The first time I heard the phrase "Time Management" my immediate reaction was to grin, lift my eyebrows somewhat theatrically and think to myself "what a load of rubbish". Many years, courses and too much money later I am returning to my initial reaction of questioning the term - but this time round instead of a grin, a lifted eyebrow and the snide comment, I do so with respect.
In an ideal situation nobody should have to be taught how to manage their time, but we don't live in an ideal world. And though it is tempting to put the blame on the stressed out life we lead and on the quick results we pursue (from the remote controls to the pre-cooked dinners) a backward glance at previous centuries show us scientists, theologists, politicians and a few other "ists", (even some brilliant examples like Ben Franklin) who not only identified the problem but also set up their own method to make the most of themselves. It may not necessarily be called time management as it went under various names like goal setting, being more productive and so on, but at the end of the day it was the pursuit of something akin to "making the most of it".
When we finally realize and accept that our time here is limited, then, and only then, are we able to make the most of it.
We all know that there will come a time when we move on but for the large majority of people this is an uncomfortable fact that we do our best to hide and ignore. This means we amble along, wasting time and unfortunately too often doing things we don't even want to do.
When calmly, rationally and emotionally we accept that there is finite amount of time for us, then we are able to focus all our being (the emotional, the physical and the psychological) into our life and how we spend it. Interestingly enough we even recognize this in our day to day conversations, for example when we ask 'how did you spend the weekend, summer, evening or vacations?" We apply the verb "spend" which means "to use up" or "to wear out" so we know we are using up our time. The question is how, and are we using it the way we really would like to?
Focusing is not enough as you have to know what you want, why you want it and above all you have to make sure it is fulfilling because that minute you "spent" is gone forever and nobody can get it back to you. This implies knowing yourself and prioritizing that which is important to you - people, learning, sharing and loving on the one hand, and also material things as a means not as a goal.
In the final count time management will many times be a set of processes or tools that you choose to use so as to enable you to "make the most of yourself".
So if you know what you want and are willing to go for it, then you will.
