Kenneth Hu shares tips for organizing athletic, academic schedules

Sometimes a moment seems like it will last forever, until you realize every second that slipped away will never be brought back. Looking back to when I came to Fresno Christian Schools as a freshman, I felt like I would be a high school student forever and was wanting to graduate every single day. However, time has slipped away from me.

Now as a senior who is leaving campus in two months, I cannot believe how fast time has gone by. When I heard the news of Kobe Bryant’s death, the feeling that time is precious became stronger in my mind. 

Have you ever thought about how much time is left in your life? A study done by The Sleep Matters Club in a 2017 Huntington Post article has shown that the average person lives 28,835 days in a lifetime. People spend 33 percent of their lifetime sleeping, 17 percent working and 5.5 percent of eating. Altogether, everyone only has 2997 days of free time in a lifetime to participate in “free time activities”. This reminds us that time is limited and time management is important.

Peter Ferdinand Drucker, an Austrian-American management consultant, educator and author wrote in Essential Drucker, “Management is doing things right.” Although it sounds absolute, it is a truth confirmed repeatedly by practice.

How could poor time management affect us? According to the article What Are the Effects of Poor Time Management, published on Magoosh in 2016, it may lead us to form a habit of laziness which leads to increased time-wasting. Poor time management could also lead to unhealthy sleeping patterns and bad health due to stress and forgoing breakfast.

Time management allows students to accomplish mandatory tasks while leaving extended amounts of time for hobbies or extracurriculars. For example, doing homework before students entertain themselves not only means they finish work, but also that they can enjoy their free time with no stress.

The article went on to say that if students went home and decided to nap and play video games before they started homework, they might have more trouble finishing their work since they were not in the mindset of working. 

In the following tweet, time management adviser Time Doctor discusses necessary steps to balancing an entrepreneurial schedule.

When embarking on a new #business, you have to take all the steps required in order to succeed & be able to manage your ⏰ time appropriately.
Read this article ? https://t.co/WFoxVhaQOh by @wecanmag to know why #timemanagement is crucial to the success of your new business.

— Time Doctor (@ManageYourTime) March 20, 2020

As a student from China, I had multiple classes with a huge amount of homework. I view time management as a skill that Chinese students have to learn in order to finish homework. I know if I went home from school without a homework list and doing homework as soon as I get home, homework would not be completed.

If students forgot or chose not to do work before the deadline, they may receive a bad grade on top of being required to finish the assignment. The realization of the effectiveness of time management produces two different results. In the article “Reimagining the School Day”, Guilmette Elementary School is featured setting up their Lawrence, MA, school schedule. 

In certain situations, working smarter is better than working harder. I had a hard time remember English vocabulary since it appears to be multiple different letters with a Chinese meaning. I took an hour trying to remember as much as I could, but I only learned about 40 new words.

My teacher then taught me a new method to learn new vocabulary: read the word and the Chinese meaning quickly three times without worrying about remembering it or not. Read through 30 words each time and then cover the Chinese meaning next to the word. I was surprised to find that I remembered the Chinese meaning of the word. With that method being used, I can memorize 120 new words in an hour. 

In the following podcast, senior Kennth Hu discusses time management with Christian Living teacher Aubri Foster.

Many schools are shutting down due to the COVID-19 virus. Some students enjoy the time to work at home, while others struggle to adapt to the adjusted learning environment. In this transition period, students at FC are encouraged to check their email multiple times a day, stay connected and ask teachers about any questions that may arise.

Everyone has the same amount of time, but why do some people enjoy their life while being productive and some feel like there’s not enough time? Time management expert Laura Vanderkam’s TedTalk on gaining control of your free time breaks down the steps to being productive during time off of work.

Effective time management is not only a mastery of concepts, but also a reflection of one’s ability. Successful people may succeed for a variety of reasons, but they all have the issue of time management in common.

People who are not good at managing their time will often feel that they are short of time. In life, some people are often busy but fail to achieve meaningful results.Maximizing available time is the secret to good management of it.

Below are some tips by licensed professional counselor Donna M. White on PsychCentral.  

1. Make a plan, schedule, to-do list and set a deadline. The list not only help us find direction and work, but also remind us imperceptibly to be productive. 

2. Break down the huge goal into daily small tasks. It prevents the pressure and stress that comes with the goal, also helping us to be focused and productive. 

3. Ask for help when we can’t handle the problems instead of wasting time doing useless work. Sometimes we just need a different perspective to figure out the solution; it saves a lot of time.

4. Use time wisely and look for time that can be squeezed out. If you are preparing for a huge test, you can use the time to study when you are waiting for food in a restaurant. When we find these opportunities to gain extra time to produce, life becomes easier later.

5. Remember that we are not a machine; find a way to balance the time between work and breaks. Better efficiency needs a clear mind so proper rest and entertainment is not only good, it is necessary, to improve the learning efficiency of the foundation. 

People who understand efficient time management will compress time, improve efficiency, integrate trivial time and make scattered time produce greater benefits. Time management is not to finish everything but to use and manage time more effectively so that we can produce greater benefits at the same time. 

At this special time of studying at home, I learned time management is necessary. I asked Brooke Stobbe, the AmeriStudent international student coordinator at FC, for tips on how can I be productive while staying home.

She advised starting the day with a successful morning and go through a daily routine. Students should set an alarm in the morning, take a shower, get dressed and do whatever they have done in regular school days, but learn to accomplish these things at home instead of on campus.

Be purposeful and tackle your new challenges with ambition. Set a schedule and follow it.

For more articles, read Superintendent, faculty share updates on school, alternative learning model and Braden Bell leads tennis team, aims to persevere through crisis.

Kenneth Hu can be reached via email.