A Time Management Solution That Actually Works

Goal Setting

Time management is one of the most important skills you can master in graduate school. Between classes, home life, and work, your days can start to blend. I am not very good at remembering things that are said out loud; instead, I need to write and record everything in a physical/digital format.

Follow along for some time management tips that have helped me visualize and achieve my semester goals.

The Eisenhower Matrix

The Eisenhower Matrix is how I organize my “to-do” lists, tasks, and priorities. This concept was developed by President Dwight D. Eisenhower during his presidency and time serving in the U.S. Army. He had to make tough decisions continuously about which of the many tasks he should focus on each day. This finally led him to invent the world-famous Eisenhower principle, which today helps us prioritize by urgency and importance. This method organizes your list into 4 quadrants, or categories: Do First, Schedule, Delegate, and Don’t Do.

The Breakdown

Do First: These are tasks that are important for your life and career and need to be done today or tomorrow at the latest. This is where I list my assignments, projects, and any work I need to complete with an immediate deadline. 

Schedule: These are tasks that are important but less urgent. List the tasks you need to schedule in your calendar here. Professional time managers leave fewer things unplanned and therefore try to manage most of their work in the second quadrant, reducing stress by terminating urgent and important to-dos to a reasonable date as soon as a new task comes in.

Delegate: These are tasks that are less important to you than others, but still pretty urgent. You should keep track of delegated tasks by email, telephone, or within a meeting to check back on their progress later. An example of a delegated task could be somebody calling you to ask for an urgent favor or request that you stop by their office. 

Don’t Do: These are things you should not be doing at all. Discover and stop bad habits, like scrolling on your phone or avoiding responsibilities.

Tips

1. Writing things down clears your mind, but always ask yourself what's worth doing first.
2. Try limiting yourself to no more than 5 tasks per quadrant. Before adding another one, complete the most important one first. 
3. You should always maintain one list for both “school” and “home” tasks. Keeping the lists separate helps to differentiate between work and home. Boundaries are important. 
4. Plan in the morning, then work on completing your goals. Review your lists at night, and be proud of everything you were able to do for yourself and others.

Checkout this printable sheet that you can use to start organizing your day with the Eisenhower Matrix.