I have never made to-do lists because I thought they would stress me even more, but I realize now that it will help me stay focused and concentrate on the task at hand.
This course has defined the difference between the important and the urgent. All of us have to accomplish tasks that fit either of these categories. Knowing how to determine which tasks are important and which tasks are urgent and subsequent effective actions to a necessary skill for each us to master.
Typically, I keep a running list of things that must be completed both at home and at work. I regularly try to prioritize my lists. Sometimes the order of the prioritization varies. Somedays it is wisest to complete the tasks which can be completed in shortest amount of time first, this frees my time up so I can dedicate a concentrated amount of time to a larger project without concerning myself with all the little things that may weigh on my mind and slow my producity down.
Other times, I do the most difficult tasks first because the smaller tasks may not need to done today or tomorrow but in the near future.
Another method I have found that is helpful in reducing stress associated with a big project is to do something fun and totally engaging before beginning a big project. This clears my head and helps me be more productive, relaxed, and alert to the task.
There is a weight different in tasks that are listed as important and tasks that are listed as urgent. Knowing this difference and implementing the methods of prioritization will help me accomplish tasks in a order and timely fashion.
Dr. Read, you are absolutely right. You are one of the few people that have been telling me that. i wish that i could but everytime i even take a vacation i am still working. LOL
My most important and urgent tasks are lesson plans and lecture notes. They can get complicated so I put them off until tomorrow morning since I'm tired in the evenings after teaching. However, the next day(s) come and I've forgotten what I wanted to do for class.
Since I really have time constraints doing them at night after class (hen the material is fresh in my mind), I am going to start making a to do list for each course immediately after each lecture. That way when i come in the next morning I will have all my notes and ideas ready. i won't waste time trying to remember what I had wanted to do.
Sounds like a great plan Sara! Many instructors struggle with the temptation of knocking out only easy tasks. It's a big challenge to get to the larger work but we've got to focus on getting there to make real progress.
Sounds like you know yourself well Bindu. You have really mastered the skills that others find difficult, but perhaps you have gotten almost too good at them. It is a healthy idea every once in a while to let go, relax and enjoy life.
I am very obsessive compulsive when it comes to organization and "to do lists". I always have a notepad full of lists of things to do. I prioritize it according to what is the immediate thing to do. If the task need to be reorganized based on the urgency or non urgency i change it. I do have the Obstacle of Immediacy, very rarely at times I find myself not giving to others and taking on so much. i have a problem with delegating tasks.
I usually do a to do list, and i have a bad habit of doing the easy tasks fist. Although I do make the urgent tasks a priority. I have to learn to put the hardest ones first, because if not I procrastinate and never finish them. I also learned in this module how important it is to re-do a fresh to do list. I usually keep mine until all of it is checked off and that can take weeks. Therefore I will start making a fresh to do list at the beginning of each week.
Do remain open minded Laurent and open to new options for prioritizing stress in your life. Strategies that didn't work before may work today.
I put off if it is not a priority. I will change the way I prioritize. I will break the to-do list down further.
I do not always do things right away because all things do not require to be done immediately. I put before others when they have higher priority over the others. I juggle between what needs to be done immediately and those that can wait. I also use dates to prioritize. I will change the order by breaking the "to-do" list down further to determine better the urgency of task.
i usually do everything right the way and it is the same way in my life, the idea is to create as much time for myself as possible to do other things.but sometime i have to break it down when i have too much on my plate. it helps to lower down the stess in some way. and it's a necessity when you're getting older. I remain open minded.
After going through the first part of this course, I can tell that I have a BIG problem with immediacy. I want to get everything graded as it is turned in and feel the need to respond to all of my students within minutes of their emails. Perhaps it is because of the culture that we are living in (the instant gratification culture ... where the students expect instant access to everything!).
I will make sure to start using importance and urgency to avoid burnout, which I am already starting to experience.
This is true Jerry! Sometimes student needs are so urgent that we've got to put everything aside to help them. Other times we've got to put the perception of urgency into perspective for students when their needs are non urgent relative to other tasks on our plate.
Posting attendance and grading assignments are the most urgent, but there are always students that need questions answered and that will trump anything on my to do list. I really enjoyed the first module it lets me know that I am not the only one wanting to manage my time better!
At times I do tend to procrastinate, or I should say that I used to procrastinate. This has been a challenge of mine ever since I was a student back in the early 80's. In my junior year of undergraduate studies at Ohio University I realized that I needed to correct this and I worked hard to do this. I tried many different things but the only thing that really worked for me was me being as disciplined and organized as I possibley could be. This always worked for me in my athletic endeavors, meager as they were, so I applied what I learned playing football, basketball, and baseball to my everyday life, in terms of discipline and organization, and it worked. I still have my moments, as my wife points out, but they are fewer and farther in between than they used to be.
I believe that I do a ggod job of prioritizing the tasks that I need to accomplish. As a teacher at a small, for profit college, I am asked to do a great many things that I simply do not have the time for. Often it seems that teaching is the least important responsibility, according to my bosses. I do not agree with them on this, so I often do what I find important first and then I get to the tasks that my bosses have assignmed to me. I have worked here for 17 years now and I have consistantly been able to get my tasks dos, so I must be getting something right.
As an ex-military pilot, we lived by "check lists" in order to go flying. If you skipped something on the "check list", the results potentially could often be very bad!!
I live by "To Do" / "Check Lists" now-a-days.
Prioritizing is just good practice!! It is something we learned in the military and is always a good practice.
As an ex-military pilot, we lived by "check lists" in order to go flying. If you skipped something on the "check list", the results potentially could often be very bad!!
I live by "To Do" / "Check Lists" now-a-days.
Prioritizing is just good practice!! It is something we learned in the military and is always a good practice.
Most of the time I do wait but since I have done this module It has helped a great deal. It will decrease my stress level and things will get done in priority Thanks
