WIZE TIME MANAGEMENT

Here are three key components to effective learning which will, in the long run, save you time, money and energy.

1.  If you can’t understand the instructor, quit or change instructors.

I know that’s not always possible but it is so critical to your learning and absorbing the information as quickly as possible.  Often teachers know their material really well and they may even be famous for their work.  However, they just can’t explain it to others in such a way that others can learn from them.  It’s no one’s fault.  It can be a matter of style, language, temperament – a whole host of factors.

If you have no alternative than to remain in the course, then find someone quickly to teach you in such a way you can understand.   It can be a classmate, a friend, or someone else who has previously taken the course and passed.  If you don’t know anyone, advertise for a tutor.  If you can’t pay the fee, barter.  It’s imperative to get the right instruction otherwise the struggle to learn new material will be enormous.

2.  Apply the knowledge immediately.

If you can’t apply it to a job or a process immediately, then find someone who is willing to ask you questions.  Answering the questions out loud will tell you immediately if you have understood the concept or not.  The words will either flow out of your mouth easily and effortlessly or you’ll stumble through the explanation.

3.  Take care of yourself. Take care of your brain and body with the right amount of sleep, good food, lots of water and exercise.  The dividends from these three components will for a life time.

It’s true that sometimes you have a job with many overtime hours just to keep afloat or your study load is intense or you’re  an intern in medical school working several shifts in a row or in the military where you have manoeuvres for several days and nights in a row.  Obviously, there are “insane” periods of time in many people’s lives.  During those times, learning can be difficult.

For instance, would-be doctors must learn to work under intense pressure, under less than ideal conditions and still maintain the ability to think, reason and apply the medical knowledge they have garnered to help people in distress.

It’s especially critical at times like these to stay focused on yourself. Focus on sleep, eating properly, drinking a lot of water and exercise – even 5 minutes of stretching will re-energize and a 20-minute nap will refresh the brain and body,   the water will keep everything hydrated.  I know it may sound silly to be so self-focused under such extreme conditions.  It is the only way. Your brain and body are not computer components – they are human bodies which need the right kind of attention especially when trying to learn something new or applying what you have learned.

These three components will:

a) Save you time – you won’t have to study extra hours because you don’t understand the instructor.  You won’t need to re-learn material several times over if you apply it immediately and by taking care of yourself, you likely will remain healthy.  You know how being ill can set you back in your studies.

b)  Save you money – you won’t have to repeat the course and pay for the course a second time if you make a change immediately when you can’t understand the person teaching the course.  If you stay healthy, you won’t need to buy medications to help overcome an illness. And by applying the knowledge, you learn it well – you won’t have to buy additional books or pay for additional resources later.

c)  Save you energy – The right teaching will save a lot of energy because you won’t have to struggle so hard to understand the concept.  Applying the material as soon as possible is obviously a more efficient way to learn anything thus you’ll expend less energy.  And, of course, when you take care of yourself, you will have the energy you need to do the necessary learning – so much time is wasted “dragging” your body and brain around – take care of them as best you can.

Manage these three components well and you’ll see learning will be much easier and more efficient in the long run.  There is no question that these three components are critical to the human machine during the learning process.

Learn lots!

Lorraine Arams

http://www.wizetime.com

Are you managing your time in such a way that often you think, “This is magic!”

When we were children, everything was magic – a bud on a tree, a flower petal, a caterpillar, “shapes” in the clouds, a popsicle, a birthday party, a kiss, holding hands, cooking a meal, washing dishes with a sibling, hanging out with friends and nothing to do on a Saturday afternoon.  It seemed that often we had magic in our lives.  What happened?  How did we lose that ability?

Actually, we have never lost the ability, we have simply chosen not to look at the magic life presents to us every day because we are too busy.  Are we?  Actually, truly, we’re not – we fill our days with a lot of nonsense – some we make up, some we subject ourselves to and some which arrive into our consciousness whether we want it or not.

Would you like to get back some of that “old magic”? You’ll be amazed what it does for you – how it relaxes and let’s you breath deeply and fully. This morning, I took my coffee outside.  The temperature was warm with a little cool breeze and the ocean water calm.  I opened my mind to the morning.  A man was on a paddle board, paddling near the beach – how awesome is that – 6 am and he’s out there on the calm ocean floating on the water!  A couple were just ‘playing’ by the water – laughing, running, sitting – just having a good time.  The trees were still and green.  Little birds were fluttering around.  An ambulance rushed by with its siren blaring.  The garbage took off with its load from containers.  A few cars passed by.  It was all magic!  So much going on in one little space in a big world!  It felt “refreshing” and calming – it was magical!  Ordinary, every day events, people and activities – yet, just a few minutes of paying attention brought forward the magic of every day living.

Try it – you might like it – it helps the brain disengage and relax.  The body, accordingly, relaxes and, for a brief moment, you’re transported to another plane.  How about bringing back your magic? 

Lorraine Arams

http://www.wizetime.com

Where does time management begin?  What an odd question!  Is it? 

Think about managing your time and let’s just think about one small capsule of the huge infinity of time – today. 

How did you start your day today? 

Were you in a good mood or stressed when you woke up this morning?  Did you rush through your shower, grab something from the cupboard for breakfast on your way out the door  OR  did you enjoy the texture of the soap against your skin, the wonderful warm water streaming down your body and the plushness of your favorite towel?  Did you sit down to a healthy breakfast?

Which of these two scenarios do you think will lead to the best time management possibilities for the day?  Just the day – that’s all - not the week or month or year. 

What is your habit? 

That small glimpse of a very short period of time today can demonstrate to you how you handle your life,  how much you take care of yourself and how much you value  all that is in your life.  Think about it.  You’ll be amazed how such a short “window” of how you “operate” in life can give you the clues you need to begin good time management habits.  Time management always begins with you and you alone – nothing and no one else can do it for you but first it’s important to know what you value.  Watch what you do – your values will scream out loud and clear!

Lorraine Arams
Get your copy of “Missing Link” between
  Goal Setting and Goal Achievement at
  http://www.wizetime.com

Are there short days?  Yes.  At least they seem that way – there are still 24 hours at our disposal but,  some days, we wonder where the hours went.

The other day, I looked at the clock - it was 11:30 am.  I thought, good, another hour and a half of work and then I’ll break for lunch. 

All of a sudden . . . . out of nowhere . . . . it was 3 pm!  Where did 3 1/2 hours go?  It’s good that I had scheduled the whole day to write but, still, I was shocked how that time had flown by without any perception whatsoever on my part that this amount of time had vanished!

It happens to everyone occasionally – time seems to disappear!  Why is that?  We know.  We’re so engrossed in what we are doing, we never think of looking at the clock. 

Is it a good thing or a bad thing?  It depends on how you perceive it or what happens as a result.  It was good in this case because I got so much done, more than I had anticipated.  However, at other times, I’ve missed appointments which is why I put everything in my computer calendar now – the computer dings me when I have something scheduled.  In this case, I had booked most of the morning and afternoon for one specific task.

If you lose time this way often and the results are not positive, I suggest putting all your appointments and activities in your computer calendar to remind you of your plans for the day if most of your time is spent at your computer – there’s both a visual that pops up on the screen and a sound.  If you don’t use a computer calendar and are still using a paper calendar, buy a watch on which you can easily set reminders at the appointment times during the day – it’ll avoid a lot of “rescheduling”.  Or buy a small clock you can carry with you everywhere.  Set a appointment time.  When you have arrived at that appointment, set the clock for the next time and so on throughout the day.  Some cell phones have an option to set reminders and certainly if you are using a PDA synchronized with your computer, then you have the best of all worlds – your schedule and reminders are set.  Make sure that your PDA is set to remind you with a sound or vibration.

Hope your day is full today - 

Lorraine Arams
http://www.wizetime.com