| November 20, 2019 | Devin Jones | reporter |
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TR academic advisors Erin Bass and Dover Wernli spoke about the gift of time and the most productive ways to spend it at the TR Intercultural Network Nov. 13
“Time management is about being deliberate, and setting aside time to accomplish the thing you want to accomplish,” Wernli said.
TR academic advisor Michaelan Beaver, in charge of the success workshops, stated the event was chosen because it was one most students “identified as a deficit.”
The event’s goal was to establish better habits and introduce tools to students that would help them make better use of their time.
The speakers introduced the acronym S.M.A.R.T., which means specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and timely, as a system to evaluate and determine goals for oneself.
Bass introduced steps to manage time better, with the first being making smart goals, followed by recognizing obstacles and distractions.
Bass advocated establishing a plan as “better planning creates less stress.” She elaborated on the planning aspect by stating that a plan is the groundwork for how to improve, while injecting a desirable amount of self-respect.
According to Bass, getting organized was the next step which tied with the final stage of resources and success with resources laying the needed groundwork to stay organized.
The two speakers elaborated on making use of every little bit of time.
“You can’t get that time back,” Wernli stated as she acknowledged the difficulties of time management. “It’s a daily practice. Don’t be hard on yourself if you have failures.”
After the speech, TR librarian Tracy Soto offered the audience a selection of books on procrastination and time management. These books were available for students to check out from the library, providing another resource for students who wish to manage their time better.
TR student Wendell Robinson said he learned that “we can’t get time back.”
Robinson went on to cite distractions as what most students struggle with in terms of time management.
“Social media and hanging out with their friends,” Robinson listed as some of the most significant distractions.
TR student Ashlee Jones found the speakers “consistent, knowledgeable, believable and informative.”
Bass believed one needs to figure out how to efficiently manage their time as soon as possible.
“If you don’t spend your time in a way that benefits you and your future, someone else will spend it for you!” she added.
