Time Tips: Don't Rush #001

Have you ever felt rushed? "I wish I had more time to do this!"

One of my graduate professors used to give the class enormous assignments on short notice. I complained to him about this. His reply was enlightening. He said, "If I give you two weeks, you'll wait until the last two days to start this. So, that's why I give you only two days to do it. I want to break people of the habit of procrastination. That's the only way they will ever learn to manage their time. This is an object lesson in management."

To avoid feeling rushed, then, allow plenty of time for something. Put buffers in your calendar. For example, suppose you have activities scheduled for each hour of the day. Break this up with an open hour somewhere at about the 70% point. Most of us fail to account for interruptions, delays, and other things that throw our schedules off. Then, we panic that we don't have enough time.

This problem is very noticeable with travel. Why wait until the day you are to leave before packing? Start assembling things well ahead of time. Have a complete toiletry kit dedicated to travel, and ensure it's stocked. Set aside some magazines for reading while at the hotel or whatever. Set aside allergy medicine, pack vitamins and supplements in a plastic bag and throw them in the refrigerator, etc. Make a checklist, and add to it as you think of things. Then, when you are ready for final packing it takes just a few minutes and you don't forget anything.

Local trips follow this same pattern. Have a little area where you keep your trip items. For example, I have such an area. There, I keep my trip list (library, bank, grocery store, friend's house, sporting goods store, association meeting, gas station) and any supplies I might have (coupons, books to return to the library, my trip binder).

I just mentioned my trip binder. My sister and I independently started doing the same thing at about the same time--an example, perhaps, of positive sync. Instead of carrying a wallet in my back pocket where it will cause spinal problems, I used to carry a briefcase. I could never find anything in all those pockets and I started carrying a lot of useless junk. So now, I have a zip-up notebook in which I keep the few things I normally need when leaving the house.