, switching my
discretionary time and maintenance time in the evenings, which would fix this situation.I
believe that if I wrote out my commitments and the time that they need and then transferred
them to a schedule, it would fix my issue. My issues appear to stem more from scheduling
improperly rather than procrastination. Writing everything on a schedule in one location
would also prevent me from forgetting tasks that I am not accustomed to performing
(school for example). Introducing new habits can be difficult for me, this would help the
adjustment. The best way I have found to balance and prioritize each of my responsibilities
is to make a calendar. Writing down what needs to be done and when helps me to organize
and visualize what needs to be done. Making a calendar has made it easier to balance my
personal, work and school life. Since I started making a calendar I am able to complete
everything with ease. When I was in high school i used to procrastinate a lot. I have run
into times when I procrastinated until the last minute and had to stay up all night the night
before the assignment was due. This led to less than my best work being submitted because
I was just looking to get it done. If I had used a calendar then to break the work down into
smaller parts it would have been much easier and much less stressful than cramming
everything in the last minute. Breaking the assignment into smaller pieces helps create time
to review and gives you more time to add ideas to the assignment compared to doing it in
one night. A lot of people seem to have issues when it comes to balancing their lives. We
have a triangle of three aspects of life. Our professional life, Our personal life and our
academic life. I would say that most people seem to abandon their academic lives to help
progress their professional and personal lives. This seems to lead to mediocre people. Not
bad but not progressive. You truly need all three to keep up with the world today. As for
how to do this I think that it is imperative to get over the hump that is people's will.
Choosing to not quit and finish what you started. Something as simple as making your bed
can lead to the will to eat breakfast which leads to doing your homework. So getting the
momentum going is the key ingredient. I tend to start working 30 min after waking up. This
leads me to me finishing work earlier in the day leaving me time to have my academics and
personal life complete as well. So with that said take your first step and get your
momentum going. Do not procrastinate. It is incredibly important to find a strong balance
between all the aspects of my life. One of the ways I am able to do this is by effectively
scheduling all of the events I can in the calendar on my phone (which syncs with my
computer and tablet). Utilizing this calendar app allows me to see at a glance where my
time is being spent. So, when something new comes up that needs to be scheduled and I
don’t have time, I get a quick picture of which event or events in my schedule can be
moved around to make room. In addition to my calendar, I also keep a list of priorities. On
this list, I can keep track of which events on my calendar are most important. If an event is
part of a larger project, I keep all the events for that project together. This helps me see
when each piece is due and when the whole project is due.There are many times when
procrastination has played a large role in my life. I am a serial procrastinator. A good
example, related to my education, is deciding to go back to school. I had started my
education, then my mom got very sick and I had to take time off to care for her. After she
passed away, I was planning to go back to school as soon as possible, but kept
procrastinating. I put it off and put it off, losing out on several promotions at work because
of it. Finally, my supervisor told me that I would not be able to advance unless I completed
my degree. That seemed to be the motivation I needed. For me, procrastination is generally
about a lack of motivation. Using the strategies I have already learned in this course, I
could have done many things to get my motivation from the process itself. For example, I
could have broken up the process into several parts. Each time I completed a step, the
feeling of accomplishment would have helped serve as motivation for the next step. In the
end, I could have gotten the process done months ago. I find it extremely helpful to write
things down on paper. I need to be able to actually see the tasks and be able to revisit it
quickly and often. It is a feeling of accomplishment to be able to cross those things off the
list. I am starting to use the calendar and note pad on my smart phone. It has been helpful
to be able to set notifications as a reminder for tasks to be done.As a professional cook, I
use time management skills daily. Things have to be timed out in order to have all the food
at one table ready at the same time. I start cooking the food that takes the longest first and
cook the quickest last. I apply the same skills in my personal life and Im learning to apply
them academically as well. It works for me to start with the biggest, most time-consuming
task first, and so on from there.
Its been a challenge that Im still trying to perfect, going to school, working full time, and
being a single parent. Procrastination can be costly with all of that to juggle and have paid
the price for doing so a few times. I believe the scheduling and prioritizing skills from this
week’s learning could have helped in those situations. One way that I find balance is by
prioritizing my academic, professional and personal responsibility tasks on my phone
calendar. For work, I utilize my outlook calendar by dragging emails with due dates or
creating calendar reminder events with early reminders from 3-5 days. I also reassess any
remaining tasks that get carried over into the new work week by means of task re-
prioritization. Because of my early reminders, this allows me a grace period to complete a
certain task just in case I may be out of the office unexpectedly, or another priority task
intercepted my original plan.Similarly I do the same for my personal and academic
responsibilities. Obviously, my academic tasks hold a higher priority among some other to-
do personal tasks, but I know that in order to meet my academic goals it is important for
me to look a week ahead of time to better prepare anticipated reserved time for homework
assignment completion. Since I work full-time, and have family obligations, I reserve my
academic obligations M-F from 7:30 - 10:00 p.m. This allows me to help my daughter with
her homework from 6 - 7:30, while my husband prepares dinner or vice-versa, eat dinner,
and begin prepping my daughter for bed. From 7:30 - 8:15 my daughter has 'free play', then
from 8:15 - 8:45 my husband then takes over with my daughter for bedtime. Also during
this time I have started with my academic assignments. Having this M-F
work/school/personal schedule may sound hectic, but because of my consistency and
commitment, it starts to become more of the norm. One downside to this scheduled task
approach is when other unexpected obligations arise, which is when reassessment of
priorities typically occur. I find balance and prioritize my academic, professional and
personal responsibilities by keeping a planner along with a daily to do list. I have a set
schedule at work it never changes, I always know during those hours I am not available for
academic or personal responsibilities. When I take a lunch I will work on some of my to do
list for that day. After I get home from work each day I handle personal responsibilities. On
weekdays I set aside two days to work on Discussions and homework. I utilize my free time
on weekends to complete my academic responsibilities and other personal responsibilities.In
keeping this schedule along with my to do list and planner I stay on track and don't lose
focus. I work a full time job and have children at home so it is very important to plan ahead
each week and stay on track. At work I also have a planner only for work. I also use a daily
to do list and utilize outlook. My planner at works keeps track of progress and events, while
my outlook calendar keeps track of meetings and appointments I have scheduled.I have had
occasions where I have procrastinated, I'm sure we all have. I have learned many lessons by
doing so. I end up staying up late at night to work on the last minute things. I could of had
them done sooner if I would have prioritized and stayed focused. I tend to push things out
if I feel I have extra time to get things done. I need to just complete the task on the start
date. Learning to have set goals with start and finish dates is something that will be very
beneficial to me. I have always set goals and a plan but never really wrote down a start and
end date. I believe this will ensure that I complete the tasks/set goals in a more time
effective manner. I find balance and prioritize my academic, professional and personal
responsibilities by keeping a day planner. The day planner helps me manage my time so I
can complete everything that I scheduled. I cross out all of my completed tasks to help
motivate me. Work and school are both committed time, so any tasks associated with those
two things have high priority in my day planner. I have found that the day planner has
helped me to find more time for my personal responsibilities and wasted time because I
don't waste time until everything important is done.One effective time management strategy
that I use at work is the Outlook calendar to help me stay organized. I schedule important
projects and meetings. The outlook calendar is effective because I can see my tasks and
meeting by the day or for the month. The calendar also sends me reminders so I don't
forget. Scheduling on Outlook also helps my coworkers see what my day looks like so they
can schedule appointments for me or set up free time to meet.My procrastination put me in
a pinch just last week. We had a leadership meeting scheduled and I waited until the day
before to get ready. I procrastinated because my boss put this meeting together with only a
few days notice and I already had so much on my plate. I made copies of the booklets in a
hurry. During the presentation, we noticed that the handouts were stapled together
incorrectly. Everyone was complaining and the presentation lost its focus. I was so
embarrassed. If I would have set aside more time to get prepared this wouldn't have
happened. This week I learned from our reading, that I could have broken down some of
my tasks to make it easier. I could have made a few copies at a time and then reviewed
them for accuracy. My outcome would have been better.
