Using time wisely

This is because it is so important to each and every one of us, not only for those who work, but even for housewives and children.

Not discerning the importance of time management amounts to a life not lived thoroughly making it a virtual waste. If one dares dispute the fact of the importance of time:

Ask a student the importance of an extra hour in her examination. Ask a surgeon the importance of a minute in an operation. Ask P T Usha the importance of a hundredth of a second in her 1984 Olympics 400-metre hurdles race where she missed the bronze medal by this quantum of time.

Yes, by this time, the importance of time management has probably sunk into the reader’s mind. Interestingly, in order to be successful, it is not exactly the amount of hours one devotes to work that counts, but the requisite concentration and focus one puts in during those hours. A simple example will suffice.

The first student does a gymnasium workout for one hour where he releases `feel-good’ endorphins which pump up his energy levels. During the second hour, feeling fit and fine, he studies with perfect focus. The second student feels that going to a gymnasium is a “waste of time” and therefore studies for two hours continuously, in a distracted absent-minded kind of way without much focus. Who is better in time management and thus more successful? Obviously, the first person is.

Additionally, students would do well to remember that while facing examinations, those who stay up the whole night studying in a tired and exhausted fashion without the requisite 6-7 hours of sleep are not using time wisely and judiciously.

On the other hand, there are several working women who do get sufficient sleep, yet in order to complete their job responsibilities at home and work, use clever time management strategies, like multi-tasking.

After saying so much how best can the layman utilise this valuable resource? One can start off by making the best use of one’s time by reducing the “time wasters”.

It is a foregone conclusion that those who spend a lot of time in prolonged telephone calls in gossiping, watching vacuous mindless television serials for hours together, or spending a lot of time in sipping cups of tea are really wasting this valuable and important resource. Therefore, the above time wasters should be avoided.

For, yes, remember, time once lost or spent erratically is time lost Forever. It is a well-known fact that lost time cannot be recycled, retrieved or brought back for usage.

Recall the following wise words of an erudite writer, “Does thou love life? Then do not squander time, for that is the stuff life is made of.”