LONG-TERM PLANING AND TIME MANAGEMENT
This week, we’re diving into advice on key executive skills: long-term planning and time management. (For a quick summary of tips, skip to the bullet points at the end).
Get geared up
If you were going on a hike, the first thing you’d do would be... get excited about it! Whether you're going somewhere you love or a place you’ve never been before, you can look forward to the adventure, the view from the top, or the satisfaction of crossing it off your wish list. Next, you might think about what you need, the obstacles you might encounter, and the directions to get there. You might pack a raincoat, sturdy shoes, and a lunch. You’d probably check the weather, look at a map, and bring a camera to share the view.
Starting a long-term project isn’t that different. The best place to begin isn’t in the tedious details, but rather with a big-picture view: what’s exciting or interesting about the subject? Can you get behind really doing it well as a team member or leader? Imagine explaining the project as you’re interviewing for your dream job. What would you want to say about how you handled it, starting from where you are right now? Is there something you can look forward to when you get it done? Reminding yourself of your "why" is part of the trick of keeping going when the going gets tough.
Next, you might guess what you need, predict how long it may take, and get ahead of possible obstacles. Abstract projects and far-away deadlines can be hard to pin down; the idea is to practice, practice, practice. Read the requirements right away--as soon as you get the assignment. Whenever you receive an assignment, consider it your homework that night to at least read the directions. Use any planning tools that may be provided, or create your own from examples you’ve seen in the past, like planning worksheets. Break down the project into small, manageable steps. Consider seeking advice from someone who’s done this kind of thing before, like a parent, teacher, or tutor. Create a check-in where you can look at your long-term plans, get another perspective, and make adjustments.
Hands-on practice
An important skill to work on is visualizing time. Consider drawing out the project calendar or making blocks of time out of sticky notes or notecards. Use a clock or timer for working time. If you’re unsure how long a task might take, make a guess, write it down, and then time the task to hone your time-estimating skill. You can even see how much you accomplish in 15 minutes and get a rough idea of your pace. If you’re worried it might take forever, start with the smallest possible step. Can you work for just five minutes? What about completing one problem or one sentence?
Is the deadline so far off that work always gets put off until later? Try imagining the deadline is two weeks away, or one week away, or tomorrow. Picture yourself there, looking at the calendar, and realizing that’s all the time you have left! What do you want to have already done? Imagine your future-self saying, “I’m really glad I already did…” or “I’m glad I gave myself an extra day for….” This will help you come up with some items in your plan, including extra time for things like your computer crashing, getting an email back with feedback, etc. You can work backwards to build out small steps. Back in the present, ask yourself, “What can I do today to make progress?” Give yourself an assigned working time for your long-term projects, like a study group or a reminder just like a class, so time doesn’t just slip by. Saying to yourself, “I’m going to work at 3:30 on Wednesday,” or better yet, writing it down and telling someone your plan will make it much more likely to happen than, “I’ll do it later.”
If possible, learn the ropes of planning and time management on something fun, like cooking, hiking, party planning, or travel. Tap into extra reserves of motivation by adding hobbies, social events, and personal projects to the same calendar you use for assigned work and appointments. It’s okay to make the tools of planning more fun: pick a planner you like, use colored pens, or pick out a to-do list app, and tinker with how you like to lay things out. In the end, it’s more important to practice being more in charge of the hike than it is to pick a particular brand of shoes. This process of imagining, visualizing, practicing, and thinking about the future is a lot like rehearsal for our brains; the more you take on or work with a guide, the more you exercise the mental muscles of long-term thinking. The ultimate goal is to work towards planning anything that you want to do.
Here’s the quick version of practical tips for long-term planning and time management:
Review project requirements right away. Make it must-do homework the day you get a new assignment to read the directions.
Look over any available planning tools, create your own, or get help learning how to break down a large project into smaller steps. Doing this with someone else is good practice for doing it on your own.
Get an “accountabilibuddy.” Do you have a friend in class or know someone else who just needs to do homework, too? Make an appointment. It’s easier to get things done with someone else, and they’re probably in the same boat!
If the deadline is far off and you’re worried about putting it off, picture yourself close to the deadline saying, “I’m really glad I already did….” Work backwards.
Ask yourself, “What can I do today to make progress?”
If the next step seems daunting, try doing the smallest possible step first. Can you complete one problem? Make three bullet points? Write one sentence? Even a small step can get the ball rolling.
Visualize time. Use a wall calendar or planner for the long-term and a clock or kitchen timer for short tasks. Draw out the day, the week, or two weeks in blocks of time.
Practice time estimates. This is tricky to get right, so get curious about how good you are at estimating and experiment. Guess, write it down, and time a task.
Pick a concrete time. If you plan to work at 3:30 on Wednesday--and better yet, write it down or tell someone your plan--that’s more likely to happen than “sometime later.”
Finally, if you’re looking for help identifying strategies that work for you or if you’d like expert coaching on time management, contact us about flexible options.