Time is the most important resource at one’s disposal. Understanding how to manage time contributes a lot in one’s success as well as satisfaction in personal and professional life. However like any other asset, it may be wasted if it is not valued, respected and managed properly. Money lost can be recovered or regained, but wasted time cannot be regained. Benjamin Franklin aptly quotes, “Do you love life? Then do not squander time, for that’s the stuff that life is made of.” In the present era of complexity with growing demands, there is pressing need to manage time to excel in personal and professional life. Effective time management skills enable one to complete the tasks in optimum time and with quality of output, besides ensuring quality time for various tasks and family.

To manage time effectively, one has to identify the causes of wastage of time in an objective and honest way. Then one can overcome them with strong will and profound skill. The possible causes of time wastage may be a lack of self-discipline and preciseness. It leads to a lack of consideration for oneself as well as for others. One has to overcome factors resulting in wastage of time by exercising self-discipline and mastering certain techniques.

The internal time wasting factors may be personal disorientation, procrastination-the habit of postponing tasks and avoiding decision-making, useless brooding, inefficiency, etc. Attitude to please others and to avoid confrontations may result in indulgence in over-commitments on unproductive tasks or tasks not of core-competence. As a result, time is wasted. Some persons obsessed with deadline work recklessly ignore the quality of work. Later on, they have to devote extra time to improve the quality of work. This results in wastage of time. The external factors wasting time are excessive meetings, indulgence in activities without productivity, interruptions, improper planning, gossiping, excessive socialization, excessive usage of internets and mobile phones, etc. One has to understand their negative role in wasting time and attention.

To manage time effectively, one has to organize oneself by anticipating the activities and essential requirements for the task. Then one should prioritize the important tasks to be done. One has to discriminate between relevant and irrelevant issues, real and unreal issues. One should learn to discipline one’s talks and thoughts, distance away from time-wasting persons and time-killing activities, communicate in a precise and effective way and detach oneself from negativity. One can delegate certain tasks to other persons and bestow trust among them with courage. Dispassion and discrimination (Vairagya and Viveka) are twin instruments of self-realization as advocated in Vivekchuramani of Swami Shankracharya. These instruments should be used effectively in the context of time management to save time and attention in daily life.
Author: Varinder Kumar
varinderkumar2005@yahoo.com