Time management can turn your life from a chase to squeeze every last drop of patience out of your days into a wonderful new world of getting the most out of everything you do every second of the day. Sounds to good to be true but it isn’t. There’s a lot of room to grow in boosting your effective use of your most precious resource.
Every second seems to be running away as if it were being chased by fire, doesn’t it? I mean we wake up early, cram in some work, slam down lunch, quickly breeze through another batch of work, head home for some super fast dinner and a small amount of ‘relax’ time. Shortly after we’re headed off to bed only to repeat the pattern the next morning.
In this article, a gracious reader and champion for life-change was kind enough to do a little question and answer interview survey with me. I don’t claim to be the best interviewer in the world, but I do promise some good, raw, and honest answers from normal people like you and me. I do my best to NOT filter these answers, except for the bad words and hateful speech (which of course doesn’t happen often).
With that little blurb out of the way, let’s dive right into the content!
Today’s Topic: Time Management
‘R’ = Richard N. Stephenson (me!)
‘I’ = Interviewee (anonymous by request unless otherwise noted)
[This interview is inspired and fueled by research done for my book: Quick Content Formula.]
R: Describe what time management means to you.
I: Time management is a skill to be developed and an organizational tool. Having said skill allows a person to step beyond immediacy. Organizing time efficiently allows more pathways to success.
R: Describe how time management would be useful to people looking to change their lives/careers.
I: Time management helps you to be able to to do more with the time you have available. Successful people are able to be more productive with the time they are given. It may help you give more time to prep for a career change or getting more skills.
R: Give an example of time management being used that has inspired you (from either internet/mainstream media examples or personal examples).
I: I am always looking for time management ideas. I saw a weekly planner that inspired me to get more organized. It included daily and weekly, but also long-term goals.
R: How do you think a better understanding of time management would help other people in their personal or professional life?
I: Time management would help people get more things done. It would help them find more time for leisure. Also, it would give them a sense of accomplishment.
R: Give an example of how time management has helped you professionally or personally.
I: In the IT field, time management is critical. I’m typically tasked with multiple IT related jobs throughout the week and if I don’t balance my time between them properly things could remain unfinished. You always have to leave time for unforeseen and unscheduled emergencies.
R: Describe at least one way you think time management could cause trouble or hurt someone in their personal or professional life.
I: Time management has a fine line involved as far as how effective it is. If one spends so much time planning their time it becomes a deficit that makes the planning have a negative impact on ones life as a whole.
R: Give an example of how time management has hurt you or caused you trouble in the past.
I: I’m not very good at managing my time. I’ve definitely had problems with time management causing me trouble in the past, especially when it came to my time in school. More than once, I’ve poorly managed my time and ended up speeding through a couple of assignments because I’d run out of time. I likely would’ve gotten a better grade if I had spent my time more wisely.
R: How do you think time management could help you in a professional setting? Why is that?
I: Time management can improve the workplace by making everything run smoother. Besides that, work can be done in a speedy time frame. In a professional setting when work is dependent on each other, one incomplete task due to ill timing can delay further work processes.
R: Give an example of how time management could be useful at work. Why do you think this?
I: At work time management is useful because you are able to perform more tasks in the same amount of time. This is good, as the completion of more tasks likely means a raise, and a raise means more money. If you are not looking for a raise, then time management at work would allow you to complete necessary work in less time, leaving more time for break time.
R: How do you think time management could help you at home? Why is that?
I: Time management can help at home in many ways. When you have schedules it is much better for children. Time management can also keep you on track and never late for an appointment.
R: Give an example of how time management could be useful at home or in family life. Why do you think this?
I: Time management is extremely useful. Time management involves prioritization. Deciding which things are most important and understanding the amount of time that it will take to complete those tasks is very important. It allows one to accurately plan a block of time to complete the most tasks with the least amount of wasted time.
R: How do you think time management could help you in a personal relationship? Why is that?
I: Allotting the correct amount of time to your significant other is essential for keeping a healthy relationship. If your significant other feels ignored, they may feel more inclined to look elsewhere for romantic possibilities. On the other side of that, if they feel too smothered, it may have the same outcome. Managing your time and giving just the right amount of attention to your partner will definitely give you a much better shot at having a healthy, long lasting relationship.
R: Give an example of how time management could be useful in a personal relationship. Why do you think this?
I: Time management could be useful in a personal relationship because it hinders arguments in regard to one being tardy. Oftentimes, date shows up on time but the woman or girl is not prepared. The dates waits on the woman or girl and the date get off to a rough start because time management was not used at the onset of the event.
R: Describe at least one thing you would like to learn more about time management.
I: I have always been pretty good at managing my time. yet i have never been one to write out my time table. I would like to learn how to effectively plan out my time with visual aid.
R: Give your number one piece of advice for someone looking to learn more about time management.
I: First, I would take a sheet of paper and a pencil and write down all that you need to accomplish. Then, to maximize my time I would turn off my phone, computer, and television to eliminate distractions. To keep my mind on the tasks I needed to complete, I would cross each task off as I completed it.
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That’s it for now! I hope you enjoyed this interview conversation and found at least one useful bit of information you can immediately begin to apply in your life.
Also, if you’d like to figure out how to make a lot of great content for your own blog, website, school work, or email newsletters, then you might enjoy the Quick Content Formula. This is my own personal (and favorite!) method of creating highly engaging, fun, and useful information at a very quick pace. It’s a great way to beat that blinking cursor and write more awesome stuff. Click here to check it out.
Please share your thoughts, experiences, or your own interview answers and let’s share some real life wisdom, okay?