Quick Tips - Time Management

1. Plan before you begin your work. Create a long-term or macro-plan for the entire term which you can update regularly.

2. Set goals. Make your goals SMART: specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and time-limited.

3. Prioritize your goals. Try the 4Ds: Do, Defer, Delegate, Delete. Try to accomplish some important but not urgent goals every week. This will keep you out of last minute, crisis mode.

4. Keep track of your daily accomplishments and compare them to your priorities and goals.

5. Estimate your time realistically. Don't expect to get "everything" done in a day. It's better to have a short ‘to do' list and complete it than to feel overwhelmed by a long list of tasks.

6. Create a work schedule which includes enough time for both paid work (e.g. TA/RA jobs) and your own academic work. Interactive Weekly Schedule

7. Seek balance between your professional and personal life. Overworking is, in the long run, counterproductive if you lose connections with others and time to recreate.

8. Reduce external distractions. Find a quiet place which feels like an office or designated work space. Turn off technology which is not related to your work.

9. Go to the Managing Your Time at Grad School module for more strategies

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