Home » Education

July, 5, 2022

Time Management Quiz: Find Out What You Don’t Know

There are 168 hours in a week.

Even if you’re working full time and raising a family, that leaves plenty of time to pursue the things that really matter—including a degree.

Skeptical? Take our time management skills quiz and see where you can free up some extra time!

You and your family need to be at an important appointment by 7:00 p.m. It’s a 30-minute drive. When do you leave your house?

A) At 6:45, unfortunately. We’ll call to say we’re running late.
B) At 6:30, duh.
C) Early enough to allow time to load up the kids and all our stuff, so that we’re in the car and on the road by 6:30.

Answer: Most people underestimate the amount of time it takes to complete any given task—including getting out the door. Start by tracking how much time those transitions really require. Armed with the facts, you can plan ahead and get more control of your time.

---

What’s the one thing that doesn’t belong on a to-do list?

A) A detailed list of all tasks for the day.
B) The amount of time each task will take.
C) The movie you want to watch.
D) That yoga class you’d like to take.

Answer: A. Surprised? Experts agree: When you plan your time, it’s better to list three important projects versus 10 urgent-seeming items. Estimate the time each task on your list will require. And, to avoid feelings of deprivation and burnout, prioritize your personal life just as you do school and work pursuits.

---

What’s your relationship with social media?

A) We’re tight. I check Twitter and Instagram first thing in the morning and last thing before bed.
B) It’s reasonable. I use it to keep up with people and events, but it doesn’t dominate my life.
C) It’s over. I quit using it because it’s such a time suck.
D) I was only going to check Facebook for five minutes, I swear! What happened to the last two hours?

Answer: Unless you chose C, you’re probably spending more time on social media each week than you realize. Cat videos are fun, but they won’t get you where you want to go. Try this trick for cutting your social media consumption: Before you log on, decide in advance how much time you’ll spend. Then, whether it’s on your phone or your kitchen stove, set a timer. When it rings, log off.

---

How many minutes does the average American spend commuting to work each day?

A) 29.
B) 25.
C) 38.
D) 20.

Answer: B. According to the U. S. Census Bureau, the average U.S. worker spends more than two hours commuting each week. What does this have to do with school? To avoid extra time behind the wheel, investigate the many online business degree options out there. And if you commute by bus, train or carpool, you just found a couple of study hours each week!

---

You’ve got some unexpected downtime while waiting to pick up family or friends. What do you do?

A) Text a friend.
B) Check my social accounts.
C) Play some games.
D) Any of the above.

Answer: Those stolen minutes add up quickly over the course of a week. When you enroll in school, you can use all those bite-sized bits of time to tackle homework, listen to a lecture or participate in a discussion board.

---

When you need to focus on a project, you should do the following:

A) Turn off email and other notifications.
B) Set a timer and work in focused blocks of 25-50 minutes.
C) Schedule short 5- to 10-minute breaks.
D) All of the above.

Answer: D. Each of the above is a tip from a workplace productivity expert. The underlying goal? Manage distractions. When we think we don’t have enough time for a task, it’s usually because we get caught up in email, YouTube or other Internet sirens—all of which trigger procrastination.

---

Do you ever say this? “I’ll just watch a few minutes of TV to decompress.”

A) Yes.
B) No.

Answer: Yes, you do. The average American spends almost three hours each day watching television. Imagine the time you’d free up for life-changing projects like school if you cut down on TV time.

---

When an invitation or a request for help comes your way, how are you most likely to respond?

A) “Sure, you can count on me!” (Followed by some calendar-juggling.)
B) “Probably, but let me check my schedule and get back to you.”
C) “It depends on how far I get with my [other project] this week.
D) “No, I haven’t watched my 2.82 hours of TV yet this week.”

Answer: If you answered A, you may be suffering from Shiny Object Syndrome. To make time for what matters, start turning down invitations when they’re not in your best interest. Here’s a rule of thumb from time management expert Laura Vandercamp: “If it’s a great use of your time, say yes. If it’s merely a good use of your time, say no.”

---

At what hour does productivity peak for most people?

A) 10:00 a.m.
B) 7:00 a.m.
C) 8:00 a.m.
D) 3:00 p.m.

Answer: C. Research shows that most people reach their peak by 8:00 each morning. Do you know when you work best? Whether it’s early morning or late night, that’s the time to focus on important projects that require your full attention.

---

Time management gurus agree: Planning ahead is the key to a productive day. For every 10 minutes you spend on planning, you’ll save how much time on execution?

A) 20 minutes.
B) 30 minutes.
C) 45 minutes.
D) One hour.

Answer: D. Toggl CEO Alari Aho is a stickler for a well-thought-out approach to the day. “Every 10 minutes you spend on planning saves you an hour in execution,” he says in an interview with Fast Company. What other investment pays off so well—and so quickly?

Start paying attention to how you spend your 168 hours each week, and you might be surprised at just how much time you really have. As time management expert Laura Vandercamp says, “Time is highly elastic. Put first things first, and it’s amazing how efficient you can become.”

Home » Education

20 Tips to Make Time for School in Your Busy Life

Think you don’t have time for school? That’s a common reason adult learners use to procrastinate on starting or completing their higher education. If you’re one of those people who thinks there’s no way you can make time for school in your current work and family life, think again.

There are 168 hours in a week—more than enough to focus on the activities that you value most.

Read on for 20 timely tips on fitting school into your already-busy schedule.

1. Get clear on your long-term goals

Better job? Bigger salary? Better balance between work and life? Before you embark on the school journey, be clear about the outcome you’d like to achieve. The more clear and specific you can be, the more likely you are to achieve it.

2. Create a time diary

Where does the time go? Rushing from one activity to the next, it’s easy to lose sight of how we spend our days. And, as it turns out, the human brain isn’t a reliable tool for measuring the amount of time we devote to any given task.

Get a handle on your time by establishing a baseline. Take one week and track how you spend your 168 hours: commuting, cooking, playing with the kids, working, walking the dog, sleeping, everything. The results may surprise you. Many people find that the task they most dread (unloading the dishwasher, say) is taking up a lot of mental energy, but very little clock time.

3. Do a brain dump

To-do lists tend to stretch as time goes by, growing to include everything from dentist appointments to home maintenance. This mental clutter creates a drag on your psyche. Brett McKay, the man behind the Art of Manliness website, suggests that “…just as unused computer programs use up precious RAM and slow down your computer, so too do unfinished tasks use up willpower and slow down your brain.”

The antidote? McKay recommends getting the giant to-do list out of your head and onto paper (or into a digital option such as Evernote or OmniFocus or Things). You’ll free up acres of mental space when you corral your list into its own arena.

4. Use a calendar: paper or electronic

This is an essential tool to keep yourself on track. Whether you prefer pen and paper, or a digital option such as Google Calendar, iCalendar or Outlook, pick the one that works best for you.

5. Try some new tools

There are great online resources to help you find more time in your days. Check out the7minutelife for free downloads that run the gamut from defining your purpose to outlining your daily to-do list. Also helpful: the classic urgent/important grid, popularized by Steven Covey in his book, First Things First.

6. Schedule time to schedule your time

Once a week, carve out time to time to make a weekly game plan. Time management experts recommend doing this on a Friday or a Sunday, but choose whatever day works best for you. When you’re first starting out, plan to sit down for an hour and capture all the things that you need to accomplish in the coming week. As you get more fluent with this skill, it will flow more quickly.

7. Plan your week

What activities absolutely must get done in the coming week? Choose the most important things from amongst the many roles you play—student, parent, employee, homeowner, son or daughter. Which activities—such as exercise, date night, downtime—are crucial to your well-being? Remember to set aside time for relaxation and fun activities that keep you energized and feeling good.

8. Enter recurring appointments

Use your calendar to block out all the non-negotiable items in your week: class time, homework time, time to commute, work, sleep, prepare and clean up meals. Look back at your time log to estimate how long each activity will take. Treat these recurring appointments with the same respect you would a doctor’s appointment.

9. Make a daily plan

With your weekly plan in place, take time each evening to list the things you need to accomplish the following day. Consider this a living document, knowing that you’ll need to change and adjust it as the week progresses.

10. Limit your to-do list

The person with the longest to-do list doesn’t win. Time management gurus such as Laura Vanderkam and Allyson Lewis suggest restricting your list to three to five items. Why so short? Better to do three items well than to attempt a dozen half-way. By prioritizing, you’re more likely to have a feeling of satisfaction and accomplishment at the end of the day, and start the next one re-charged.

11. Put a time limit on each task

A to-do list isn’t enough. Specify how many minutes you’ll devote to any given task, and stick with the time budget you create. Be firm about ending your tasks and appointments at the planned times

12. Track your time

The Internet is chock full of handy digital timers to keep you on task, such as the sophisticated Toggl. Whether you use an analog clock or an app, get in the habit of tracking the time you spend on each assignment.  Just seeing a ticking clock is often a strong motivator to focus your efforts.

13. Create buffers

When you’re trying to make time for school, work and home activities, leave 10 or 15 minutes in between each. Don’t expect yourself to move seamlessly from homework mode into dinner-prep mode. Buffers give you a bit of breathing space and can undermine that familiar feeling of running behind.

14. Give up perfectionism

Accept that it’s not possible to do everything, let alone do it perfectly. You can’t afford hours of fine-tuning and tinkering. When it comes to schoolwork, start where you are, do what you can, and ask for help when you need it.

15. Seek support

Make your education a family project. After all, the entire family will benefit once you’ve earned your degree and have moved into more satisfying work. To make school more manageable, ask for help with the tasks that generally fall to you. Can your spouse or partner take on more of the household chores? Can a friend or neighbor help with transporting the kids? How about a planned takeout night in lieu of cooking dinner once a week?

16. “No” is a complete sentence

“Value your time, and other people will do the same,” says Forbes.com contributor Frances Booth. Going back to school is the perfect opportunity to practice declining offers that distract you from your goals. Uncomfortable with a flat-out “no?”  Try this phrase in the interim: “Let me think about that and get back to you.” You’ll buy yourself time to consider whether an invitation is in your best interest.

17. Do schoolwork on the go

Keep assignments with you and find small pockets of time throughout the day—waiting for the kids to finish practice, lunch break, between appointments—to work on projects. Don’t wait for large swaths of time to open up. They won’t.

18. Ditch the distractions

When you’re doing schoolwork, shut down all the applications and browser windows you don’t need. This includes all social media, instant messenger services, texts and other time wasters.  Studies have proven that multi-tasking slows you down and makes you less effective.

19. Take conscious breaks

When you hit a milestone or a snag, do you automatically surf the Internet? Resist this habit and try a mental palate-cleanser instead: Stretch, take a quick walk, meditate. Want to go all out? Try the pomodoro technique, in which you work in timed 25-minute bursts followed by five-minute breaks (also timed).

20. Schedule free time

No matter how demanding your schedule, you’re not a robot. Don’t expect yourself to be productive or engaged at every moment of the day. Build in time to relax, recharge or do nothing at all.

Bottom line? With 168 hours in every week, you probably have more time than you realize. By taking a thoughtful approach to the activities you choose to pursue—and letting go of the non-essentials—you really can fit school into your busy life.

_{Sources: artofmanliness.com; the7minutelife.com; lauravanderkam.com; lifehacker.com; worklifebalance.com; bluesuitmom.com; janajasper.com; forbes.com; entrepreneur.com}